As 2024 comes to a close, many business owners find themselves wrapping up the year with final invoicing, closing out accounts, analyzing year-end numbers, and reviewing projections for the upcoming year. It’s also a time when businesses with brick and mortar locations or rental properties review their maintenance and repair needs. If you are in the throes of budgeting for 2025, now is the time to plan for your commercial paving projects! Join our paving experts as we review three tips for affecting pavement budgeting.
TIP 1 | Consider the Condition, History, & Age of Your Pavement
Start your project off with a strong foundation by collecting all the data you need before you start budgeting for next year’s paving needs. Begin by gathering any project quotes and invoices you have from repair, maintenance, and repaving work. Look for any red flags that suggest you need to take a more aggressive approach to repair.
- Are your repair costs getting higher year after year?
- Are you noticing more and more damage?
If that’s the case, we recommend planning for a repave for a longer lasting investment, rather than allocating resources to a patch that won’t last. If you’re unsure whether you need repair work or a new pavement, check out our article Repair, Reseal, or Replace? Signs Your Asphalt Needs Some Attention!
Remember, it’s always better to plan for more and spend less!
TIP 2 | Consider How Important Your Pavement is to Your Business
Now it’s time to gauge what role your pavement plays for your business.
- Are you a retail space that relies on a clean, safe, and well-maintained parking lot to protect your customers and employees?
- Are you a property management company that maintains living areas for tenants and their families?
- Does your business have a drive-through to serve your customers?
If employees, customers, or tenants use your pavement regularly, you’ll want to keep preventative maintenance and repair in mind as you budget!
Consider prioritizing a new parking lot, loading bay, drive-thru, or access road if these paved areas can make or break a customer experience with your business. For more information on best practices for maintenance, explore our article New Parking Lot Care & Maintenance.
Putting in a little extra work early can prevent bigger issues down the road!
TIP 3 | Schedule a Thorough Walk-Through and Know Your Options
The most reliable way to plan for next year’s budget is to work with a professional paving contractor with real commercial experience. Find contractors in your area who offer to walk through of your property with you and talk through your specific needs.
Any contractor you work with should be thorough during this review and ask you a lot of questions about:
- your property
- customer & employee habits
- liability requirements
- budget restrictions
- project expectations
Once they’ve gathered their info, the paving contractor you’re working with should provide a clear quote with a few options for you to choose from based on your budget and needs. Really great contractors will work with you on a long-term plan to help you make the most out of your budget each year. This will give you concrete numbers that you can include in your budgeting plan.
To get a better understanding of our quote process, take a look at From Quote to Complete in Five Easy Steps.
Budgeting isn’t always fun, but when you have the right people in your corner, it can be a lot easier. If you having questions about asphalt repair and maintenance, options for repaving, or would like to get a quote for services, contact us today!