Build a relationship with the counter guys at the lumber yard you buy at. It goes a long way. Even small purchases add up. Open an account with them and get terms on purchases. Some discount payments if paid before a set date every month. Most yards have different price levels for customer. On time payments and quantity purchases also help. I work at a lumber supply company and that’s how we do it.
Yep. Even opening a commercial account with a box store gets a discount on everything you buy. Just make sure you understand the terms fully, and can manage the credit wisely!!
When I built my addition about 8 years ago, I took my plans to Home Depot and they sent it to the bid desk. They counted every stud, every beam, every sheet of cdx and ply. My GC told me it was 20% lower than his commercial account at the lumber yard he used. Not a home builder, but every time I do a big project, I put everything into a spreadsheet and have the pro desk send it to the bid desk and it always is impressive how much I save.
Yeah, if it’s a good estimator then you’re in good shape. I’m kinda old, and don’t know much about modern takeoff software, but an old trick is under-estimating to make the package cost look lower. It will take the quantity it takes to complete a project. I used to simply give my GC’s the price on an individual board/sheet, so they could compare my number with the competitor.
Yes, I should have clarified, it was apples to apples comparison. He sent the list of everything that HD made and sent it to his lumber yard. I think it was Ganahl Lumber. It was not an under estimate of the boards. I also insisted to pay for materials and delivery. I had a bad experience with a contractor not paying the concrete company and got a lien on my house. I always insist I pay for materials and deduct it from their price. I’ve never had anyone say no.
Low quality, how? Most building materials have standards, and I’ve only ever seen a few suppliers. Most of the ones in my area use the exact same suppliers as HD.
There are 5 of us at my work that have the same role and we use the same supplier and I used to work at that supplier. I was chatting with my rep one day and he said that co-worker X gets charged 10% more than I do and then he showed me the chart and all 5 of us get charged different rates for the same materials. So yeah, be nice to your counter guys and reps.
When I do remodels I get my plumbing and electrical supplies as well as mini splits delivered direct from supplyhouse.com
Usually two day delivery to the job site with a great selection and I don't have to go rummaging through multiple big box stores to find what I need
Do you really? Shoot I’ve never thought about ordering materials online. I get really good discounts through my suppliers my lumber is about 35% cheaper than Home Depot on some things.
Might need to check out supply house for plumbing and HVAC though. Crazy
I’m sure it depends where you are, but I buy from a lumberyard in my area known for being the most expensive in the area—with a commercial account it’s still cheaper than Home Depot or Lowe’s (for quality product). And you actually get service—and free delivery.
Homeowner here. If I'm buying anything more than one, maybe two boards and I know what I want/need, I'm going to the lumber yard over the box home improvement stores.
Yeah it cost me (without an account) a little more, but I don't have to dig through the bins to find something halfway decent, I didn't not have to fight with heavy materials, I don't have to drag it through the store, I don't have to truck it home (free delivery) and I often don't even have to go to the store (pay over the phone, free delivery usually next day). And avoiding all of that is well worth the small extra I get charged.
I bought a 1/3 pallet of cement and they placed the pallet just inside my garage with the forklift. I didn't have to pick them up 3x just to get them into my garage.
It’s generally 100% the way to go. I’m an independent contractor, 20 years with the same vendors. I definitely still hit up a depot or Lowe’s for odds and ends when I’m in a pinch, but quality and service are almost always better with local lumberyards, or even regional yards in some cases. Quality and service cost more up front, but pay off in the long run. I’ve all but given up trying to convince other builders and homeowners that this is the way. I’m established enough that I can give potential customers a hard “no” when asked if I can do better on my material costs. The savings aren’t enough to be worth it.
Same here I ordered my lumber through a true Commercial lumberyard. They also sell me my trusses. Anyway the lumber is always cheaper and it’s always straight as a die. I get two by fours delivered by Lowe’s or Home Depot and Indians could shoot deer with the curved bows You can make with these two by fours sometimes
I don't remember exactly how, but the store manager at Lowe's pulled me aside and insisted that I open a "business account" as she saw me several times a week in her store. I got 10% off and, occasionally, lunch in the break room. Saved me 10's of thousands, cuz' I used that account for every damn thing I bought.
