Spain's construction business: 8,000 euros for two days' work
8,000 euros for two days of work: how much does a bricklayer really earn a month? A breakdown of the bill and the DIY alternative.
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
8,000 euros for two days of work: how much does a bricklayer really charge?
Construction is going through one of its most profitable spells for those laying the bricks, or at least that's what the quotes suggest. A homeowner who requested three quotes for a minor renovation got the same answer every time: 8,000 euros for two days of work, with materials under 1,000 euros. The figure raises an awkward question: how much is a bricklayer earning a month?
The most common breakdown of the bill goes like this: a thousand euros for materials, 1,400 for each of the two bricklayers, and the rest, around 4,200 euros, for the third party, the entrepreneur managing the job. Some go further and talk about 3,500 euros a day per worker, a figure that smells like an exaggeration. What doesn't add up is the usual justification that "it all goes on social security": if the same crew bills 8,000 euros in two or three days, the margin is still considerable.
The practical answer is not long in coming: do everything you can yourself. Basic tools from a budget supermarket cost next to nothing, and electrical tutorials are everywhere. That said, leave the plumbing to a professional: a badly tightened fitting can flood an entire ground floor.
With numbers like these, the next renovation might see more home DIY and fewer eight-thousand-euro bills. At least until demand puts bricklayers back in the driver's seat. The only certainty is that the real price of a building job will remain murky territory.
Construction is going through one of its most profitable spells for those laying the bricks, or at least that's what the quotes suggest. A homeowner who requested three quotes for a minor renovation got the same answer every time: 8,000 euros for two days of work, with materials under 1,000 euros. The figure raises an awkward question: how much is a bricklayer earning a month?
The most common breakdown of the bill goes like this: a thousand euros for materials, 1,400 for each of the two bricklayers, and the rest, around 4,200 euros, for the third party, the entrepreneur managing the job. Some go further and talk about 3,500 euros a day per worker, a figure that smells like an exaggeration. What doesn't add up is the usual justification that "it all goes on social security": if the same crew bills 8,000 euros in two or three days, the margin is still considerable.
The practical answer is not long in coming: do everything you can yourself. Basic tools from a budget supermarket cost next to nothing, and electrical tutorials are everywhere. That said, leave the plumbing to a professional: a badly tightened fitting can flood an entire ground floor.
With numbers like these, the next renovation might see more home DIY and fewer eight-thousand-euro bills. At least until demand puts bricklayers back in the driver's seat. The only certainty is that the real price of a building job will remain murky territory.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (11 replies).
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