Quoting LVP installs is a crapshoot - why estimating waste and cuts always screws me over

Been doing flooring for 15 years and quoting luxury vinyl plank jobs still feels like gambling every time. Customers always want that perfect stagger pattern but then bitch when I add extra for the waste around cabinets and doorways. I use the Malco LVP cutter for clean cuts but even with that, you're looking at 10-15% material overage on weird layouts. Saw a thread on r/Flooring where a guy underquoted and ended up eating $800 in extras, SMH. Anyone got a solid formula for estimating cuts on open floor plans? Watched that How To Install Vinyl Plank Flooring Like a Pro video on YouTube and it helped with technique but not the math. In the Flooring Contractors Network FB group, some vets swear by adding a flat 20% buffer, but that kills bids against the big box stores. Fight me if you think eyeballing it works long term.

Big box stores like Home Depot are undercutting everyone with their prefab estimates, it's killing the trade. They're flooding the market with cheap Coretec LVP and no one factors in the install headaches.

Use software like FloorRight or MeasureSquare for your takeoffs, it'll spit out accurate cut lists and waste factors based on the room shape. Saves me hours and keeps quotes tight.

Buffer is BS, just quote T&M for the cuts and let the customer decide if they want fancy patterns. Most don't notice the stagger anyway, and you avoid the lowball wars.

Man, I feel your pain on those open plans, always some weird jog that eats material. Happened to me last month and the client acted like it was my fault.