> Companies already price by predicting what people are willing to pay
So does anyone else who is doing work. For example, have a contractor come by your home to give an estimate on roof repair. It'll be highly dependent on him sizing up you and what you can apparently afford.
That’s where the invisible hand comes in and having functional markets matters. The difficulty in sustainably operating is also a demonstration of why heavily regulated taxis existed.
When I had my roof replaced, estimates ranged from $12,000 to $75,000. We got 11 bids and paid $14k. That’s market forces at work, but also an example of a market without high capital costs.
those probably weren't all the same product though? like impact resistance shingles with an air gapped radiant barrier layed down with a ventilated roof line and all that fancy stuff is certainly going to cost more than generic shingles over tar paper.
The 54k bid included a whole house energy audit with positive pressure tests and some stupid stuff. The bids from 6k to 32k were for the same literal shingles (architectural ) with the same installation and the same tear off and the same warranty.
The one pattern I noticed was the bids over 25k showed me a video with company values. (One talked about how Christian the owners were) The bids under 25k I got like a 5 minute explanation and a chance to ask questions.
So does anyone else who is doing work. For example, have a contractor come by your home to give an estimate on roof repair. It'll be highly dependent on him sizing up you and what you can apparently afford.