QuoteRx's pricing catalog includes room-based demolition line items (e.g., Demolition – Room up to 200 SF). These are the right tool for tear-out — not the individual demo items buried inside each trade category. Billing demolition centrally keeps your estimate clean and prevents double-counting.

The key measurement is the surface area of what you're actually tearing out, not the floor area of the room. Calculate wall area as width × height per wall, then multiply by the number of affected walls.

Your estimate scope for this bedroom would look like this:

How to enter this in Quote Pro Quo:

• 1
  Open the room. Click + Add Item and search "demolition room". Select the appropriate size bracket.
• 2
  Set the quantity to your calculated wall area (width × height × number of walls). Add a note like "2 walls × 12′ × 9′" for the adjuster's reference.
• 3
  Add your drywall and trim line items using that same surface area as the quantity. No separate demolition entries needed under Drywall or Millwork categories.
• 4
  If you're tearing out a full room (all 4 walls + ceiling), calculate the total surface area for all surfaces and use a single demo line item for the entire room rather than one per wall.

Quote Pro Quo has three margin controls that sit on top of the line-item subtotal: Overhead %, Profit %, and Discount %. They are applied in this order: overhead is added first, then profit, then the discount is taken off the final total (including any taxes). Understanding what each one is for — and when to use it — protects your margin and keeps your estimates professional.

Overhead %

Overhead covers the cost of running your business that can't be tied to a single job: office rent, insurance, vehicle payments, admin staff, software subscriptions, advertising, and owner's salary not captured in field labor. These costs are real and must be recovered across every estimate — if you don't build them in, profitable-looking jobs can still lose money.

Typical range: 5–10%, depending on the size and structure of your operation. A one-person shop working out of a truck carries much lower overhead than a company with a physical office and office staff. Review your actual overhead costs annually and set a rate that reflects your real numbers — do not guess.

Profit %

Profit is the return for taking on the risk of the job — scheduling, liability, warranty, collections, and the time you invest as an owner. It is separate from overhead and should be treated that way. Profit is what allows you to grow, buy equipment, weather slow seasons, and eventually sell or transition your business.

Typical range: 5–10%, though highly competitive markets may push this lower and specialty or hazardous work justifies higher margins. Both Overhead and Profit can be set independently — for example, 8% overhead and 7% profit gives you a combined 15% margin above your direct costs.

Both percentages are applied to the line-item subtotal. They are calculated and displayed separately on the estimate so the customer can see a transparent cost breakdown. Neither affects tax — tax is calculated on the subtotal only.

Discount %

The Discount field is a global percentage reduction applied to the entire estimate total — after line items, overhead, profit, and tax are all calculated. It takes a percentage off the very bottom line. This is intentional: you are giving back real dollars from the final invoice amount, not discounting just the materials.

Common situations where the discount is appropriate:

• Preferred / repeat customers — contractors or property managers who consistently send you work. A standing 5% loyalty discount is a powerful retention tool and costs less than acquiring a new customer.
• Friends & family — a defined percentage keeps the relationship clear and the transaction professional, rather than informal discounting after the fact.
• Early payment discount — offer 2–3% off if payment is received within 10 days. Improves cash flow and avoids collection issues.
• Referral incentive — reward a customer who sent you to a new job. Apply the discount to their next estimate rather than issuing a credit.
• Negotiated bid situations — when you need to sharpen a competitive bid, use the discount field rather than manually editing line items. Your actual costs stay documented; only the customer-facing price changes.

The discount is shown as a line item on the estimate ("Discount — X%") so the customer sees it clearly. It is applied after all other calculations, so the math is always clean and auditable.