Fair price for php database website?

Marina-anseo · 28-04-2010 7:47pm #1

I am a computer science student and through a connection I have been asked to make a php database website for an auctioneer. It doesn't require any payments online just a basic website displaying houses for sale and google maps etc.
What do you think is a fair price to charge for this type of website?
It is expected to be a typical auctioneering style site, i.e. something like daft.ie but smaller and not as fancy.

jmcc · 28-04-2010 8:20pm

Marina-anseo wrote: »

I am a computer science student and through a connection I have been asked to make a php database website for an auctioneer. It doesn't require any payments online just a basic website displaying houses for sale and google maps etc.
What do you think is a fair price to charge for this type of website?
It is expected to be a typical auctioneering style site, i.e. something like daft.ie but smaller and not as fancy.

The obvious question: who does the updates?

Regards...jmcc

Liam Byrne · 28-04-2010 8:27pm

The obvious question is : define "basic"

A database list showing the relevant fields and photos, one image per property, with a backend is straightforward and could be done in about a half-day.

Specifying Google Map co-ordinates via GPS location is one thing; providing a draggable-mark interface to save co-ordinates is another.

Add in properly paginated lists, search options, galleries rather than one image per property, sort by price/location/number of rooms, etc, is another ballgame and could take
2 - 3 days.

Marina-anseo · 28-04-2010 8:44pm

I must create the site in such a way that the owner can update it himself without too much difficulty.
yes there will be menus, lists, catagories, search option, sort by etc.
The time frame isn't an issue, it'll be a summer project.
It must look like a professional website but not with end user accounts.

28-04-2010 10:15pm

Marina-anseo wrote: »

It must look like a professional website but not with end user accounts.

Who's going to handle that side of things?

nellyshark · 28-04-2010 10:46pm

Charge per hour

I get the impression that this will be far from basic

Marina-anseo · 28-04-2010 11:19pm

well the professional design is all part of it... i must have the website completed with the text, photos, current houses etc. all included. So I'll be using xhtml, css and php for sure as well as the database. It isn't a template project it has to be fully completed. The auctioneer doesn't know a lot about web design or programming so the website has to be ready to use when completed. I'm not dealing with the hosting part just creating the website. As its a project without an urgent deadline I would rather an overall estimate quote instead of a per hour charge.

nellyshark · 29-04-2010 12:59am

Would something like open realty be out of the question then?

Marina-anseo · 29-04-2010 1:09am

Yes actually i didnt think of that, the templates are made in strict xhtml and css so that would lessen the work load with hopefully just some editing involved. So with this as an option to get started what price would be reasonable?

29-04-2010 9:21am

Honestly, this shouldn't be a custom built job, you should use an existing CMS as there's no way in hell they should be touching the XHTML & CSS. There's free & commercial CMSs that would save you days of work on this and produce a better end result than you could do on your own. Also, you probably need to work with a designer on this, as most developers don't have the design skill to produce a 'professional' level of visual and interaction design for a site.

As for cost, given you're still learning I would say a few hundred euro, but work out what time you're going to spend on it, and multiply taht by an hourly rate. Add 20% extra for contingency.

Trojan · 29-04-2010 6:54pm

Speaking from experience, I did exactly this back in 2004. Almost identical spec (the only difference is that it was foreign properties for sale, back in the boom).

From that experience, I can tell you that building this kind of site from scratch is a far larger job than it sounds at first. It's also a wonderful learning opportunity, if you have an extremely understanding client - preferably related to you by blood

p wrote: »

Honestly, this shouldn't be a custom built job, you should use an existing CMS as there's no way in hell they should be touching the XHTML & CSS. There's free & commercial CMSs that would save you days of work on this and produce a better end result than you could do on your own.

Agreed wholeheartedly with p there, going with an off the shelf solution is better in almost every department (except 'learning').

p wrote: »

Also, you probably need to work with a designer on this, as most developers don't have the design skill to produce a 'professional' level of visual and interaction design for a site.

As a developer without the requisite design skills, I hate to admit that the site I developed was butt-ugly. I've learned the error of my ways and work with some really great designers nowadays

p wrote: »

As for cost, given you're still learning I would say a few hundred euro, but work out what time you're going to spend on it, and multiply taht by an hourly rate. Add 20% extra for contingency.

That figure sounds low to me - I'd say you're looking at 1,200+ if the OP builds what they've described, it looks great, and it includes everything mentioned in posts above.

EKRIUQ · 29-04-2010 9:43pm

Joomla Free www.joomla.org

Hot Properties component for joomla about €100. http://www.mosets.com/hotproperty/ with loads of addons

Examples of sites done like this http://www.mosets.com/hotproperty/featured/

A good days work would have the bones of the job done and with little skill you could have the site looking very professional.

For €600 euro they'd have a good professional website easy to edit and you'd be doing all right out of it too.

Warning Joomla has a bit of a learning curve but if your a computer science student it would be a breeze.

sheesh · 30-04-2010 2:16am

just agreeing with what everyone else here has said
you say basic site and it sounds easy but its not a basic site if you are doing it from scratch

you have different templates all the public pages, you have more templates for the editing the details

and you mentioned something about end user accounts

How many different pages are you going to need for that

all these are going to have to be designed to a pro level

After all that then you will have to test these to make sure that Confidentiality of clients

thats potentially a 6 month job.

go with a cms like joomla but do a custom template yourself for the publically viewable pages but also for the back end if you want the challenge

that will get you plenty of marketable experience in php

If you really want a challenge do it in drupal!

02-05-2010 11:40am

Trojan wrote: »

That figure sounds low to me - I'd say you're looking at 1,200+ if the OP builds what they've described, it looks great, and it includes everything mentioned in posts above.

That figure was based on the fact that this may the the first commercial site the original poster has ever worked on, so it's quite likely to be fairly low quality on the scale of things.

Talisman · 04-05-2010 10:53am

You could put the site together quite quickly with Drupal. Drupalrealestate.com was built as a demonstration site using freely available contributed modules and the Acquia Marina theme. The main modules it uses are CCK, Views, Views Carousel, Gmap, and Location.

Fair price for php database website?

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