Estimator job: Estimator: job description

Опубликовано: February 9, 2023 в 3:36 pm

Автор:

Категории: Miscellaneous

Estimator: job description

An estimator is hired to estimate the cost and amount of materials, labour and equipment needed to complete construction work.

Membership of a relevant professional body may be beneficial for your career prospects.


What does an estimator do?

Typical employers

|

Qualifications and training

|

Key skills

Estimators, also known as cost planners, are responsible for estimating the costs of a planned construction project in terms of the labour, equipment and materials required. They typically work for construction contractors (that build the project) and are involved in the pre-construction phase of the project at the tendering stage (in which a construction company bids for the work, stating at what price and to what timescale it could complete it). Projects can be new builds or ongoing maintenance or refurbishment work.

An estimator’s typical responsibilities include:

  • analysing plans, bills of quantities and other project documentation in order to estimate costs
  • researching, sourcing, negotiating and obtaining the best prices and quotes from suppliers and subcontractors
  • analysing data that can affect costs (such as currency exchange rates and the company’s productivity rates)
  • assessing the financial, technical and operational risks of the project
  • visiting project sites to gather information
  • staying aware of the latest construction technologies
  • keeping up to date with the latest regulatory and legislative requirements
  • inputting into decisions over whether to bid for the project
  • working closely with key members of the project team (such as the bid manager) and liaising with clients and suppliers
  • keeping detailed records and writing reports.

The role is very similar to that of a

quantity surveyor

. The main difference between an estimator and a quantity surveyor is that a quantity surveyor typically has a wider remit. If they work for a consultancy (which is concerned with the design of the project), they will cost the designs and provide documents that estimators (who are employed at contractors) work from when making estimations. If quantity surveyors work for a contractor, they will be involved in measuring and monitoring the actual cost of the project as it progresses.

Estimators are likely to work in an office environment with occasional visits to construction sites; they typically work office hours, although longer hours may be required from time to time. As they progress in their careers, they may specialise in a type of project (such as residential or utilities) or in a particular type of construction package (part of a project) or discipline, such as ‘civils’, groundworks, mechanical or interiors.

Typical employers of estimators

  • Construction contractors and subcontractors
  • House builders
  • Property developers
  • The public sector and local housing associations (a few vacancies).

Vacancies are typically advertised online on jobs boards such as targetjobs, by university careers services, via recruitment agencies, directly on employers’ websites and on construction industry news websites.

Qualifications and training required

Traditionally, you would move into estimating after starting out in a role such as surveying assistant, but there are a few trainee estimator jobs available. Usually, employers ask for BTECs, A levels, an HNC, HND or bachelor degree in an industry-relevant subject, which can include civil, structural or mechanical engineering, quantity surveying and construction management.

Membership of a relevant professional body may be beneficial for your career prospects. Relevant bodies include the Association of Cost Engineers (ACostE), which requires you to have studied an engineering qualification, or the Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB).

Key skills for estimators

  • Numeracy
  • Attention to detail
  • A methodical approach to work
  • Commercial awareness
  • Teamworking, relationship-building and influencing skills
  • Negotiation
  • Communication
  • Organisation and time management
  • Problem solving.

Estimator Job Description Template | Monster.com

Estimator

[Intro Paragraph] A professional estimator job description starts with an introduction to the company or organization. Mention the types of estimations your company specializes in, like homes and buildings or rare and historic items. In addition to the specialization you’re seeking, be sure your introduction also includes a description of the work culture and some previously finished projects that your company has successfully finalized.

Estimator Job Responsibilities: The biggest responsibility of the estimator is to appraise or determine the value of an object or property. Additionally, you may want to include the following responsibilities in your estimator job description

  • Prepares work to be estimated by gathering proposals, blueprints, specifications, and related documents.
  • Maintains contact and relationships with private individuals and other organizations.
  • Identifies labor, material, and time requirements.
  • Computes costs by analyzing labor, material, and time requirements.
  • Resolves discrepancies by collecting and analyzing information.
  • Presents prepared estimates by assembling and displaying numerical and descriptive information.
  • Prepares special reports by collecting, analyzing, and summarizing information and trends.
  • Maintains cost database by entering and backing up data.
  • Continually updates technical knowledge by attending educational workshops and reviewing technical publications.
  • Contributes to team effort by accomplishing related results as needed.

