About this product

THE PROBLEM

Most small contractors bid from memory, a notepad, or a spreadsheet they built five years ago. Margins leak three ways: underpriced bids (confusing markup with margin), untracked job costs, and change orders done on a handshake that never get billed. Estimating software costs $99–$499/month — and you still have to feed it your numbers.

WHAT TRADEGUARD GIVES YOU

A complete, self-contained estimating-to-closeout system in one workbook — no macros, no add-ins, no subscription. Six sheets, one flow:

• START HERE — orientation, your default crew labor rate, and the 6-step workflow (set rate → customize price book → build bid → send proposal → track job costs → log change orders).
• PRICE BOOK — 312 line items across 14 CSI-style divisions: Demolition, Concrete, Framing, Roofing, Windows & Doors, Drywall, Flooring, Painting, Kitchen & Bath, Electrical, Plumbing, HVAC, Exterior & Site, and General. Every row: cost code, division, item, unit, material cost, labor hours, labor rate, and a unit total that calculates automatically (Material + Hours × Rate). Yellow cells are editable — make it YOUR book. Licensed-trade rows (electrical/plumbing/HVAC) carry their own rates.
• BID ESTIMATOR — 40 bid lines. Pick a cost code from the dropdown; description, unit and unit cost fill in automatically. Enter quantities. Set ONE overhead % and ONE markup % — the sheet computes your bid price AND shows your equivalent TRUE gross margin % side by side, so you never confuse the two again. A reverse calculator tells you the markup you need for any target margin.
• PROPOSAL — a clean, client-ready print view that pulls your bid lines and hides every internal cost column. Sales-tax, deposit %, and balance math included, plus terms and signature lines. Print or save as PDF.
• JOB COSTING — estimate vs. actual per cost code (estimates pull from your bid automatically; you enter actual material, labor and sub costs). Variance $ and % flag overruns while you can still act. Below it: a 15-line subcontractor draw tracker (contract, paid-to-date, % complete, remaining).
• CHANGE ORDERS — a 20-line log. Enter price and cost per change; revised contract total and gross margin before/after compute automatically on every row.

PLUS 3 FILLABLE PDF FORMS (real form fields — type right into them):

• Field Change Order — sign-off form for changes discovered on site
• Change Order Cost Breakdown — labor/materials breakdown the client can see
• Client Approval Form — approve / approve-with-changes / decline checkboxes plus signature and date fields Each form carries a note that it is not legal advice.

AND: a 4-page Quick-Start Guide (set up the price book, build a markup-protected bid, run the job, handle change orders) and a README with the license.

EXACT CONTENTS (TradeGuard-Contractor-OS-v1.zip, 6 files):

• TradeGuard.xlsx — 6-sheet workbook, 312-row price book
• CO-Field-Change-Order.pdf — fillable, 11 fields
• CO-Change-Order-Cost-Breakdown.pdf — fillable, 35 fields
• CO-Client-Approval-Form.pdf — fillable, 14 fields (incl. 3 checkboxes)
• Quick-Start-Guide.pdf — 4 pages
• README-license.txt — personal/single-business-use license

WHO IT'S FOR: residential general contractors and remodelers running crews of 1–10 who want bid discipline and job-cost visibility without $99–499/month estimating SaaS.

HONEST DISCLOSURES:

• Price-book costs are realistic US residential starting points, NOT quotes — verify material prices with your suppliers and labor against your own crew rates before bidding.
• The workbook produces ESTIMATES only — not financial, legal, or tax advice.
• Sample data in the workbook (labeled SAMPLE) is entirely fictional.
• The forms are templates, not legal advice; have your contract and forms reviewed for your state's requirements.
• No income, savings, or profit guarantees are made.
• Works in Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets. No macros, no add-ins.

What's included

• Exact contents (TradeGuard-Contractor-OS-v1.zip, 6 files):
• TradeGuard.xlsx — 6-sheet workbook, 312-row price book
• CO-Field-Change-Order.pdf — fillable, 11 fields
• CO-Change-Order-Cost-Breakdown.pdf — fillable, 35 fields
• CO-Client-Approval-Form.pdf — fillable, 14 fields (incl. 3 checkboxes)
• Quick-Start-Guide.pdf — 4 pages
• README-license.txt — single-business-use license The 6 sheets:
• START HERE — orientation, your default crew labor rate, and the 6-step workflow.
• PRICE BOOK — 312 line items across 14 CSI-style divisions: Demolition, Concrete, Framing, Roofing, Windows & Doors, Drywall, Flooring, Painting, Kitchen & Bath, Electrical, Plumbing, HVAC, Exterior & Site, and General. Every row: cost code, division, item, unit, material cost, labor hours, labor rate, and a unit total that calculates automatically (Material + Hours × Rate). Yellow cells are editable — make it YOUR book. Licensed-trade rows carry their own rates.
• BID ESTIMATOR — 40 bid lines. Pick a cost code from the dropdown; description, unit and unit cost fill in automatically. Enter quantities. Set ONE overhead % and ONE markup % — the sheet computes your bid price AND shows your equivalent TRUE gross margin % side by side, so you never confuse the two again. A reverse calculator tells you the markup you need for any target margin.
• PROPOSAL — a clean, client-ready print view that pulls your bid lines and hides every internal cost column. Sales-tax, deposit %, and balance math included, plus terms and signature lines. Print or save as PDF.
• JOB COSTING — estimate vs. actual per cost code (estimates pull from your bid automatically; you enter actual material, labor and sub costs). Variance $ and % flag overruns while you can still act. Below it: a 15-line subcontractor draw tracker (contract, paid-to-date, % complete, remaining).
• CHANGE ORDERS — a 20-line log. Enter price and cost per change; revised contract total and gross margin before/after compute automatically on every row. Plus 3 fillable PDF forms (real form fields — type right into them): Field Change Order (sign-off for changes discovered on site), Change Order Cost Breakdown (labor/materials breakdown the client can see), Client Approval Form (approve / approve-with-changes / decline checkboxes plus signature and date fields). Each form carries a note that it is not legal advice.

Key features

• Markup vs margin, side by side → the bid estimator shows your bid price AND your true gross margin %, so the classic underpricing mistake becomes impossible to miss
• 312-item price book that calculates itself → unit totals update from material + hours × rate; edit the yellow cells and the whole book is yours
• Estimate vs actual job costing with variance flags → overruns surface while you can still act, not at closeout
• Change-order log with automatic margin impact → every change updates the revised contract total and margin before/after
• Fillable sign-off PDFs → changes get signed in the field instead of living on a handshake