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Is my window and door installation quote complete?

Check that your window and door installation quote lists each opening by size, the product type, design pressure rating and product approval number for every unit, glass and frame details, removal and disposal, flashing and finish repairs, permit duties and a payment schedule, plus the work, materials, completion date and price the FTC says a written estimate should include.

Source: FTC home improvement guidance, read 15 October 2026.

Researched by the InstaBids editorial team. Last checked: 15 October 2026

New white-framed windows in protective film leaning against a garage wall, waiting to be installed.

Key facts

What should a written window and door installation quote list?

Ask for a written window and door installation quote that names every opening by room and size, then gives the product type and model for each unit, its design pressure rating and product approval number, the glass and frame material, removal and disposal of the old units, flashing, and repairs to stucco, drywall and trim.

  1. Openings: Which rooms and outside walls are covered, how many units go in, and what opening size is written beside each one?
  2. Product type: Is each unit single-hung, horizontal-rolling, casement, fixed or a sliding glass door, and is it rated for impact or meant to sit behind shutters?
  3. Glass: Which glass makeup is proposed for each unit, such as laminated, insulated or tinted, and does it change from room to room?
  4. Frame: Which frame material, colour and product series is named, so that a substituted unit is easy to spot on delivery day?
  5. Doors: For an entry, French or sliding door, which threshold, swing direction, handle set and lock are included?
  6. Lead time: When does the bidder expect the units to arrive, and does the install start date depend on that delivery?

Section R609.3 of the 2023 Florida Building Code, Residential, read 15 October 2026, says: "The following shall also be required either n a permanent label or on a temporary supplemental label applied by the manufacturer: information identifying the manufacturer, the product model/series number, positive and negative design pressure rating, product maximum size tested, impact-resistance rating if applicable, Florida product approval number or Miami-Dade product approval number applicable test standard(s), and approved product certification agency, testing laboratory, evaluation entity or Miami-Dade product approval." Ask each bidder to copy the matching details for every unit into its quote, so you can hold the delivered units against the paper.

Source: 2023 Florida Building Code, Residential, Chapter 6 Wall Construction, read 15 October 2026.

Florida Statutes s. 553.842(5), read 15 October 2026, states: "A product may not be advertised, sold, offered, provided, distributed, or marketed as hurricane, windstorm, or impact protection from wind-borne debris from a hurricane or windstorm unless it is approved pursuant to this section or s. 553.8425." The same subsection of the Florida Statutes also states: "Statewide approval of products, methods, or systems of construction may be achieved by one of the following methods. One of these methods must be used by the commission to approve the following categories of products: panel walls, exterior doors, roofing, skylights, windows, shutters, impact protective systems, and structural components as established by the commission by rule." For any unit a bidder describes as hurricane or impact rated, ask it to write the approval number on that line.

Source: Florida Statutes s. 553.842, Product evaluation and approval, read 15 October 2026.

The Florida Building Commission's Product Approval site offers a menu link titled "Find a Product or Application". Looking up an approval number there is an optional step you can take yourself.

Source: Florida Building Commission, Product Approval, read 15 October 2026.

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Which items are often left out?

Check your window and door installation quote for gaps like removal and disposal of the old units, the waterproofing method around each new frame, stucco and drywall patching, trim and sill work, existing shutters and tracks, and what happens when a rotted buck or cracked block turns up once a frame comes out.

Section R609.1 of the 2023 Florida Building Code, Residential, read 15 October 2026, says: "Windows and doors shall be installed and flashed in accordance with the fenestration manufacturer’s written instructions." Ask which flashing tape, sealant and fastener pattern the crew plans to use for your openings.

Source: 2023 Florida Building Code, Residential, Chapter 6 Wall Construction, read 15 October 2026.

The same section says: "Written installation instructions shall be provided by the fenestration manufacturer for each window or door." Ask whether a copy of those instructions comes to you with your closeout papers.

Source: 2023 Florida Building Code, Residential, Chapter 6 Wall Construction, read 15 October 2026.

Ask what happens if pulling an old frame exposes soft wood, a damaged buck or broken block around the opening. Ask that the quote describe how such a discovery is photographed and written up as a change order for your approval before the crew seals the opening.

Ask whether the outside patch around each replaced unit is textured and painted to match the wall or left primed, and who touches up the inside returns, sills and casing. Ask too who takes down and puts back any blinds, curtain rods or alarm contacts fixed to the old frame.

If your home already has storm shutters, tracks or panels, ask whether the quote removes them, reinstalls them or leaves them alone, and who fills the old anchor holes. Where you pick impact-rated units for some openings and keep shutters on others, give each opening its own written line.

If your home was built before 1978, EPA's Renovate Right pamphlet, read 15 October 2026, states: "Federal law requires that individuals receive certain information before renovating more than six square feet of painted surfaces in a room for interior projects or more than twenty square feet of painted surfaces for exterior projects or window replacement or demolition in housing, child care facilities and schools built before 1978." Ask the bidder how its written scope handles that pamphlet and the setup and cleanup of the work area.

