Overview
Facility management is the umbrella over every trade in the building, and the customer is buying coordination
Facility management is the trade above the trades. The customer (a corporate occupier, a property owner, a hospital trust, a university) pays a facility management company to coordinate every other trade that walks into the building: cleaning, security, HVAC, lifts, fire safety, pest control, washroom services, catering equipment, building fabric repairs, and the small army of sub-contractors who deliver each of those. The product is single-point coordination plus the management overhead. A flat 'facility management, $8,000/month' quote without a list of services included, the staffing levels, and the technology platform behind the helpdesk doesn't survive a corporate procurement process.
QuoteGenio gives facility management providers a quoting shape that fits commercial mandate work. Services in scope by category as the first section, FM staff on-site (cleaning, security, helpdesk operator, M&E technician) with hours and shifts, management overhead and reporting cadence, sub-contractor coordination as a named line, the helpdesk platform and ticket SLA, KPIs and credit mechanism, and the contract term. Send via email to the procurement contact, take any onboarding payment, raise monthly invoices, and the same record holds the helpdesk metrics, the audit logs, and the contract performance. Renewals happen when the metrics on the page beat the competitor's bid.
Who it is for
Who uses QuoteGenio
Built for facility managers running single buildings, portfolios, and outsourced FM services.
The problem
The quoting and approval problems every FM runs into
FM is a coordination job. Approvals, recharges, and contractor sign-offs sit on your desk. Slow paperwork stalls every job in the building.
Approvals stack up in your inbox
Three contractor quotes, two tenant recharges, one landlord sign-off. Email chains are how the work week disappears.
Recharges are hard to defend
Tenants challenge every recharge. Without a clean branded quote that itemises labour and materials, you spend the day defending the maths.
Out-of-scope work eats the budget
Contractors pile small extras onto reactive jobs. Without itemised quotes per scope, you carry the cost into next month's budget.
The fix
QuoteGenio cleans up the approval chain
A workflow that turns contractor quotes into landlord-ready proposals, tenant recharges into clean invoices, and approvals into one-tap online sign-offs.
The payoff
What you get with QuoteGenio
The everyday wins that add up across a year of quoting and invoicing.
Built for FM workflows
Line items for contractor labour, materials, FM mark-up, and tenant recharge categories. Structured the way landlords and tenants expect.
Approvals on the link
Send the proposal to the landlord on a unique link. They accept on their phone, you start the work. No more email chains.
Defensible recharges
Every tenant recharge is a branded invoice with itemised lines. Tenants pay faster because they can see exactly what they're paying for.
Cleaner monthly reporting
Approved quotes and sent invoices flow to the dashboard. Pull a monthly summary for the landlord without rebuilding the spreadsheet.
Built for your trade
Quoting calibrated to how facility managers actually work
Pick your trade in Settings and the entire quote flow switches to fit. Line item presets, compliance fields, on-the-quote calculators, and per-m² / after-hours pricing all change to match your industry.
Trade-specific line items
Quick add picker pre-fills the common items your trade quotes. Skip the blank rows.
Brand-specific catalogues
Pylontech, Hikvision, Canadian Solar, Sunsynk and others pre-named. Pick the brand, the description writes itself.
Compliance fields built in
IOPSA, ECASA, PIRB, PSIRA, NHBRC, SAQCC. Set once. Every quote prints them under FROM.
Registration expiry alerts
Dashboard notification 60 days before your PSIRA, CoC or any dated registration lapses.
Per-m² / hour / day billing
Unit selector on every line item: m², hr, linear m, days. Stop doing the maths externally.
After-hours and emergency
1.5× and 2× multipliers as a one-tap toggle. Customer sees the breakdown on the quote.
Quote-flow calculators
Solar size, battery backup, cable run cost. Compute on the spot, drop straight onto the quote.
Staged payments
Deposit on acceptance + balance on completion as two separate amounts on the quote PDF.
Scope-of-work checklist
Structured Included / Not included lists. Client acceptance = signing the scope.
Site-survey mode
Log a location per line item: camera positions, fixtures by room, sensors by zone.
Regional rate hints
Pricing ranges per item per currency shown as you quote.
Free on every plan
All of the above included on the free plan. Premium is for capacity, not the trade tooling.
Why QuoteGenio
Why Facility Managers choose QuoteGenio
The tools that matter most when you are quoting on-site, under pressure, and between jobs.
Quote from your phone
Most Facility Managers build and send quotes directly from the job site. No laptop, no office, no delays.
Win more jobs, faster
The first professional quote a client receives usually wins. Respond in minutes, not hours.
Quote to invoice in one click
When the job is accepted, convert to an invoice instantly. No retyping, no double entry.