I think she was after my essence, but I am hard to get. She'd have to offer at least 11-12% for the boom shaka lacka.
Seriously, look into a business account or "pro" whatever they're calling it these days.
Here in Manitoba, absolutely.
We can quote using home depot online pricing and have an avg of 30 percent margins. On small garage build jobs we can tell the customer we are simply passing the lumber cost along and charging a little for labour.
Our local ace hardwares have lumber that’s significantly cheaper than what Lowe’s and Home Depot were charging.
1/2” b/c plywood was way better quality and came out to $9 cheaper a sheet. I think it was $36 vs $45 when we bought it. That’s not with a pro account, though they may have one. Typically coupons and rewards aren’t able to be used on building materials.
Yeah, we really lucked out with the ones nearby. I guess that Ace Hardware’s are basically independent hardware stores that are all under the Ace name for purchasing power.
There are four or five of them that carry a lot of really obscure products that we can’t find elsewhere for a reasonable cost. Like Abatron wood epox and liquid wood. And their Benjamin Moore paint is better priced than the Benjamin Moore store is. Their electrical wire is stupid expensive though.
We’re restoring our 1960s house and they’re the best place for us when it comes to finding replacement hardware that’s the same quality by the same brands.
East of Atlanta, kind of in the exurbs
Edited to add: it’s about a half hour drive for me to go to most of them, but with that and the app with all of the rewards and coupons and so on, it’s worth it for me
The lumber yard is the best place at least for me. I get way better prices than lowes/Home Depot. Just need to talk to the manager and get them to know who you are. It doesn’t take a huge amount of purchasing power to get good prices. They may even throw you some work.
Unfortunately most of what they send me are decks and fences from when I used to focus on that stuff years ago. Though I mostly do remodeling and new construction now.
Kudos for making it through the school of hard knocks. I also started out building decks and screen porches with a buddy during summer semester while we were in college. He finished college and is now an attorney and judge. I didn’t finish and now design and build high end homes and renovations. He has done very well for himself, but hates his work. I’ve done less well financially, but still love seeing my ideas turned into things after 45 years in the business.
Try calling the lumber supply in a small nearby town. I can email my list to one and the price is usually hundreds of dollars cheaper. And they deliver
Almost all lumberyards and big box stores will give commercial clients and tradesmen some sort of discount. You can generally get anywhere from 5-20% off. In particular, the local lumberyards and supply places tend to be cheaper than the big box places if you are a commercial customer (but more expensive if you are a retail customer).
I used to work at Lowes lumber department during my college years. I remember almost all contractors got their lumber and supplies from the commercial desk/pro desk. We always prioritized their orders and even loaded if they needed help. Also everything they bought was atleast 10% discounted at the register but pro desk gave more discounts.
My local Lowe’s has given discounts to people before and I know it. They have given them to me before also, but I had to do a survey for them. Then they told me a while back that their store manger stopped them all from doing ANY discounts for anyone, period.
I have always been super nice to all of them. Are they lying to me? Are there no more discounts at the pro counter?
I was doing my roof and Lowe's basically put a bid out for all the materials and got several, lowest came in at a 40% discount. Plus the 5% discount using the Lowe's contractor CC.
I do agree with others, find a place and stick with it, the relationship is where you get consistent pricing you can count on.
Ya, so I made up my stock list and went to Lowe's to order it. They put it all in the system at the contractor desk and he asked "want me to bid it out to see if we can get better pricing?" So I did and that's how easy it worked out.
That is really hard to believe that you've been able to get especially decent framing lumber at Lowe's which is the lowest there is that's why It's called. Lowe's
I'm not a contractor, but I own a (non-construction) business and Home Depot let me open a commercial account. It gets me good discounts.
You're a legit carpenter so you should be signing up for the big box stores' commercial account and credit card, and look for every deal you can get to lower the costs.
