What Should a Whole House Window Quote Include? A 12-Point Checklist
You are about to sign for fifteen or thirty windows. Before you do, check the quote against this list so nothing you assumed was included turns into a change order.
Reply within one business day. Or call / text 763-204-2099.
What should a whole house window quote include: an opening schedule (room, size, style, insert or full frame for every window), the brand, line, color and glass, interior and exterior trim, flashing and insulation, disposal, who pulls the permit, how rot is priced if found, lead time and payment terms. JMB Builders writes each of these on retail quotes across the Twin Cities metro. Priced per project.
- Opening schedule: every window on its own line
- Trim, flashing, disposal and permit written in
- Lead time and payment terms on the quote
A quote for one window can get away with one line. A quote for a whole house cannot. When the paper says 'replace 22 windows, install and trim', every question about what that means gets answered later, on install day, by whoever is standing there.
The fix is an opening schedule: one row per window with the room, rough size, style, how it opens, and whether it goes in as an insert or full frame. Below that, the things that apply to every opening: the brand and line, frame color inside and out, glass, grilles and screens, how the opening is flashed and insulated, what trim goes on inside and out, and haul-away. Then the business terms: permit, how hidden rot is handled, lead time, schedule and payment.
This checklist is for a retail project you are paying for. If the work is on a storm claim, the insurer's estimate follows a different format; that is covered on our insurance estimate page.
Get a written quote for this job
Three photos and a sentence is enough: a reply within one business day, or ask for a free in-home estimate. Or text the photos to 763-204-2099.
What you supply
- The quote or quotes you have now
- Your must-haves: color, grilles, which rooms get new casing
- A list of the windows you want left alone, if any
- Painting decided: quoted as a separate line, or leave it primed and caulked and paint it yourself
What JMB supplies
- An opening schedule: room, size, style, operation, insert or full frame
- Brand, line, frame color inside and out, glass, grilles and screens
- Flashing, sill pan and low-expansion foam written per install method
- Interior trim scope per room and exterior trim or capping per side
- Haul-away and disposal of the old windows
- Permit: whether one is needed and that JMB pulls it
- How rot found in an opening is priced, written before work starts
- Lead time (it depends on the brand), payment terms, and who to call during the job
How it is priced: per project
Quoted in writing from your photos, with a reply within one business day. What moves the number:
- How many openings and the mix of styles and sizes
- Insert vs. full frame on each opening
- Line, frame color and glass package
- Interior trim scope room by room
- Exterior capping, trim or cladding repair
- Rot repair priced per opening if it is found
Send your current quote with a photo of each window. We will mark what is missing against this list.
How long it takes
Most whole-house jobs run several working days once the windows arrive; the install days and the order lead time are both written on the quote.
How your project works
- 1
Photos or a walk-through
Send a photo of each window, or book a free in-home estimate. Either way, every opening gets its own row.
- 2
In-person measure
Every opening measured and checked for square, rot and the wall type around it before anything is ordered.
- 3
Quote with the schedule
The opening schedule, the whole-house specs, trim scope, permit, rot pricing, lead time and payment terms, in writing.
- 4
One order, room-by-room install
All windows ordered together so colors and glass match. Installed room by room, every opening closed the same day, floors and furniture covered.
What Should a Whole House Window Quote Include? A 12-Point Checklist: questions, answered
What should a whole house window quote include?
One row per window with the room, size, style and whether it goes in as an insert or full frame. Then the brand, line, color, glass, grilles, screens, flashing, insulation, interior and exterior trim, disposal, permit, how rot is handled, lead time and payment terms. If any of those are missing, ask before you sign.
What is an opening schedule on a window quote?
It is the list of every window in the job, one row each, with its location, size, style and install method. It lets you compare two quotes window by window and lets you drop or phase specific windows without re-quoting the whole house.
Should a window quote include trim and disposal?
Yes, in writing. Interior trim can mean anything from reusing the old stops to new casing, stool and apron, and the difference shows up on every window. Haul-away of the old units should be listed too, so they are not left at the curb.
Who pulls the permit on a window replacement?
The contractor doing the work should, and the quote should say so. JMB pulls permits when the job needs one, and the permit is listed on the quote. Rules vary by city, so ask your contractor which apply to your address.
What happens if rot is found when the old windows come out?
A good quote says how that is priced before work starts, opening by opening, so a soft sill does not become an open-ended change. You see the rot before it is repaired. The note on how it is priced is part of our quote.
What payment terms should a window replacement contract have?
Terms written on the quote: when any deposit is due, what is paid when, and how the final payment is tied to the finished work. JMB is paid by check or direct deposit. Read the terms before you sign, and ask about anything that is not written down.
Recent JMB work, from our job log
59 installs recorded across 30 Twin Cities communities since Dec 2025. Window and door installs for homeowners and the builders we work with. Counts come straight from our job log; no customer names.
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Read morePage reviewed October 9, 2026 · JMB Builders LLC, MN license BC809005 · All whole-house projects pages
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