Conceptual & Feasibility Estimating
Our preliminary estimate services turn a program, a square footage and a location into a defensible conceptual budget range — benchmarked to your building type, escalated to the midpoint of construction and presented as an honest low-to-high band — so you can make the go decision, underwrite the pro forma or set the capital budget before design development starts spending real money.
| System | Low | Likely | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sitework & foundations | $22 | $28 | $35 |
| Structure & envelope | $58 | $68 | $82 |
| Interiors & finishes | $34 | $41 | $52 |
| MEP systems | $46 | $54 | $66 |
| GC & soft costs | $30 | $36 | $44 |
Committing design fees, closing on a site or taking a budget to a board without a real number is where projects quietly go wrong — the overrun is already baked in before anyone measures a wall. A preliminary estimate is the cheapest insurance a project ever buys: a fast, defensible range that tells you whether to proceed while changing course still costs nothing. JU Estimating LLC gives that early decision a dedicated desk — so you commit capital on evidence, not optimism.
A preliminary estimate is not a shrunken bid — it is a different tool for a different moment. Instead of counting every line off a complete drawing set, it benchmarks your program against real cost data and presents an honest range. That is what makes it fast, and what makes it honest about its own precision. When you need the tight, line-item version, our cost estimating services carry it, along with the full estimate-class ladder.
Three moves take a concept to a number you can act on: benchmark it, break it into systems, and bracket it with a range. The measured quantities behind a later, detailed estimate come from the same discipline as our quantity takeoff services.
With only a program and a location, we benchmark your project against parametric models and current cost-per-square-foot data for the building type. A warehouse, a medical office and a mid-rise multi-family carry very different rates, so the number reflects what your project actually is, not a blended average.
As soon as a schematic exists, we move from a single rate to assembly pricing - structure, envelope, interiors, MEP and sitework each carry their own conceptual number. That is what lets you see which system is driving the budget while the design can still respond to it.
A conceptual number is honest only when it is a range. We carry a design contingency for what the drawings have not resolved and escalation to the midpoint of construction, then present a low-to-high band instead of a single false-precision figure you would have to defend later.
The same conceptual number supports every early decision, from a go/no-go to a lender conversation.
A fast, defensible number at the concept stage that tells you whether the project pencils before you spend on design development. When the answer is no-go, finding out now is the cheapest the project will ever be.
Ready for the detailed version? cost estimating services carry the bid-level estimate.
Compare sites on more than the asking price. We rough out the cost of building your program on each parcel - grading, utilities and site constraints included - so the land decision reflects the total cost, not just the purchase.
See sitework estimating services for the detailed site scope.
A conceptual construction number your pro forma and your lender can rely on. We give you a budget range with the basis written beside it, so the construction line in your underwriting is defensible instead of a placeholder.
Commercial project? commercial estimating services scale into the full bid.
Keep a design honest against its budget as it develops. A preliminary estimate at schematic, reconciled again at design development, catches an overrun while the drawings can still absorb the change instead of after they are complete.
Need quantities pulled? quantity takeoff services carry the measured set.
Early decisions are rarely one-versus-nothing — they are one option against another. We price the realistic alternatives side by side, so a structural system, a program size or a site choice becomes a number you can compare rather than a debate you have to settle on instinct. You hand a board or a client a decision, not a hunch.
Illustrative conceptual comparison of structural options. Figures are not client work.
A preliminary estimate should never be a dead end. We build it so it reconciles as the design firms up and hands off cleanly to a full, line-item construction cost estimate when the documents are ready — same basis, same assumptions, no starting over. You get one continuous budget story from napkin sketch to bid day.
Want to see the format before you send anything? Download a sample estimate.
Three simple steps to convert an idea into a defensible budget range.
Send whatever you have - a napkin sketch, a schematic set, the gross square footage, the intended use and the location. There is no need for a complete drawing set at this stage. Tell us the decision you are trying to make, and a free quote comes back within 5 to 10 minutes.
An estimator benchmarks your program against parametric and assembly data localized to your region, then applies design contingency and escalation to the construction midpoint. The result is a budget range with the reasoning behind it, not a single number pulled from the air.
Receive a clear conceptual budget report with a low-to-high range, a cost-per-square-foot breakdown by system and a basis document listing every assumption. When the design develops, it hands off cleanly to a bid-level cost estimate instead of starting over.