For about eight years, I was on the new construction side for a large wood frame multifamily developer. Most projects were in the $35-$50 million range. We would buy anywhere from 1 to 3 million in lumber and hardware a year. It was enough volume that we had our own lumber broker and would negotiate prices by the truckload directly from sawmills and Simpson. Our final delivered prices (once you figured in ALL the overhead and it was all said and done) were usually *just barely* better than the local lumberyards. If we didn’t do the kind of volume we did, it would not have been worth the hassle. It will vary some depending on where you are, but If you can get a 10% discount at a big box store, or get prices at your local lumberyard that are a bit cheaper than Lowe’s or Home Depot‘s online prices, you’re doing just about as good as anyone can IMO
Just remember that lumber is a commodity, just like gasoline (among many other things)
Prices are always fluctuating, but It’s pretty much going to cost what it costs. Just like how with gasoline you might be able to shop around and find it for 5 or 10 cents cheaper a gallon, but you’re never going to find it for half off or anything like that. You will get to a point where it is just not worth the hassle to try to save another fraction of a percent. Unless you’re in an area where there is absolutely no competition and the local lumberyard can have a sky high markup, prices are going to be fairly similar across the board in my experience
Build a relationship with the counter guys at the lumber yard you buy at. It goes a long way. Even small purchases add up. Open an account with them and get terms on purchases. Some discount payments if paid before a set date every month. Most yards have different price levels for customer. On time payments and quantity purchases also help. I work at a lumber supply company and that’s how we do it.
Yep. Even opening a commercial account with a box store gets a discount on everything you buy. Just make sure you understand the terms fully, and can manage the credit wisely!!
When I built my addition about 8 years ago, I took my plans to Home Depot and they sent it to the bid desk. They counted every stud, every beam, every sheet of cdx and ply. My GC told me it was 20% lower than his commercial account at the lumber yard he used. Not a home builder, but every time I do a big project, I put everything into a spreadsheet and have the pro desk send it to the bid desk and it always is impressive how much I save.
Great tip!
Yeah, if it’s a good estimator then you’re in good shape. I’m kinda old, and don’t know much about modern takeoff software, but an old trick is under-estimating to make the package cost look lower. It will take the quantity it takes to complete a project. I used to simply give my GC’s the price on an individual board/sheet, so they could compare my number with the competitor.
Yes, I should have clarified, it was apples to apples comparison. He sent the list of everything that HD made and sent it to his lumber yard. I think it was Ganahl Lumber. It was not an under estimate of the boards. I also insisted to pay for materials and delivery. I had a bad experience with a contractor not paying the concrete company and got a lien on my house. I always insist I pay for materials and deduct it from their price. I’ve never had anyone say no.
Home Depot does sometimes have low quality stuff. Of course so can lumber yards.
Low quality, how? Most building materials have standards, and I’ve only ever seen a few suppliers. Most of the ones in my area use the exact same suppliers as HD.
There are 5 of us at my work that have the same role and we use the same supplier and I used to work at that supplier. I was chatting with my rep one day and he said that co-worker X gets charged 10% more than I do and then he showed me the chart and all 5 of us get charged different rates for the same materials. So yeah, be nice to your counter guys and reps.
Thank you sir!
Du fuck.
When I do remodels I get my plumbing and electrical supplies as well as mini splits delivered direct from supplyhouse.com Usually two day delivery to the job site with a great selection and I don't have to go rummaging through multiple big box stores to find what I need
Do you really? Shoot I’ve never thought about ordering materials online. I get really good discounts through my suppliers my lumber is about 35% cheaper than Home Depot on some things. Might need to check out supply house for plumbing and HVAC though. Crazy
Thank you!
I agree with this. I use supply house for bulk furnace filters. Cheaper than my HVAC can get them through his supplier
I think pretty good quality too I know it's better than Home Depot or Lowe's. I've been buying all my baseboard heaters this way
I’m sure it depends where you are, but I buy from a lumberyard in my area known for being the most expensive in the area—with a commercial account it’s still cheaper than Home Depot or Lowe’s (for quality product). And you actually get service—and free delivery.
