HOW MUCH SHOULD I CHARGE TO SUPERVISE A CONSTRUCTION PROJECT? Recently, someone reached out to ask how to price for supervising a project a 3-storey building and a filling station, all in one. And while I’d love to help everyone, here’s the truth: There’s no one-size-fits-all answer. To respond properly, I’d have to ask at least 10 questions to understand the scope, duration, location, your capacity, your role, level of involvement, and much more which is time I usually don’t have. So, I’ll use this opportunity to teach everyone who needs it the steps to do this: Let’s Talk About Pricing Yourself Properly Many young professionals struggle with pricing because they never worked under an established construction firm or mentor. Experience under a proper structure teaches you how things are done: • How to break down a project • How to structure pricing • How to manage timelines, deliverables, and manpower • How to communicate value to a client (You may need to pay WOli to learn all the above if you truly need them!) If you skipped that stage and jumped into freelance work or private projects, it’s normal to feel lost. But here’s a basic framework you can build on: 1. Know Your Value Start with your credentials and practical experience: • Are you a graduate (HND, BSc, MSc)? • Are you COREN-registered? • What is your skill level and site experience? • If you were employed full-time, how much would you expect to earn monthly? Example: ₦500,000, ₦800,000, or ₦1,000,000/month This gives you a baseline value of your time. 2. Understand the Project Duration Estimate how many months the project will run. Then add one extra month to accommodate delays or unforeseen circumstances. Multiply that time by your ideal monthly value. This gives you a realistic base fee. Example: 4-month project + 1 month = 5 months Monthly value = ₦500,000 Base fee = ₦500,000 × 5 = ₦2.5 million 3. Factor in Your Role and Commitment Level Ask yourself: • Will you be on-site every day or occasionally? • Are you providing only supervision, or also labour coordination, procurement, or design? • Are you responsible for quality control, client updates, payments, or permits? The more responsibility you carry, the more you should charge. 4. Know Your Client Type There are two main types of clients: • Those who know and value your work they’ve seen your past projects and want your quality. They are more likely to pay well. • Those you’re chasing—they may not value your input yet and often want to cut corners. Don’t charge the same way for both. Also, consider the scale of the project. If someone is building a ₦300 million facility, then offering you ₦150,000 for full supervision is not just disrespect its exploitation. 5. Add a Professional Markup After calculating your base fee, add a markup that reflects your brand and confidence. This is a contract, not a salary you’re being paid for results, not just presence. Instead of asking for ₦2.5 million for the projection of 5 months, do a markup of ₦1 million and add ₦500k for negotiation buffer. Total: ₦4 million 6. Determine Your Baseline Baseline is the lowest price you can accept for the project under various conditions or clauses. For example: • If I won’t be coming every day, then I can collect this much. • If you allow me to supply materials and bring labour, my supervision fee will be this. Do this analysis before you start negotiating for the work. Final Word : You must learn to: • Value your knowledge • Speak confidently about your worth • Work closely with mentors or seasoned professionals • Grow your network and reputation gradually Let’s sanitize this profession. Let’s stop cutting corners and start educating ourselves and others on how to thrive in engineering with integrity, value, and structure. I always keep it in mind that if I don’t try to help the younger generation, what do I gain?