Terms of Service

1. What we provide

We prepare construction cost estimates from the drawings, specifications, photos and descriptions you give us. Our process combines software models trained on successful historical bids with review by an experienced estimator. Every estimate is reviewed by a person before it is released to you.

We provide estimating services only. We do not provide architectural, engineering, legal, surveying or code-compliance services, and our estimates are not a substitute for them.

2. Your information

When you submit a project, give us accurate contact and project information and keep your email address current, because that is how we will reach you. You must be at least 18 and able to enter into contracts for your business.

3. Ordering and payment

You pay when you submit a project. Prices are based on your project's expected value:

• Starter: projects up to $150K, $129, one revision
• Builder: projects from $150K to $750K, $249, three revisions
• General Contractor: projects from $750K to $2M, $449, unlimited revisions
• Rush turnaround: a flat $149 added to any tier
• Projects over $2M: a custom quote. We email the price first, and you pay by Stripe invoice only if you accept it.

Payments are processed by Stripe. We never see or store your full card number. Stripe emails you a receipt and a paid invoice. Prices are in U.S. dollars. We do not currently charge sales tax. If that changes, any tax will be shown at checkout before you pay.

We begin work once your payment clears. If a request reaches us without a completed payment, we will email you a payment link and won't start until it is paid.

If your project turns out to be materially larger than the tier you chose, we will contact you before continuing. You can pay the difference by Stripe invoice to upgrade to the correct tier, or cancel for a full refund.

4. Turnaround

Standard estimates are delivered within 3 business days after we confirm your files. Rush estimates are delivered within 24 hours after we confirm your files. Business days are Monday through Friday, excluding U.S. federal holidays. The clock starts when we confirm that your file set is complete enough to estimate, which we aim to do within one business day of payment.

If we need more information, we will email you. The clock pauses until you reply.

5. Revisions

A revision is a change to your delivered estimate for the same project and scope. Examples are updated quantities, pricing an alternate, or adjusting an assumption. Request revisions by replying to your delivery email within 30 days of delivery. A new drawing set, a substantially changed scope, or a different project is a new estimate. "Unlimited revisions" on the General Contractor tier means reasonable revisions to the same project within that 30-day window.

6. Cancellations and refunds

• Before work starts: cancel before we confirm your file set and you get a full refund.
• Incomplete files: if we can't estimate from what you sent and you can't provide what's missing, you get a full refund.
• Missed rush deadline: if we miss the 24-hour rush deadline for reasons within our control, we refund the $149 rush fee.
• After work starts: once takeoff has begun, the estimate fee is non-refundable. If you're unhappy with the result, email us and we'll use your revisions to make it right.

To cancel or ask for a refund, email support@datumestimation.com with your reference number. Refunds go back to your original payment method, usually within 5 to 10 business days.

7. Your plans and information

You keep all rights to the plans, documents and information you submit. You give us permission to use them only to prepare, review, revise and deliver your estimate and to support you as a customer.

You confirm that you have the right to share the materials you submit with us. Construction drawings are often owned by the architect or owner, so make sure you are authorized to send them for estimating. You confirm this with a checkbox each time you submit a project.

We keep your materials confidential. We don't share your plans with other customers or publish them. We share them only with the service providers we need to run the service, as described in our Privacy Policy.

8. Your data and our models

Each estimate is prepared only for you, from your own plans and project information. We do not use your plans, drawings, estimate or project details to train our pricing models or to prepare estimates for other customers. If we ever want to change this, we will update these Terms first and ask for your permission before using any of your projects.

9. Delivery and acceptance

We deliver estimates by email with a private link. Before the estimate opens, you will be asked to review the estimate terms and confirm that you accept them. We keep a record of the name, email address and time of that acceptance.

The same terms are printed in every PDF and spreadsheet we deliver. By opening, downloading, using or sharing an estimate, you confirm that you have reviewed its assumptions, exclusions and terms.

10. Using your estimate

Once you have paid, you may use your estimate for your own business. That includes putting it in bids and proposals and sharing it with owners, general contractors, lenders and subcontractors. You may not resell our estimates or offer them as part of a competing estimating service.

11. Estimates are estimates

An estimate is our professional opinion of probable cost based on the information you provided and market data available at the time. It is not a guarantee of final cost, a fixed-price quote, or a promise that you will win a bid. Actual costs change with material prices, labor availability, site conditions, schedule and scope changes.

You are responsible for reviewing the estimate, checking quantities and assumptions against the contract documents, and making your own bid and business decisions. Each estimate lists its assumptions and exclusions. Read them before you rely on the numbers.

Pricing in each estimate is valid for 30 days from the date it was prepared. After that, material and labor prices may have changed, and you should ask us for an update.

If you share an estimate with others, such as an owner, lender or subcontractor, they receive it for information only. They may not rely on it as the basis for a claim against us. You are responsible for how you present the estimate to them.

12. Limitation of liability

To the fullest extent the law allows, our total liability for any claim relating to an estimate or the service is limited to the amount you paid for the estimate the claim relates to. We are not liable for lost profits, lost bids, cost overruns, delays or other indirect, incidental or consequential damages, even if we were told they were possible.

Any claim relating to an estimate must be brought within one year after the estimate was delivered.

Except as stated in these Terms, the service is provided "as is," without warranties of any kind, whether express or implied, including warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose.

13. Your responsibilities

Don't submit anything you don't have the right to share. Don't submit anything unlawful or harmful, or try to disrupt or gain unauthorized access to the service. You agree to cover our reasonable costs if a claim is brought against us because of materials you submitted without permission or your breach of these Terms.

14. Ending our work together

You can ask us to stop work and delete your information at any time by emailing support@datumestimation.com. Refunds follow section 6. We may decline or stop work on requests that break these Terms. Sections that by their nature should continue, like payment, limitation of liability and use of estimates, still apply after our work ends.

15. Disputes and governing law

If something goes wrong, email us first. We'll try to resolve it informally within 30 days. These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of New York, without regard to its conflict-of-law rules. Any dispute that isn't resolved informally will be handled in the state courts located in Dutchess County, New York, or the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. You and we both agree to the jurisdiction of those courts.

16. Changes to these Terms

We may update these Terms as the service changes. If we make material changes, we'll post a notice on the site before they take effect. The version in effect when you paid for an estimate applies to that estimate.