Pricing guide
Typical Facility Managers job pricing
A rough guide to what FM service providers charge for managing buildings and what in-house FMs typically recharge tenants for. Pricing varies by building size, tenant mix, and the scope of services. Use these as a reference when you build FM proposals and tenant recharge schedules.
| Job | Typical range |
|---|---|
| FM service fee (small building, monthly) | R19,832 - R57,845 / mo |
| FM service fee (medium building, monthly) | R57,845 - R157,007 / mo |
| FM service fee (per square metre, monthly) | R14 - R40 / m2 / mo |
| Project management mark-up on contractors | R1,240 - R2,479 |
| Tenant recharge admin fee (per recharge) | R1,240 - R2,479 |
| Annual operating budget preparation | R29,749 - R79,330 |
| Out-of-hours emergency coordination | R2,479 - R4,628 |
Pricing converted from USD to ZAR at indicative rates. Rates vary significantly by country, region, currency, and market.
Call-out fees
On reactive work where you coordinate a contractor, charge an FM coordination fee (typically R1,240 to R2,479 per call-out) on top of the contractor cost. It covers your time to brief, approve, sign-off, and recharge the work. Show it as its own line on the recharge invoice so tenants understand they're paying for management, not just labour.
Hourly vs fixed pricing
Use a monthly FM service fee for planned management of a building (compliance, contractor coordination, reporting). Use per-recharge fees for reactive work passed to tenants. Use project-based fees for one-offs (annual budget, refurb coordination). Spell out which fees apply to which work in the FM proposal so the landlord and tenants know what to expect.
See it in action
Example quote breakdown
Here's what a clean tenant recharge looks like for a reactive plumbing repair. The contractor cost, the materials, the FM coordination, and the admin fee are all visible. Tenants pay these faster because every line is defensible and the maths is obvious.
Try it yourself
Job size
Region
Sample quote
Tenant recharge, reactive plumbing repair
Contractor call-out and labour (Acme Plumbing)
Materials (mixer tap, isolation valve, sealant)
Disposal of old fittings
FM coordination fee (call-out, approval, sign-off)
Tenant recharge admin fee
| Description | Qty | Rate | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contractor call-out and labour (Acme Plumbing) | 1 | R4,628 | R4,628 |
| Materials (mixer tap, isolation valve, sealant) | 1 | R2,727 | R2,727 |
| Disposal of old fittings | 1 | R578 | R578 |
| FM coordination fee (call-out, approval, sign-off) | 1 | R1,570 | R1,570 |
| Tenant recharge admin fee | 1 | R1,240 | R1,240 |
| Subtotal | R10,743 | ||
| Tax (10%) | R1,074 | ||
| Total incl. tax | R11,817 | ||
Totals recalculate as you change the controls above. Tax rate inferred from the sample quote.
Items often forgotten
The FM coordination fee, the recharge admin fee, the after-hours premium when the contractor was called out at night, the disposal of old fittings, the second contractor visit if a part wasn't on the van, and the time spent chasing the tenant for access. Add these as standard recharge lines so they stop being absorbed into the FM service fee.
Peer snapshot
How Facility Managers actually use QuoteGenio
Indicative activity for Facility Managers on the platform. Use it as a benchmark for how often to quote and how fast to respond.
20
Quotes sent per month
50%
Average quote acceptance
2 min
Median time to send quote
R11,817
Typical quote value
Figures are indicative platform averages for this trade segment.
Start quoting Facility Manager jobs like this, free
Build your first quote in under 2 minutes. No credit card, no setup fee, no contract.
Avoid these
Common quoting mistakes
We talk to a lot of facility managers. The same approval and recharge issues come up across in-house teams and outsourced FM providers. Fix these and you'll defend your fee, recover more cost, and keep landlords renewing every year.
Mistake: Recharging contractor cost only
Better: Always add an FM coordination fee. Briefing, approving, and signing off the contractor is real work and the landlord expects to see it billed.
Mistake: Single-line recharge invoices
Better: Itemise contractor labour, materials, disposal, FM coordination, and admin fees separately. Tenants pay faster when every line is defensible.
Mistake: No mark-up on contractor work
Better: Add an 8 to 15 percent project management mark-up on contractor cost for any work you procure. It covers your sourcing, vetting, and warranty-handling time.
Mistake: Verbal landlord approvals
Better: Always send the proposal as a branded quote on a unique link. Get the landlord to accept online before instructing the contractor. No more 'I never said yes to that' conversations.
Mistake: No after-hours premium recharge
Better: Pass the contractor's after-hours premium straight through to the tenant if the call-out was outside hours. Show it as a separate line so the tenant sees why the bill is higher.
Mistake: Forgetting compliance recharges
Better: Annual fire safety, water hygiene, and electrical compliance work is recharged to tenants in most leases. Build a recharge template that captures these every year automatically.
Mistake: No annual FM service fee review
Better: Set an expiry on FM service fee proposals and a renewal date in the contract. Annual review with a CPI-linked escalation clause keeps you ahead of cost increases without an awkward conversation.
Mistake: No follow-up after sending the quote
Better: Most quotes that don't close, don't close because nobody followed up. Send a polite check-in 48 hours after the quote lands, and a second nudge at day 7. Two of every three accepted quotes get there because someone followed up.
