Contingency and hidden-condition checks for a 105 m² Manila apartment renovation

C

canvas.grand

Property investor
I want to keep the visible finishes within a preliminary PHP 4,965,000 budget, but concealed services could upset that plan. The Manila apartment is 105 m², and the intended work includes the kitchen, bathrooms, floors, painting, electrical inspection and moderate efficiency improvements. I am not planning an extension or other structural alteration.

Before fixing the contingency, what evidence should I obtain about wiring, pipe routes, plumbing access and moisture? I also want bidders to identify exclusions, reinstatement after openings, material lead times, approvals and any work they consider structural. Would you set the allowance now or wait until the surveyor and contractors have priced the main unknowns?
 
For an early budget, I’d provisionally carry around 15%, then revise it after inspections and contractor clarification. Ask each bidder to identify exclusions rather than merely confirming the scope. Demolition disposal, protection of common areas, access restrictions, making good after electrical or plumbing work, testing, and temporary services can otherwise sit between trades. Also establish who bears the cost when opening a wall reveals a problem.
 
How much is actually known about the concealed plumbing and wiring? “Electrical checks” could mean basic testing or could lead to replacing circuits and opening ceilings. I’d ask for the distribution board, outlets, wet-area wiring and accessible junctions to be inspected before pricing is fixed. For bathrooms and kitchen, map the pipe routes and inspect adjacent walls or ceilings for moisture before ordering finishes.
 
That exposes a weakness in my draft: “electrical checks” is not defined tightly enough, and neither is reinstatement after exploratory work. I’ll separate inspection and testing from any replacement work, and ask for priced options if opening ceilings or walls becomes necessary. I also need bidders to state whether their plumbing figure assumes existing routes remain usable.
 
I’d hesitate to treat 15% as automatically sufficient until those assumptions are answered. The useful distinction is between genuine contingency and known-but-unpriced items. Put likely electrical replacement, moisture repairs and difficult plumbing access into provisional amounts or optional prices where possible; reserve contingency for discoveries. Otherwise the allowance gets consumed by work that was foreseeable.

Sequence the intrusive checks before final cabinetry, tile and flooring orders.
 
Until the concealed services and exclusions are clearer, even a 15% allowance may combine foreseeable work with genuine surprises. Give every bidder the same schedule covering demolition, exploratory openings, testing, access, protection, waste removal, reinstatement and approvals, then require exclusions and provisional items to be priced separately.

Also ask for a basic programme linking investigations, design decisions, material orders and installation. Lead time deserves its own comparison because a delayed kitchen or bathroom item can disrupt the whole sequence. Do the intrusive checks before committing to cabinetry, tiles or flooring, then revise the contingency from the resulting evidence.
 
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