[TraceyCCM]

Our house came with fencing that we have discovered is stock fencing you can get from Home Depot. We need to replace about four panels, a gate and some posts. The cost for those pieces if we buy them ourselves is around $350. Figure $400 total including some odds and ends like brackets and such. The pieces are so large they aren't going to fit in our SUV so we'd need to rent a truck or trailer. And a couple of the pieces need to be cut so we'd need an angle grinder or something like that. So I don't know, maybe about $550 total including the truck rental and the angle grinder? Problem is we're not super handy people.

We got a quote from a fencing company to replace just those four panels, the gate and post and it's $2074. So the labor's like 80% of the total cost. This seems high to me, really high, but maybe I'm just unrealistic about what it costs to hire professionals to do a job.

I'd appreciate some suggestions if you know a handyman or fencing company you think could do it cheaper and do it well. As I said, these are just stock pieces from Home Depot, nothing special. Thanks for any recommendations.

[SoHoVe]

I wouldn't bother with the hassle of a truck rental, just have it delivered by HD.

Try looking in the Nifty Nickel (available at many convience stores) for someone who does this type of work. IMHO it's less of a crap shoot than Craigslist.

That estimate does seem high but it's not unusual to see small jobs getting ridiculously high quotes because they need to make it worth their while to send a crew out for the job.
The same is true for landscapers and roof repairs.

[WestieJeff]

This is not the kind of job you want to undertake if you're not handy. You need to mix concrete to hold the posts. You'll have to work out attaching the new panels to the existing panels. If you have to cut a panel down, work out how you'll attach it to the other panels.

It all can be done, but depends on how much you value your time and the quality of the end product.

I assume the Home Depot fencing is painted and any fencing/iron shop in town would be powder coating the fence, that's part of the price difference. The powder coating lasts 10+ years versus paint will be peeling within 5.

[Camaro5]

Try asking Home Depot if they have any contractors they can recommend. They usually have people that do their work for them. We've done that in the past and had good work done at a reasonable cost.