Are you doing the bidding? Or are you requesting the bid? If you are the one requesting the bidding, there is no need to list the prices of items but you do need to list things you specifically want if the plans do not call them out.

Blueprints will tell the builder about the trusses, nails, electrical boxes. Details like "what the walls are sheathed with" are covered in plans.

Your specs/material schedules will detail the shingles, and doors. The builder should budget for those in a transparent fashion.

While you could spec a specific faucet/tile/appliance, those are often handled with allowances, as a particular model number of a faucet may go out of date. In other words, if you know your bathroom tiles are $30/sf, give that price to your builder. They'll figure out how much to buy and give you an appropriate allowance for that item. Spend more on the item than the allowance and you're over budget; spend less and you're under.

Watch your allowances carefully, though, and do your best to compare them appropriately between quotes. Sleazy builders will give low allowances so that the bottom line number looks good. They can also omit necessary items from allowances, which, again, makes the bottom line look good. (One renovator I worked for -- not for long, I might add! -- more than doubled the size of a house but didn't allow for a new furnace. "Oh, you want to stay warm this winter? That's an extra.") You'll find more obfuscation when one price is for "supply and install"; another price is for "supply only" and the install is somewhere else on the spreadsheet.

Good luck -- it's a chore to wade through all the numbers, especially when they're presented differently.

ccoombs1 and justnigel took the words right out of my mouth. :)

If you are looking for higher end ANYTHING (appliances, windows, cherry raised panel cabinets...), absolutely specify these things. You want to make sure you are looking at REAL numbers for things you intend on having in your home.

You definitely don't want to start quoting prices. That's their job! And not only that but you need to realize that the $1500 exterior door you see online is NOT what you're going to pay your builder. Tack on 20%, plus tax. They need to make money on the job and adding a builder's fee is how they do it. And rightfully so. :)

The design drawings will show the physical layout, dimensions, and materials to be used in the project in scaled plans, sections, elevations and details. They should also contain structural framing plans & details, window & door schedules, a finish schedule, and a schedule of any equipment or materials the owner will supply for the contractor to install. More detailed information (kind of sheathing, concrete strength, fixtures, hardware, finish materials, etc.) would be listed in the Specifications which can be written on the drawings or in a separate document.

When elements of the design are not known at the time of bidding, they are sometimes included as an Allowance. This is just a price that you set for that element so that it can be included in the contract price and all bidders can use the same value for it. Later when the element is specified, the contract price is adjusted up or down by Change Order. If you use this method it is wise to set the quantity if possible and only use the allowance for the materials, not labor. Be sure to include a clause in the contract allowing you to choose the supplier of any allowance and for you to opt to supply the element and get a full credit from the contract price. Also negotiate the contractor's mark-up for increases in allowance amounts.

Removable appliances are usually bought by the owner and installed by the contractor in order to avoid unnecessary mark-ups.

Since the contract documentation will usually include more than printed drawings, it is best to refer to them as the "design documents" or "contract documents" rather than "blueprints", the long obsolete term for drawings reproduced with the white on blue "cyanotype" process. Bid drawings, written specifications, and other instructions will all become part of the contract and should be carefully prepared and described in the contract in order to avoid misunderstandings and disputes later.