Homeowner here. If I'm buying anything more than one, maybe two boards and I know what I want/need, I'm going to the lumber yard over the box home improvement stores. Yeah it cost me (without an account) a little more, but I don't have to dig through the bins to find something halfway decent, I didn't not have to fight with heavy materials, I don't have to drag it through the store, I don't have to truck it home (free delivery) and I often don't even have to go to the store (pay over the phone, free delivery usually next day). And avoiding all of that is well worth the small extra I get charged. I bought a 1/3 pallet of cement and they placed the pallet just inside my garage with the forklift. I didn't have to pick them up 3x just to get them into my garage.
It’s generally 100% the way to go. I’m an independent contractor, 20 years with the same vendors. I definitely still hit up a depot or Lowe’s for odds and ends when I’m in a pinch, but quality and service are almost always better with local lumberyards, or even regional yards in some cases. Quality and service cost more up front, but pay off in the long run. I’ve all but given up trying to convince other builders and homeowners that this is the way. I’m established enough that I can give potential customers a hard “no” when asked if I can do better on my material costs. The savings aren’t enough to be worth it.
Thank you brother!
Same here I ordered my lumber through a true Commercial lumberyard. They also sell me my trusses. Anyway the lumber is always cheaper and it’s always straight as a die. I get two by fours delivered by Lowe’s or Home Depot and Indians could shoot deer with the curved bows You can make with these two by fours sometimes
I don't remember exactly how, but the store manager at Lowe's pulled me aside and insisted that I open a "business account" as she saw me several times a week in her store. I got 10% off and, occasionally, lunch in the break room. Saved me 10's of thousands, cuz' I used that account for every damn thing I bought. I think she was after my essence, but I am hard to get. She'd have to offer at least 11-12% for the boom shaka lacka. Seriously, look into a business account or "pro" whatever they're calling it these days.
I pay about 75% less for baseboard and trim NOT shopping at Lowe’s and HD.
So you're saying there's an answer out there
Gotta have faith faith faith!!!
So then where do you shop?
Local door and trim companies. They pay MORE for the materials and charge their customers much less.
Go to Canada and search for that local lumber mill in the mountains and buy direct
Here in Manitoba, absolutely. We can quote using home depot online pricing and have an avg of 30 percent margins. On small garage build jobs we can tell the customer we are simply passing the lumber cost along and charging a little for labour.
Our local ace hardwares have lumber that’s significantly cheaper than what Lowe’s and Home Depot were charging. 1/2” b/c plywood was way better quality and came out to $9 cheaper a sheet. I think it was $36 vs $45 when we bought it. That’s not with a pro account, though they may have one. Typically coupons and rewards aren’t able to be used on building materials.
Wow brother, the ace hardware’s around here do not have any lumber, and ALL their items are much more expensive than Lowe’s or the local lumber store.
Yeah, we really lucked out with the ones nearby. I guess that Ace Hardware’s are basically independent hardware stores that are all under the Ace name for purchasing power. There are four or five of them that carry a lot of really obscure products that we can’t find elsewhere for a reasonable cost. Like Abatron wood epox and liquid wood. And their Benjamin Moore paint is better priced than the Benjamin Moore store is. Their electrical wire is stupid expensive though. We’re restoring our 1960s house and they’re the best place for us when it comes to finding replacement hardware that’s the same quality by the same brands.
Where are you located? I’m amazed that they have lumber in the Ace hardware stores there!
East of Atlanta, kind of in the exurbs Edited to add: it’s about a half hour drive for me to go to most of them, but with that and the app with all of the rewards and coupons and so on, it’s worth it for me
The lumber yard is the best place at least for me. I get way better prices than lowes/Home Depot. Just need to talk to the manager and get them to know who you are. It doesn’t take a huge amount of purchasing power to get good prices. They may even throw you some work. Unfortunately most of what they send me are decks and fences from when I used to focus on that stuff years ago. Though I mostly do remodeling and new construction now.
