Learn Italian: Dobbiamo rispettare la stima, altrimenti sforiamo il budget. - We must respect the estimate, otherwise we exceed the budget.

The connector altrimenti (otherwise) links a condition to its consequence. While you absolutely can use the future (sforeremo) or conditional (sforeremmo) if the consequence feels distant or hypothetical, using the present indicative (sforiamo) makes the result feel immediate, factual, and certain. It emphasizes that breaking the budget is a guaranteed outcome.

I've seen stima used to mean "esteem" or "respect". Is that what it means here?

No, and that is a common trap! While stima does mean "esteem" when talking about people, in business, mathematical, or project contexts, it means "estimate" or "appraisal" (from the verb stimare, to estimate). Therefore, rispettare la stima means "to stick to the estimate" or "to honor the quote".

What kind of verb is sforare, and when do we use it?

It comes from the noun foro (hole) combined with the prefix s- (often indicating an exit or change of state). Literally, it means "to pierce" or "make a hole". In everyday Italian, it is the go-to figurative verb for bursting through a limit or overstepping boundaries, especially when talking about money (sforare il budget) or time (sforare con i tempi).

Since budget is an English word, how does it behave grammatically in Italian?