Construction Software Companies & Consultants in Ann Arbor, MI

Clear Estimates is a software company based in Ann Arbor, Michigan that builds estimating tools for the residential side of the construction industry. Its main users are remodelers, handymen and general contractors who need to price jobs quickly and turn those numbers into proposals a homeowner can review and sign. The company reports that more than 50,000 contractors have used its platform and that it has produced around one million estimates.

Background

The product grew out of a family remodeling business. It began as an internal tool at a Minneapolis contractor, Orfield Remodeling. Nolan Orfield, the son of that firm's owner and now Owner and CEO of Clear Estimates, wanted a more efficient way to price projects.

A small circle of remodeling contractors helped shape the early versions before the software was offered more widely. The first release in 2005 was a downloadable desktop program. In 2007 the company teamed with RemodelMAX to add a deeper, region-specific pricing database and moved customers to monthly subscriptions.

A browser-based version replaced the desktop software in 2013, and the PRO edition followed in 2017. In 2020 Clear Estimates acquired RemodelMAX, which brought its cost database in-house. Since 2014 the company's RemodelMAX-backed data has supported the annual Cost vs. Value Report published by Remodeling Magazine.

Software and Cost Data

The standard product pairs an estimating engine with a localized cost library. Material and labor prices are maintained for more than 400 U.S. markets and refreshed quarterly, so contractors can price work against conditions in their own zip code rather than relying on national averages. The parts library contains more than 10,000 items.

Each item carries a labor cost, a material cost and description text for proposals, and users can edit any entry. A library of several hundred project templates lets an estimator enter dimensions and get an itemized estimate. That estimate can then be adjusted by swapping parts, changing markups or adding custom lines.

Key capabilities include:

• Estimates for kitchens, baths, additions, garages, decks, siding, roofing, painting, flooring, framing, plumbing, electrical and HVAC work
• Branded PDF proposals with scope of work, reusable boilerplate and itemized costs, delivered by download or email
• Change order handling with alternate pricing
• Copying past estimates to new customers
• Access from computers, tablets and smartphones, including on job sites

Clear Estimates PRO and Other Offerings

For growing teams, the PRO tier adds invoicing and multi-user accounts with two permission levels. Administrators control pricing and templates, while sales users are limited to creating customers and estimates. PRO also exports estimates directly into BuilderTrend for project management and connects through Zapier to CRMs, email marketing platforms and hundreds of other applications. The company also offers Snaptimate, an estimating product designed for real estate agents.

Support is provided by live staff during weekday Eastern business hours, including through a chat channel. The company also publishes demo videos, webinars, case studies and a markup calculator. Jack Dean, a customer success expert, has led hands-on training for users at remodeling trade shows in Chicago and Baltimore, where the team also gathers customer feedback. New users can trial the software for 30 days, and plans carry no long-term contract or setup fees.