It might come as a complete shock to many, that some contractors charge a fee to come to your home for a bid or consultation. However, this is becoming more of a common practice, especially for contractors who specialize in remodel work. Certain trades have the ability to streamline their estimation process, if their scope of work is more specialized. That said, remodeling contractors tend to offer a wider range of services, and remodel projects tend to be quite complex, involving many factors that go into the overall scope of work.
Bidding a remodel is a lot of work, especially for a competent contractor. Essentially, the contractor has to visualize the entire project from start to finish, and try to account for every detail. This can take a TON of time, both at the project site and in the office. It is important for the contractor to have as much information upfront as possible, but sometimes there can only be so much information available before a project begins. This is why some remodel contractors include a demo/discovery phase in their bid. Going over plans, shopping current material prices, estimating hours/days per phase, planning for unknown discoveries, etc., is not something a contractor wants to volunteer his/her time for.
We all value our time, and want to be respectful of others and their time. If your contractor is wanting a fee for his/her time, to plan and bid your project, it isn’t because they are a shady business person. Their time is in high demand and need to make sure that time is allocated properly. Below is a link from Angi.com, that takes a deeper dive into the subject.