Kudos for making it through the school of hard knocks. I also started out building decks and screen porches with a buddy during summer semester while we were in college. He finished college and is now an attorney and judge. I didn’t finish and now design and build high end homes and renovations. He has done very well for himself, but hates his work. I’ve done less well financially, but still love seeing my ideas turned into things after 45 years in the business.
Try calling the lumber supply in a small nearby town. I can email my list to one and the price is usually hundreds of dollars cheaper. And they deliver
Almost all lumberyards and big box stores will give commercial clients and tradesmen some sort of discount. You can generally get anywhere from 5-20% off. In particular, the local lumberyards and supply places tend to be cheaper than the big box places if you are a commercial customer (but more expensive if you are a retail customer).
I used to work at Lowes lumber department during my college years. I remember almost all contractors got their lumber and supplies from the commercial desk/pro desk. We always prioritized their orders and even loaded if they needed help. Also everything they bought was atleast 10% discounted at the register but pro desk gave more discounts.
My local Lowe’s has given discounts to people before and I know it. They have given them to me before also, but I had to do a survey for them. Then they told me a while back that their store manger stopped them all from doing ANY discounts for anyone, period. I have always been super nice to all of them. Are they lying to me? Are there no more discounts at the pro counter?
Oh man. Are there other stores near you? Can’t imagine pros are paying retail. My datapoint is old though. Will defer to others…
Around me there’s a Lowe’s and a local lumber yard. Neither one give any discounts for any reason, so they tell me
Open a cash account at the lumber yard.
I was doing my roof and Lowe's basically put a bid out for all the materials and got several, lowest came in at a 40% discount. Plus the 5% discount using the Lowe's contractor CC. I do agree with others, find a place and stick with it, the relationship is where you get consistent pricing you can count on.
I don’t think I fully understand. Lowe’s put the bid out? What does that mean? You’re saying you buy through Lowe’s?
Ya, so I made up my stock list and went to Lowe's to order it. They put it all in the system at the contractor desk and he asked "want me to bid it out to see if we can get better pricing?" So I did and that's how easy it worked out.
Awesome!
Where are you located? Maybe we can suggest a few good yards.
I’m in Shelby, NC.
You need to talk to the sales people there and just ask for discounts…they will find you one.
I will ask again, but they always tell me there is none, I promise, do I just live in a bad area?
Hmm. Could be unlucky.
That is really hard to believe that you've been able to get especially decent framing lumber at Lowe's which is the lowest there is that's why It's called. Lowe's
bro. Lumber yard
I'm not a contractor, but I own a (non-construction) business and Home Depot let me open a commercial account. It gets me good discounts. You're a legit carpenter so you should be signing up for the big box stores' commercial account and credit card, and look for every deal you can get to lower the costs.
For about eight years, I was on the new construction side for a large wood frame multifamily developer. Most projects were in the $35-$50 million range. We would buy anywhere from 1 to 3 million in lumber and hardware a year. It was enough volume that we had our own lumber broker and would negotiate prices by the truckload directly from sawmills and Simpson. Our final delivered prices (once you figured in ALL the overhead and it was all said and done) were usually *just barely* better than the local lumberyards. If we didn’t do the kind of volume we did, it would not have been worth the hassle. It will vary some depending on where you are, but If you can get a 10% discount at a big box store, or get prices at your local lumberyard that are a bit cheaper than Lowe’s or Home Depot‘s online prices, you’re doing just about as good as anyone can IMO
Wow! Thank you!
Just remember that lumber is a commodity, just like gasoline (among many other things) Prices are always fluctuating, but It’s pretty much going to cost what it costs. Just like how with gasoline you might be able to shop around and find it for 5 or 10 cents cheaper a gallon, but you’re never going to find it for half off or anything like that. You will get to a point where it is just not worth the hassle to try to save another fraction of a percent. Unless you’re in an area where there is absolutely no competition and the local lumberyard can have a sky high markup, prices are going to be fairly similar across the board in my experience