How Much Do Plantation Shutters Cost In Houston?
So you’re considering plantation shutters for your home.
If you’re like most people, the first two questions that enter your mind are “How will wooden shutters look in my home?” and “How much do plantation shutters cost?” The only problem is that when you Google such a question, there’s a surprising lack of concrete answers on the topic.
Like most professional products and services, there’s a wide price range for shutters in Houston. Especially with plantation shutters, price generally correlates to quality with some exceptions that you should watch out for. We'll talk more about those guys in a minute.
It’s absolutely possible to get shutters on the cheap. However, they’re likely A) not suited to Houston’s higher humidity levels, or B) made with lower quality materials and will need to be replaced only a few years after purchasing.
Generally speaking, you can expect the price to range anywhere from $15 per square foot on the low end, to $50+ per square foot on the high end. For the sake of over simplifying things, we’ll break it down into three price categories:
Let’s explore some of the underlying details behind these different price points.
The Low End: Big Box Retailers & Shutter Middle Men
On the lower end of shutter price spectrum we have Big Box Retailers (e.g. Home Depot or Lowes) and your Shutter Middle Men.
When exploring shutters from a Big Box Retailer, you’ll need to measure your own windows and select from a limited range of pre-built shutter sizes. We call this the “measure and pray” approach, because you’re basically out of luck if your windows don’t fall within the average sizes offered. Plus if you have a window that isn’t a standard shape--for example, an arch window--then there’s no hope of finding pre-built shutters to fit.
This price point also includes your Shutter Middle Men. These providers will come and measure each window for you and offer some generic styling tips, but that’s roughly the extent of their service offering. Should you purchase from them, these providers ultimately rely on overseas factories to actually build and deliver the order--meaning they have no control over production quality and timelines.
You can identify a plantation shutters Middle Man shop right away by asking two simple questions: “Where are the shutters built?” and “Who builds the shutters?” If the answers are anything other than “The shutters are built locally in our shop,” and “We build the shutters ourselves,” then you’re talking to a Middle Man.
Even after the shutters are built and delivered, Middle Men still rely on hiring third-party contractors to install the interior shutters in your home. So not only does the overseas shipping necessitate a longer delivery timeline, but also increases the likelihood of human error since your order is “handed off” multiple times throughout the process.
For these reasons, most Middle Men shutters are built with larger tolerances as a way to account for a wider margin of error. Ultimately this means the shutters do not fit as tightly within your window frame, and will likely include some light leaks around the shutter’s frame. There’s nothing wrong with this if it’s what your budget allows, but it’s important to know these details upfront before committing.
The Middle Ground: Local Shutter Shops
Next up, we have your local shutter shops. These establishments typically operate with smaller production batches. However, “small batch” does not necessarily imply a higher degree of product quality. As a matter of fact, there’s a wide range in product quality at this price point since local shops each operate with different priorities.
Some local shops pride themselves on offering a high quality product and will utilize more premium components, causing them to fall towards the higher end of this price range. Other shops prioritize keeping costs as low as possible, and will use cheaper components like polywood--a fancy way of saying cheap plastic--or plastic tilt rods.
These lower-quality materials are enticing when considering the cheaper upfront cost as a consumer, but will also likely need replacing in as little as 3 years. Considering that front tilt rods are typically the weakest component, you can assume that your shutters will also likely need some level of repair even before completely replacing them. Similarly, the common paint types used in these interior plantation shutters have a reputation for quickly yellowing and fading from sun exposure.
On the plus side, most local providers are capable of delivering your plantation shutters on a shorter timeframe than the Middle Men described above. Why? Because these local shops aren’t forced to wait weeks for the shutters to be shipped from overseas, which can shave at least a few weeks off from your delivery timeframe.
The High End: Downstream Shutter Sales Reps & Boutique Shutter Shops
Last but not least, we have your downstream Shutter Sales Reps and Boutique Shutter Shops.
This group is a mix-and-match of sorts. Unfortunately, some interior shutter providers at this price point are simply the same Middle Men discussed before, masquerading behind a premium brand image as justification for their higher price point. You can identify these people using the same two questions mentioned earlier: “Where are the shutters built?” and “Who builds the shutters?”
Separate from your Middle Men, you may also encounter similar downstream Shutter Sales Reps who sell products from a national wholesaler’s catalog such as Hunter Douglas. Since these individuals are restricted to the wholesaler’s catalog and pricing, you’ll likely pay extra for every design specification or styling option.
Prefer a hidden tilt rod instead of a front tilt rod? That costs extra. Want a high gloss paint sheen instead of satin? That costs extra. You selected a different framing option? That costs extra. In these encounters, make sure to specifically ask what your “out the door” price is, since it’s common for the quote to not include the cost of actually installing the shutters.
Alternatively, you have smaller Boutique Shutter Shops included in this price range as well. Although their smaller size comes with a lower overall production capacity, these Houston plantation shutter shops are known for using higher quality materials. This means that Boutique Shutter Shops typically use premium components such as 100% hardwood, nylon pins, aluminum tilt rods and the like.
Boutique Shutter Shops also offer a significantly higher degree of customer service. Since these Houston wooden shutter providers are smaller shops, it’s common for you to deal directly with the owners. Having a direct line of contact is especially beneficial since you can easily contact them at any time for an order update or to ask followup questions.
In short, there’s a wide price spectrum when it comes to shopping for interior plantation shutters in Houston. Fortunately this means that there’s likely an option for plantation shutters to fit nearly any budget. But this also means that it’s important to do your research when shopping for wooden plantation shutters.
Wondering what plantation shutters might cost for your home?
Give us a call or schedule a consultation to price shutters for your home today.