[Work Hours and Benefits]: Most estimators work as independent contractors and are therefore able to design their own work schedule. However, as visitations are part of their job, they are expected to complete some of their work during regular office hours. Mention in your estimator job description if the new hire has the freedom to divide their own hours.

After discussing the work hours it’s time to discuss the benefits package. Mention what your company is willing to offer qualified, professional estimators. This may include fully paid health and dental insurance, paid vacation time, ST/LT disability, and a 401(K) plan.

Estimator Qualifications and Skills:

  • Strong analytic abilities
  • Working knowledge of Excel spreadsheets and word processing programs
  • Understanding of construction documents
  • Ability to read and interpret blueprints
  • Ability to coordinate and work independently
  • Knowledge of CAD software

Education and Experience Requirements:

  • Bachelor’s degree in estimator field of interest
  • [number] years’ experience as an estimator

[Call to Action] As you are finishing up your estimator job description, it’s important to include a strong call to action at the end of your job post. Including a link to the hiring website usually is the easiest way for candidates to apply. Prefer an offline approach? Include the mailing address candidates can forward their application to. Be sure to ask them to provide a portfolio of their previous work so you’ll get a better understanding of the candidate’s experience.

Find Your Next Hire with Your Estimator Job Description

Once your job description is written, it’s time for the next step: Presenting your job post to a database filled with talented and experienced candidates. Monster can help complete this step by offering a free job post!

0003

Real estate valuation is needed for the sale and purchase of objects, exchanges, collateral for consumer loans and mortgage loans. Therefore, the services of appraisers are in demand.

How to choose and rent an office

The appraiser must be attentive, organized, communicative. In the way, they will have a mnrozhno -acting:

📚 CBOP info, which is not for the rest of the time – the rests, which reacts to the use of;

All this falls on the shoulders of the appraiser, especially if he works as an independent specialist. If he works for hire in the company, he will not have some obligations – for example, a manager or administrator can communicate with clients at the first stages. The exact list of what the work of a real estate appraiser consists of depends on the specific niche, company, region.

How much an appraiser earns depends on the number of orders and the region – in different settlements, the cost of services is different. The monthly salary ranges from 20,000 ₽ to 130,000 ₽. The average value of the income of an independent specialist is about 45,000 ₽ per month. Profit can be increased, but for this it will be necessary to work hard on the formation of a good reputation among the target audience, that is, to become to some extent a brand.

Weigh the pros and cons

The appraiser profession, like other professions, has its advantages and disadvantages. Among the advantages:

🏅 Flexible schedule. You can build your own work schedule – when you go to the object, when you do paperwork, when you calculate the cost of the object.

🏅 Possibility of remote work. If you decide to work for yourself, you can meet with clients in neutral territory – for example, in a cafe, and work at home. This saves money that would have to be spent on renting an office.

🏅 High level of income. The average salary of a specialist is 40–45 thousand, and with a certain level of knowledge and a good reputation, you can earn an income 3–4 times higher than the average for the country.

There are several minuses that can neutralize all the advantages of working as an appraiser:

🔑 Liability. The appraiser is responsible financially to the client for the quality of the work done. In case of incorrect calculation of the cost, the client may suffer damage, and you will have to compensate him.

🔑 The need to constantly learn. Appraisers need to constantly improve their level of knowledge in order to stay in trend. In addition, a mandatory periodic professional development is provided – without it you will not be able to work.

🔑 High threshold for entering the profession. It will be very difficult for you in your specialty if you do not have an analytical mind. In addition, to become a specialist, you will need to work for the first few years for a meager salary as an assistant.

Get an education

How to become a real estate appraiser in Russia? First you need to get the appropriate education: without a diploma, you can’t work in a specialty, join a CPO, and take out insurance for evaluation activities.

You can immediately enter the profession of appraiser. But there is one problem – in our country there are critically few universities that train such specialists. For example, you can get the specialty “property appraiser” at the Institute for Professional Appraisal or the International Academy of Appraisal and Consulting. Due to the small number of BU3s, you will face competition for free places: you may not enter from the first time.

🎓 Moscow University of Geodesy and Cartography;

🎓 Interregional Academy of Construction and Industrial Complex;

🎓 Moscow Institute of Law.

When choosing courses, read their descriptions carefully. Choose a training, after passing which they issue confirming certificates or diplomas of the state sample. If you take courses and do not receive any confirming this document, you will not be able to join the CPO and work according to your specialty.

