PMP · Question #1367
A client comes to the company asking to copy a project that was executed 2 years ago in the same city, with the expectation that the new project will have the same cost and duration. While finalizing
The correct answer is C. Verified applicable budget inputs related to this project. A project manager is finding that a new project, intended to be a copy of an older one, has significantly higher baseline costs than expected.
Question
A client comes to the company asking to copy a project that was executed 2 years ago in the same city, with the expectation that the new project will have the same cost and duration. While finalizing the project management plan, the project manager realizes that the baseline costs are much higher than the original project. What could the project manager have done to avoid this?
Options
- AAssigned the same project resources to this project
- BDetermined a budget reserve for this project
- CVerified applicable budget inputs related to this project
- DEstimated a budget for the project's quality management
How the community answered
(54 responses)- A4% (2)
- B7% (4)
- C74% (40)
- D15% (8)
Why each option
A project manager is finding that a new project, intended to be a copy of an older one, has significantly higher baseline costs than expected.
Assigning the same resources is often impractical and doesn't guarantee the same cost, as resource rates might have changed.
Determining a budget reserve is for known-unknown risks and is part of prudent budgeting, but it doesn't prevent the initial *baseline estimate* from being inaccurate if core inputs are not verified.
To avoid inaccurate cost expectations, the project manager should have thoroughly verified all applicable budget inputs, such as current labor rates, material costs, inflation, and other market conditions, which can significantly differ over two years, even for a similar project in the same city. This due diligence during planning would have provided a realistic cost estimate.
Estimating a budget for quality management is a standard practice but doesn't directly address the discrepancy arising from changed market conditions or input costs over time.
Concept tested: Cost estimation and accurate budget planning
Source: https://www.projectmanagement.com/blog-post/10304/Project-Cost-Management--The-Basics
Topics
Community Discussion
6
Carlos M.Jan 16, 2026C is correct. The PM skipped checking current pricing, labor rates, material costs, and other inputs that changed over the past two years - you can never just copy an old budget and expect it to hold.
Toby R.Jan 27, 2026C is right. Old project baselines need current cost input verification before reuse.
Orla P.Jan 12, 2026A is the move here. The client assumed same city means same cost, but two years of inflation and market changes will wreck that assumption unless you bring back the same resources at their known rates. If the PM had pushed to assign the same project resources, the labor costs and vendor relationships would have carried over and kept the baseline much closer to the original. Without those familiar resources, you are basically re-pricing everything from scratch and the numbers balloon.
Carlos M.Jan 14, 2026C is correct here. The core issue is not about assigning the same resources, it is that the PM failed to factor in market conditions and inflation when estimating costs for the new project, which is exactly what option C addresses.
Dervla O.Jan 15, 2026B all the way. Same city two years later still means inflation and market shifts, so you set reserves before finalizing the plan.
Toby R.Jan 17, 2026Actually it is C, because same city two years later means you can use the prior project as a close analog for bottom-up estimating, not set reserves. B is a trap because reserves come later in the process, after you have already nailed down the estimate.