Good afternoon everyone. There seem to be a lot of questions about paver costs so let me see if I can answer those. Pavers actually can be less expensive than colored concrete. Generally, colored concrete will cost about $10/sf, this used to be $12-$13/sf but has dropped with the economy. There are some colors, such as the darker ones, which require more color and the cost can go up to $11/sf. If someone bids much lower than this there is a catch, such as not spacing the rebar correctly, pouring a low quality concrete, not compacting the base correctly, and so on. There are a lot of contractors cutting corners these days. Regarding the bid of $14,500 for 1,100 sf of colored concrete, this is a bit on the high side, seeing as there is no concrete removal the price should be a bit less. I am glad to hear you hired a landscape architect to prepare your plans though. Also, perhaps the colored concrete has a detail score cut finish, this could explain the higher price. Also, perhaps the contractor is using a higher PSI concrete to reduce cracking. I feel a light or medium release sand blast or acid wash finish will give you the best results.
In response to the Stepstone narrow modular paver, this should not increase the cost as pavers go down very quick. there is more cutting at the edges but really this should only be maybe $1/sf more at most. Actually, the square pavers by stepstone I believe need to be set on a raised platform with rubberized pads, which is a more expensive installation method. I believe the narrow modules go on a sand base which is quicker. The narrow pavers probably should costs around $13-$14/sf, but I haven't priced those recently. The square pavers could costs a bit more depending on how they are installed. I would get the paver you are most happy with and not worry too much about the additional costs as you will have to live with this for many years to come. Both pavers are a good clean look.
Pavers will costs anywhere from $7 - $13 / sf, with some high-end ones costing a bit more. Most pavers fall in the $10-$12/sf range. Plain concrete with a broom finish will cost about $7-$8/sf while a colored concrete with a sandblast finish will cost $10- $11/sf. Concrete is a nice clean look and you can add some interesting sawcut scoring patters, additional costs of maybe $1-$2/sf. Pavers offer a lot of flexibility as they can be replaced if a glass of wine is spilled on them or changes need to be made to the underground utilities.
Any other questions I can answer?