Get some practice

In many areas of activity, theory is nothing without practice, and evaluative activity is no exception. After receiving a professional education, you need 1-3 years to practice as an assistant appraiser. So you learn:

💼 correctly collect information about objects, paying attention only to significant things;

💼 process a large array of documents, quickly search for the necessary information;

💼 calculate the cost of real estate using several methods, using different data;

💼 understand how the price of real estate objects is formed depending on their characteristics;

💼 communicate with clients, draw up contracts for the provision of services.

That is, learn in practice to evaluate real estate objects. You will make mistakes, but mentors – expert appraisers – will point them out and explain why you should not do it and how to do it better.

There are several ways to find a place to practice. For example, to agree with the company in which you had an internship from TU3a, to hire you after the end of the training. Or ask the organizers of retraining courses to provide jobs after receiving a certificate, diploma. The most effective way is to look for vacancies on your own:

🔹 through acquaintances, if you know appraisers or people associated with this area;

🔹 on the websites of appraisal companies – often they post information about vacancies in the appropriate section;

🔹 on websites with resumes and vacancies – for example, on hh.ru or Avito.

Be prepared for the fact that the first time of the internship the salary will be low. Assistant appraisers get much less than appraisers themselves. But practice is an integral stage on the way to obtaining a profession in demand. Without it, you will make many mistakes and will not be able to get permission for appraisal activities.

Pass an exam

After 3 years of practice, you must pass an exam. It is called qualified, because it confirms the improvement of qualifications. After its passage, you are issued a certificate that allows you to work as an appraiser on your own, not as an assistant, but as a specialist. Every 3 years you will have to confirm your right to work: retake the exam and get a certificate again. If you do not do this, you will not be able to work in the profession.

Practice is needed just in order to successfully pass the exam. The form of the exam is strictly regulated, it takes place the same way in all regions. The candidate must pass exams in three areas: real estate, movable property and business valuation, including intangible assets and intellectual property. The exam is administered by the FBU “Federal Resource Center”, its duration is 2. 5 hours.

Join the CPO

Every appraiser who plans to work in the profession must join the CPO – a self-regulatory organization. This is necessary so that you work legally and can insure your activities. In addition, CPO members receive legal and qualification support, access to new databases, technologies and the best professional development programs.

📑 copies of qualification certificates confirming the improvement of qualifications at least 1 time in 3 years from the moment of obtaining a diploma;

📑 copies of documents that confirm the reason for changing your surname, if your surname differs in different documents – for example, you changed it after marriage;

📑 a copy of an identity document – a passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation;

📑 certificate of the absence of outstanding, uncollected convictions for crimes in the sphere of the economy, as well as for especially serious, serious, medium-gravity crimes.

Some CPOs also require a certified copy of the insurance policy. Sometimes it can be issued upon entry or after it – check the conditions in the organization of your choice.

CPO will review the documents within 7-10 days and make a decision. If it is positive, you will be issued a certificate of the established type after entering your data in the register of members of the society. It will confirm your right to evaluate real estate.

3a CPO membership will have to be paid. Specific amounts may vary depending on the region and specific organization. The average cost is:

💰 30,000 ₽ — contribution to the compensation fund;

💰 5 000 ₽ — entrance fee;

💰 10 000 ₽ — annual membership fee.

That is, you will have to immediately pay about 35,000 ₽ to become a member of a self-regulatory organization and receive from it a certificate for real estate valuation. And then you will need to pay another 10,000 ₽ annually.

Issue an insurance policy

Under Art. 15 F3 135, real estate appraisers must issue an insurance policy. The cost of insurance depends on the amount that the insurance company can reimburse. The higher it is, the more you have to pay for the policy. Most often, its cost is 300 ₽ for every 300,000 ₽ of the insurance amount. That is, if you need an insurance amount within 5,000,000 ₽, you will need to pay about 2,500–4,000 ₽ for the policy during registration.

The cost of insurance may differ depending on the selected company, because different insurance companies use different rates. Compare the offers of several companies to choose the best solution.

Start working as an appraiser

You can start working in any company or on your own. Each option has its pros and cons.

Employment

Employment is work in a company. Your duties will be standard: collection of information about objects, cost analysis and reporting. 3a search for clients, communication with them at the initial stage will be answered by other employees, that is, you will not have to look for customers on your own. All that is needed from you is simply to work according to the profile.