Source: EPA, Renovate Right pamphlet, read 15 October 2026.

What should the payment terms say?

Check whether your window and door payment schedule links money to milestones like permit issuance, delivery of units that match the order, installation and inspection of the openings, and a closing walk-through. Find out whether the first payment buys units made to your measured sizes.

Florida Statutes s. 489.126(2)(a), read 15 October 2026, states: "A contractor who receives, as initial payment, money totaling more than 10 percent of the contract price for repair, restoration, improvement, or construction to residential real property must: 1. Apply for permits necessary to do work within 30 days after the date payment is made, except where the work does not require a permit under the applicable codes and ordinances, and 2. Start the work within 90 days after the date all necessary permits for work, if any, are issued, unless the contractor has just cause for failing to apply for the necessary permits, starting the work, or refunding the payment, or unless the person who made the payment agreed, in writing, to a longer period to apply for the necessary permits or start the work or to longer periods for both."

Source: Florida Statutes section 489.126 (moneys received by contractors), read 15 October 2026.

Section 489.126(1), also read that day, states: "For purposes of this section, the term “contractor” includes all definitions as set forth in s. 489.105(3), and any person performing or contracting or promising to perform work described therein, without regard to the licensure of the person."

Source: Florida Statutes section 489.126 (moneys received by contractors), read 15 October 2026.

Whether these passages reach your agreement is a question for a Florida attorney. Listing delivery, installation and patching as their own lines lets you tell at a glance which openings are finished.

Does the quote say who pulls the permit?

Ask the bidder to state in writing whether it will apply for a building permit for your window and door replacement, which business name goes on that application, who books each inspection, and when you receive the closed permit record and the product approval paperwork for every unit.

The Contractor Regulations page of Palm Beach County, read 15 October 2026, gives these two hiring tips: "Make sure a permit is pulled (if applicable - click here)." and "Do not make the final payment until the permit is closed out." Hold that closeout up against the last line of your window and door payment schedule.

Source: Palm Beach County, Contractor Regulations page, read 15 October 2026.

Section R609.3 of the 2023 Florida Building Code, Residential, read 15 October 2026, also says: "The temporary supplemental label shall remain on the window or door until final approval by the building official." Ask the crew to leave those stickers in place until any final inspection is done, and photograph each one for your records.

Source: 2023 Florida Building Code, Residential, Chapter 6 Wall Construction, read 15 October 2026.

DBPR's construction-industry page, read 15 October 2026, lists under Window and Door Installation an application titled "Certified Window and Door Installation Specialty Contractor as an Individual – Active (CILB 5-AP)". That title is an application name, not a licence number format.

Source: DBPR construction industry licensing, read 15 October 2026.

DBPR's code table, read 15 October 2026, gives the code SCC the label "Certified Specialty Contractor". That label does not name a particular specialty, so ask the bidder which certificate its business would work under on your job. Any public-record lookup you choose to make is optional.

Source: DBPR, Understanding DBPR codes, read 15 October 2026.

The owner-builder disclosure statement in Florida Statutes s. 489.103(7), read 15 October 2026, contains this line: "I understand that, as an owner-builder, I am the responsible party of record on a permit." If a bidder proposes putting any permit for your windows or doors in your name, ask it to explain in writing who would then answer for each inspection.

Source: Florida Statutes s. 489.103, Exemptions, read 15 October 2026.

What should my request include?

Describe each opening in your written scope by room, outside wall, rough width and height, the current window or door type and what you want instead. Add a photograph of every opening from inside and outside, plus close photographs of any existing label, shutter track, cracked stucco or damaged sill.

Contact details stay hidden until the homeowner picks a contractor and they confirm the connection.

Source: InstaBids process and privacy, read 15 October 2026.

How can I compare it with other written quotes?

Compare window and door quotes opening by opening, starting with the unit count, product type, design pressure rating and approval number, then glass, frame material, removal, finish repairs and delivery timing. Ask any bidder whose quote skips an opening or changes a size from your written scope to explain that difference in writing.

The FTC's home improvement guidance, read 15 October 2026, says: "And ask for an explanation if there’s a big difference among the estimates."

Source: FTC home improvement guidance, read 15 October 2026.

  1. Units: Do all quotes count the same openings, at the same sizes, with the same door types?
  2. Ratings: Does each quote give a design pressure rating and approval number per unit, or only a general hurricane claim?
  3. Shutters: Does each quote treat your existing shutters and tracks the same way?
  4. Finish: Do all quotes include stucco, drywall and trim repair, or stop at the new frame?
  5. Timing: Does each quote give a delivery estimate, an install start date and a finish date?

Treat a suggested upgrade, for example tinted glass or an extra patio door, as an add-on beside your original request. When a bidder's question alters your opening list, issue a revised written scope to all of them at once.

After recording the unit, rating and finish answers for each opening, use the same written scope when requesting competing written responses.

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Sources for the facts on this page

Sources checked: 15 October 2026.

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