Fixed-price versus hourly: which protects you?

Hourly billing sounds fair, and on a small repair it often is. On a full renovation it quietly moves every risk onto you: if the work takes longer than expected, for any reason, you pay for it.

A fixed price is only meaningful if the scope behind it is complete. Ask what happens when something unexpected is found behind a wall, whether materials are named or budgeted as an allowance, and who absorbs a delay caused by the contractor's own scheduling.

We quote fixed prices because it forces us to do the planning properly before we start. It is a harder promise to make, and it is the reason the number on the contract is the number on the final invoice.