Some employers can help you join the CPO and apply for an insurance policy. Many of them often additionally require:

📲 PC experience – recently, evaluators have begun to use various software that helps them work;

📲 driver’s license category “B”, ideally – a personal car for trips to objects;

📲 consent to go on business trips – for example, to other regions, cities;

📲 consent to attend specialized trainings, training courses, webinars – this is how the appraiser will improve his qualifications, know about new laws, methods, rules.

Study the description of specific vacancies to understand what exactly a particular employer wants.

Self-employed

An independent property and land valuator earns more than a state valuator. It has no additional costs – for example, you do not need to rent an office: you can work from home or coworking. You do not need to pay salaries to other employees if you work for yourself.

In independent work, income is higher, but you will also have to do more. For example, you will need to independently monitor your knowledge and constantly improve them, improve your skills. The search for clients also falls entirely on your shoulders.

But, when creating your company, calculate all the risks in advance. You will have a great responsibility. It will be necessary to calculate expenses and incomes, hire employees, train them, look for clients, make sure that the company’s activities comply with all laws.

To create a company, you can open an individual entrepreneur with the right to hire employees or OOO. If you decide to create a legal entity, please note that you will need to hire at least two appraisers. It is important that their right to conduct evaluation activities is not suspended. The legislation prohibits being the sole founder in a company conducting appraisal activities. Otherwise, everything is simple: apply to the Federal Tax Service with an application for registration – tax employees will tell you what and how to do next.

Work well

The level of income of a specialist largely depends on reputation. The better the reviews about you, the more people will be willing to pay for the work. To earn a good reputation, you need to work well.

👍🏻 Manage your time correctly. It is better to refuse 1-2 clients if you are not sure that you will be able to fulfill all orders. If you collect too many orders, there is a risk of not being able to make several reports or making mistakes in the calculations. This will negatively affect the reputation – dissatisfied customers can write bad reviews.

👍🏻 Consult for details. Explain to clients why you calculated the cost of real estate using the chosen method, what characteristics influenced prices. Answer additional questions, for example, how to reduce or increase the value of real estate, how banks will use the report, why they need it.

👍🏻 Increase your level of knowledge. In appraisal activity, as in other areas, everything is constantly changing. Keep up with the market: keep an eye on new technologies, use updated databases, constantly improve your skills. This will make your services up-to-date, allow you to create high-quality reports on the assessment of the value of real estate.

👍🏻 Try not to make mistakes. The work of an appraiser requires focus and attention. And every mistake threatens with material liability. Therefore, try not to make mistakes: carefully study the documents, recheck the calculations several times. The fewer mistakes you make, the more often you will be recommended to acquaintances, colleagues, friends.

Let’s summarize: what is needed to work as an appraiser

🔸 Learn the features of the profession. Understand that most of the working day you will have to work with papers, communicate with people, make calculations.

🔸 Weigh all the pros and cons of the profession. It brings a lot of money and is distinguished by a relatively free schedule, but it requires an investment of time, finances, attentiveness and responsibility.

🔸 Get a higher education – right away in a specialty or in a related specialty, and then take a vocational training course.

🔸 Take practice – without it you will not be able to pass the qualification exam. Work in appraisal activity for at least 3 years.

🔸 Pass the exam. Pass the post-practice exam and receive a qualifying certificate. He will confirm the level of knowledge and allow you to work according to your specialty.

🔸 Join CPO. Membership in a self-regulatory organization is a prerequisite for work. Collect a package of documents and pay fees.

🔸 Apply for an insurance policy. This is a mandatory requirement. Insurance can be in any company.

🔸 Start working as an appraiser. You can get a job for hire, register an individual entrepreneur or open your own company. The greater the prospect of earnings, the greater the responsibility and deeds.

🔸 Work well. Then you will get a good reputation. The better it is, the more clients will turn to you for help.

The cost of the appraiser profession depends on the chosen path. Mandatory expenses – joining a CPO costing about 50,000 rubles and a policy costing about 300-4000 rubles. The price of training can start from 0 ₽ and vary over a wide range.

The appraiser profession requires an analytical mind, responsibility, organization, knowledge. To become an appraiser, you have to work hard, but the result can justify all the costs. Good specialists receive up to 130,000 ₽ per month, and experienced owners of their companies can earn much more.

registration, details of work, risk insurance

We will tell you what requirements an appraiser must meet, how to become one, and why an insurance policy is needed.

