HST on renovations: what your quote should say about tax

Here's a one-line audit you can run on any Ontario renovation quote in five seconds: find the letters “HST.” If they're missing, the real price of your project is ambiguous by 13% — on a $60,000 renovation, that's a $7,800 question mark sitting in the paperwork.

The three states of a quote

“$60,000 plus HST” — clear. Your real cost is $67,800. “$60,000, HST included” — also clear. “$60,000” with no mention of tax — this is the one that produces the month-one invoice argument. Some contractors quote tax-extra by lifelong habit and assume everyone knows; homeowners compare quote totals assuming they're complete numbers. Both sides are being normal. The paper is being vague.

Why the silence happens — and the one bad reason

Mostly it's benign: habit, speed, a quote written at the kitchen table at 9 p.m. There's one version that isn't: the contractor who is vague on tax because the plan is to make it optional later — the “cash price” conversation. I've covered what that discount actually costs you; the short version is that the missing 13% tends to travel with missing insurance, missing WSIB, and a missing contract. A quote that's professionally explicit about HST is a small but real signal of an operation that does things on the books.

Getting it settled before signing

• Ask for the magic words in writing: “plus HST” or “HST included” on the quote itself. Not a verbal assurance — you know how those age.
• Check the allowances too. If the quote is tax-extra, are the allowance amounts pre-tax as well? A $2,000 fixture allowance buys about $230 less product if it has to absorb HST. Small line, real money.
• Budget on the all-in number. Whatever your financing or savings plan, the figure that matters is price including tax including a contingency for change orders. That's the number the project will actually cost.

On major projects — substantial whole-home renovations — rebate programs occasionally apply, and the rules are specific enough that an accountant's hour pays for itself. For a typical kitchen, bath, or basement: assume full HST is part of the real cost, make the quote say so, and you've removed a five-figure ambiguity with one sentence.