Preliminary estimates start at $129 and land in 24-72 hours. Firms testing feasibility every week run a monthly package instead — see our estimating pricing.
Share Your ConceptMatching early-stage decision-makers with the budget confidence they need most.
Validate whether a project pencils before you commit capital or close on a site. A conceptual estimate at the front and a reconciliation as the design firms up keep the construction line in your pro forma honest - and keep a bad deal from getting expensive to discover.
Set a capital budget you can take to a board with confidence. A preliminary estimate gives you a defensible range and a cost-per-square-foot basis, so the number in the capital request is grounded in current market data rather than last project's memory.
Keep a schematic honest against the owner's budget before construction documents are drawn. When a client asks what the atrium or the extra floor costs, you answer with a conceptual number the same week instead of waiting on a contractor months later.
Give an owner an early budget that builds trust without over-committing. A ranged conceptual estimate positions you as the partner who priced it honestly up front, and reconciles cleanly to your hard bid when the documents are complete.
Not sure which stage you are at? Talk to an estimator — or read how the conceptual and detailed estimates fit together, in our estimating FAQ.
When the concept becomes a project, these carry it from a range to a bid.
The detailed, bid-level estimate a preliminary number hands off to - line-item CSI budgets with the full estimate-class ladder.
ExploreRetail, office and multi-family scope priced to the full drawing set once the concept is approved.
ExploreLine-item residential budgets for custom homes, multi-family and renovations.
ExploreEvery CSI division measured in one coordinated package, architectural through civil. 24-72 hours.
ExploreNet-in-place quantities in your units, ready to drop straight into your own pricing. From $149.
ExploreOrder-ready quantities with waste factors applied and converted to purchase units.
ExplorePer-project tiers and the monthly package for firms testing feasibility every week.
ExploreSee the report format and the level of detail before you send a concept.
ExploreTurnaround, file formats, confidentiality and revisions, answered across every service.
ExploreStill unsure? Ask us directly, or browse the full FAQ.
Preliminary estimates start at $129, because a conceptual budget takes far less than a full line-item takeoff. Price scales with the size of the program and how much design information exists - a single-building feasibility check and a multi-building master plan are not the same job. Send whatever you have and a fixed quote comes back in 5 to 10 minutes, before you commit to anything.
A preliminary estimate is a range, and its accuracy depends on how much design exists. Early concept work typically lands within about 15 to 30 percent of the eventual number, and that band tightens as the drawings develop. We state the range and every assumption on the basis document, so you always know how firm the number is - and when you need a tighter one, we point you to a detailed cost estimate.
A preliminary estimate answers whether the project pencils, using benchmarks and assembly pricing off a concept or schematic. A detailed cost estimate answers what it will cost to build, using a full line-item takeoff off construction documents. Most owners order both - a preliminary number to make the go decision, then a detailed estimate to bid. Our cost estimating services carry the detailed version and the full estimate-class ladder.
Standard turnaround is 24-72 hours from the point we understand the program and the location. Because a conceptual estimate needs far less input than a bid-level one, it is often the fastest deliverable we produce. Rush work is available for a rush fee when a board date or a closing moves.
No - that is the point of a preliminary estimate. A program, a rough square footage, the intended use and the location are enough to produce a defensible range. If you have a schematic set, we move from a single cost-per-square-foot rate to assembly pricing, which tightens the band. Either way, you do not need a complete construction-document set.
Yes - a cost-per-square-foot breakdown by system is part of the deliverable. We benchmark against current data for your specific building type and market rather than a national blended figure, and we show the rate by system so you can see whether the structure, the MEP or the finishes is carrying the budget.
Yes. Feasibility and go/no-go studies, land acquisition and site-selection comparisons, pro forma and lender support, and design-phase budget checks are all in scope. For a site comparison we rough out the cost of building your program on each parcel, so the decision reflects total cost rather than the asking price alone.
Yes. Concepts, programs, pro forma figures and your pricing are treated as confidential, and we sign an NDA on request before you send anything. Details are never shared between clients, and we do not develop or build projects ourselves - we are not a competitor on any deal we price for you.
Share your program, square footage and location and let an estimator prepare a defensible conceptual budget range. Receive a clear report with a low-to-high band, a cost-per-square -foot breakdown by system and a documented basis, delivered in 24-72 hours from $129.
Feasibility, pro forma and design-phase budgetsProposal within 24 hours