Appraiser is a specialist who appraises the value of property. It can be real estate ( apartment, land, commercial premises ), vehicles, business or intellectual property.

When the services of an appraiser are required:

  • when drawing up a contract of sale;
  • when exchanging property;
  • when concluding a mortgage or loan agreement.

The profession of a property appraiser is one of the top most prestigious and highly paid professions. Such work is associated with great responsibility and risks.

Find out how to protect yourself from losses during work and protect yourself from risks with Ingosstrakh.

Registration of appraiser activity

There are many requirements for the position of appraiser. And these are not only personal qualities. Although, of course, they are also important for the implementation of valuation activities.

A specialist who has decided to become an appraiser must have:

  • decisiveness;
  • high level of self-organization;
  • the ability to find a common language with different people;
  • mindfulness;
  • discipline;
  • analytical mind.

As for education and professionalism requirements, they are also quite high. The appraiser must have:

  • Higher education diploma . The priority is legal or economic specialties.
  • Qualification certificate , which shows what kind of property a specialist can work with (cars, residential or commercial real estate).
  • Certificate , which confirms that the appraiser is a member of the self-regulatory organization of appraisers (SRO).

There are specialized appraiser training programs in many universities. But immediately after receiving a diploma of higher education, you cannot count on the position of an appraiser – first you need to work as an assistant or trainee for at least three years.

After obtaining the required experience, you must pass the qualifying exam . The exam contains 3 blocks:

  1. Real estate — 40 questions.
  2. Movable property — 40 questions.
  3. Business valuation — 54 questions (this block includes intellectual property valuation).

During preparation, you can use the materials posted on the website of the Ministry of Economic Development. The exact questions are not known in advance.

To pass certification, a specialist must apply for an exam.

Applications for certification are accepted only from those candidates who have 3 years of work experience as an assistant. The length of service must be confirmed by an entry in the work book.

Having passed the exam, you won’t be able to forget about it for a long time — the qualification of a professional appraiser must be confirmed every 3 years. This is necessary to maintain a place in the register of appraisers.

Joining SRO is another mandatory requirement for official work as an appraiser. Membership in a self-regulatory organization entitles you to insurance of your activities and access to a database of advanced training courses.

There are many SROs in Russia. A complete list of organizations is available on the Rosreestr website. You must select one and apply for membership. The application is under consideration within 7-10 days. If the application is approved, then membership fees must be paid: once for membership and then annually.

Nuances of work

Appraisers are divided by type of activity:

  • Appraiser of business deals with the assessment of the value of the assets and liabilities of the company, the assessment of its profitability.
  • In addition to economics and legal issues, an appraiser of real estate needs to know construction technologies and materials – this helps to perform an assessment more accurately.
  • Specialist in valuation of movable property knowledge about the operation and design of vehicles is important.
  • To assess art objects, often receive additional education in the field of cultural studies, art history, etc.

That is, a competent assessment requires a wide range of knowledge in the field in which the specialist works.

duties of appraiser include:

  • inspect the object of assessment, note its characteristics;
  • analyze the market of the appraised object: trends, average cost of similar objects;
  • determine the methodology for calculating the cost of an object, own various methods;
  • draw up an assessment report and a conclusion in the established form;
  • advise clients on valuation legislation.

You can work as an appraiser for hire: in insurance companies, real estate agencies or companies that provide appraisal services. You can also provide services yourself and work as a private person. But no matter what form of employment you choose, the requirements for the activities of appraisers are the same for everyone.

Risk insurance

One of the important features of the appraiser’s work is the obligation to have an appraiser’s compulsory liability insurance contract.

Why does an appraiser need to take out insurance cover?

According to 135-FZ “On Appraisal Activities in the Russian Federation”, an appraiser cannot conduct professional activities without issuing a liability insurance policy.

The law establishes responsibility for the valuation report prepared by the appraiser. If in the future it turns out that due to an incorrect assessment of the value of the object, the customer of the appraisal will incur losses, the appraiser will have to compensate such losses to the client – in this case, the appraiser’s liability insurance comes into effect. The issued policy will protect the appraiser from unforeseen expenses, and give the customer additional guarantees and confidence in working with such an appraiser.

Appraiser’s liability insurance at SPAO Ingosstrakh: protect your reputation and professional activities in full compliance with legal requirements and work without additional stress!

Errors in work entail not only material costs.