Step by step
How to quote facility management jobs
Walk the building and read the lease pack before you quote an FM service fee. Measure lettable and common area in square metres, count tenants, and map the service areas (plant room, risers, roof access). Review lease wording to understand what compliance work is recoverable from tenants, what mark-up is permitted on contractor work, and what FM coordination fees are allowed under each lease. For reactive work that you will coordinate, inspect the affected area with the contractor so the quote reflects the actual scope, not a phone-it-in estimate. For annual budget preparation, review the last 24 months of actual spend and forward-look to plant end-of-life, lease renewals, and statutory compliance cycles due in the next 12 months.
Itemise the FM service fee at $ 0.85 to $ 2.40 per square metre per month or as a fixed monthly retainer covering compliance management, contractor coordination, monthly reporting, budget preparation, and tenant liaison. On tenant recharges, list contractor labour and materials at cost, an FM coordination fee at $ 75 to $ 150 per call-out, a tenant recharge admin fee, and any permitted percentage mark-up on contractor cost (typically 8 to 15 percent). Show the after-hours premium as a separate line if the contractor was called out outside trading hours. For compliance recharges (fire safety, water hygiene, electrical compliance), capture the contractor cost, FM coordination fee, and the per-tenant pro-rata share on separate lines. Reference the PO number and lease clause on every recharge invoice.
Set a 12 month term on FM service fee proposals with a CPI-linked annual escalation clause. Show VAT as its own line on every quote, internal proposal, tenant recharge, and compliance invoice. State payment terms clearly: landlords pay monthly in advance on the FM fee and in arrears on project work, tenants pay recharges on 14 to 30 day terms from invoice. On major project coordination, take a project management fee upfront against an approved scope, because defending the fee after the work is done is harder than agreeing it before the contractor mobilises. Send internal-quote proposals to the landlord with a clear breakdown of FM work, contractor work, and any recharge plan before you instruct anyone.
Approvals live on the link. Send every contractor quote to the landlord with the FM coordination fee added on a branded PDF, wait for the accept click on the public link, then instruct the contractor with confidence. For tenant recharges, issue the invoice as a branded PDF with contractor quote attached as supporting evidence so the tenant can see the maths is defensible. Follow up recharges on 14 and 30 days via QuoteGenio's chase feature rather than rebuilding the spreadsheet. On variation orders from contractors, require a written variation quote before any extra work, because landlords will not approve retrospective spend. Send the landlord a monthly operations report on the first Monday showing approved work, sent recharges, and outstanding amounts.
FAQ
Common questions from facility managers
Everything you need to know before getting started.
Yes. Build the quote in QuoteGenio (with your FM coordination fee added), send the link to the landlord, and they accept online. Then instruct the contractor with confidence the work is funded.
Yes. Every invoice is a branded PDF with your logo and details. Itemise contractor cost, materials, FM coordination, and admin fees so the tenant can see exactly what they're paying for.
Add an 'FM coordination fee' or 'PM mark-up' as its own line item on the quote. Most FMs use a fixed fee per call-out for small work and a percentage on larger projects.
Yes. Every quote has a unique public link. The landlord (or a trustee with delegated authority) can accept it on their phone with one tap. The acceptance is timestamped on the quote.
Yes. Convert any accepted quote to an invoice with one tap. Adjust the bill-to address to the tenant rather than the landlord, then send. Same line items, no double entry.
Yes. The free plan gives you 5 quotes and 2 invoices per month with no credit card required. Upgrade to Premium for unlimited quotes, invoices, statements, and reports.
Most FM service fees are priced per square metre per month (typically R14 to R40 depending on building complexity) or as a fixed monthly retainer. The fee should cover compliance management, contractor coordination, monthly reporting, budget preparation, and tenant liaison. Reactive work, project work, and major capex coordination are typically priced separately. Spell out the included scope in the proposal so landlords and tenants both know what's covered.
Contractor labour and materials at cost, plus an FM coordination fee for the management work (briefing the contractor, approving the quote, signing off the work, raising the recharge), plus an admin fee for the billing and chase work. Some leases also allow a small percentage mark-up on contractor cost. Check the lease wording before you bill, then template the recharge so every job follows the same structure.
Send the original contractor quote, the FM approval, the photo evidence of the work, and the itemised recharge invoice. Tenants challenge recharges that look like a single big number with no detail. Recharges that show contractor cost, materials, FM coordination, and admin separately get paid faster because every line is defensible. The whole flow should sit on the quote and invoice records in QuoteGenio.
Most FM contracts allow either a fixed coordination fee per call-out (typically R1,240 to R2,479) or a percentage mark-up on contractor cost (typically 8 to 15 percent for small work, lower for major projects). Check the FM contract for the agreed mechanism before you bill. The mark-up covers your time to source, vet, brief, approve, and warranty-handle the contractor, which is real work and not free.
Still have questions? We would rather answer them now than after you have signed up.
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Guides
Guides for Facility Managers
Practical advice to help you quote better, get paid faster, and grow your business.
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