I did my last new home warranty build 6 years ago, sticking to full home reno and wineries now. I am absolutely adamant that we use my trades, they provide estimates for budgeting but no time wasted quoting when they could be on site making money. Hard no on the project if the clients want their own trades or the three quotes bulls**t, someone else can play that game. If you're trusting me with your build, then sooner or later you have to trust my trades anyway, so that trust starts right now by accepting that they will bill fairly and deliver quality and service. Why would I take on quality assurance and responsibility for a cheaper trade I don't normally work with? It's luxurious to be able to dictate terms like that, but the build book is full well into 2024 at present and I politely decline a couple of projects a week. I've spent years developing relationships with key trades, and unlike when a homeowner calls out of the blue, they take my calls and show up when required. In this crazy undersupplied skilled labour market, that's worth a lot. Therefore, I don't give out contact info to my trades, I control that and take a margin.
The custom world is not a price game, it's a service and quality game, and clients need to understand that right from the very beginning. Most of them don't realize I'm interviewing them when we meet for the first time, but I surely am. Perhaps some figure it out when I politely ask how they'll be funding the project, and what the budget is. If they're coy about disclosing budget, that tells me they're probably out of place in the custom market. "Have you considered a pre-engineered steel building?"
