Measure the roofline for the coverage
Permanent lighting is priced by the foot of roofline, so the first question is how much of the house the owner wants lit. Give the owner three choices: the front only, the front and sides, or all the way around. The front is the side that faces the street.
Peaks are the rake edges that run from the eave up to the ridge. Lighting them outlines the roof shape, and it adds footage. Hip roofs have no gable peaks.
| Coverage | Without peaks | With peaks |
|---|---|---|
| Front | 49 ft | 67 ft |
| Front and sides | 89 ft | 116 ft |
| All the way around | 118 ft | 153 ft |
Coverage moves the footage more than anything else. All the way around with peaks is 153 ft on this house, 3.1 times the front alone without peaks. Quote the coverage the owner asked for, and show the bigger options as their own prices.
Keep runs on a lower roof separate. On a two-story house, a porch or garage roof is a story lower, so price it at the lower story rate.
Before you quote, walk the roofline. Look for loose gutters, soft fascia and spots where the track can't run straight, like a bump-out or a satellite dish. Each one adds time or a repair line. A photo of each side helps your crew plan the runs.
Build a per-foot rate
The rate has to cover the track and lights, your crew's time, your overhead and your profit.
Material per foot is the track, the lights and the connectors at your dealer cost, spread over the footage. Dealer cost depends on the system you install and your volume with the dealer. The systems guide covers what each dealer program publishes.
Labor per foot covers cutting and fitting the track, running wire, mounting the controller and testing every zone. Time a few installs from arrival to cleanup.
Those example inputs land on $28.00 a foot, the one-story rate Measured Bid uses as a sample. Swap in your dealer cost and your crew's pace, and the rate will move.
Add a rate for each story
Second-story rooflines mean taller ladders, more moves and slower work. OSHA requires fall protection for residential construction work 6 feet or more above a lower level, so plan the setup time into the rate.
Measured Bid's sample rates are $28.00, $34.00 and $40.00 a foot for 1, 2 and 3+ stories. Time a few two-story installs to set your own step.
On a two-story house with a porch or garage roof, split the footage. The upper roofline goes at the two-story rate and the lower roofline at the one-story rate. That keeps the quote fair on houses where most of the lights hang over the porch.
Controllers, power and setup
Every job needs a controller and a power supply, and the homeowner needs the app set up on their phone. Charge for it as its own line. A per-job fee covers the parts and the time it takes to walk the owner through the app.
Long runs may need more than one controller or power supply. Check your system's limits. JellyFish, for example, lists 250 feet of lights per power supply. The sample in Measured Bid charges $600.00 per controller and adds one per 250 ft of lights.
Ask the owner how they want to use the lights. If they want the front and the garage on separate schedules, that means separate zones, and zone count depends on the controller. Check it before you promise it.
Set a minimum
Short jobs cost almost as much to run as long ones: the drive, the setup, the controller and the app walkthrough. A minimum keeps them worth doing.
Set your minimum near the price of the smallest job you'd take. If most of your front-only quotes land on the minimum, that's a sign to show the front-and-sides price next to it.
A published price to check against
It was the only installed price per foot we found published by a system maker. Your costs, your market and the system you install decide your rate.
Worked example
Here is the sample house quoted for the front with peaks, one story, at the sample rates.
Sierra Lighting Co.
(916) 555-0100
Permanent lighting quote
No. 1042
- Stories
- 1 story
- Coverage
- Front
- Include roof peaks
- Yes
| Item | Qty | Rate | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Permanent light track | 67 ft | $28.00 / ft | $1,876.00 |
| Controller, power and app setup | 1 each | $600.00 / each | $600.00 |
- Minimum job price applies.
The lines come to $2,476.00, so the $2,500.00 minimum applies. In Measured Bid the homeowner sees $2,500 to $2,900 for this house, and your team sees the line items.
What to put on the quote
Permanent lighting quotes lead to fewer callbacks when the homeowner can see exactly what they're buying. List these on every quote:
- Coverage: which sides of the house, and whether the peaks are included
- The light system, pixel spacing and track color
- Where the controller goes and what it plugs into
- Who adds an outlet if the house needs one
- App setup with the homeowner at the end of the install
- The maker's warranty and your own workmanship warranty
- How long the price is good for, and your deposit and payment terms
Show homeowners a range
A homeowner comparing permanent lighting quotes wants a number before booking a visit. A range for their own roofline, on your website, gives them one.
Measured Bid's lighting widget asks which sides to light and whether to include the peaks. It finds the street side from the address and prices the roofline with your rates. When the street side isn't clear, the runs show on the map for the homeowner to pick.
Start with the free permanent lighting quote template if you quote by hand, or measure a house with the permanent lighting calculator.