I am not sure if this is the right forum to ask but I am looking for info on hiring an architect and since this is a forum filled with architects, I figured I would give it a shot. Apologies up front for the newbie nature of this post.
My wife and I are planning on buying a home and we would like to buy something that has a good structure but needs some I interior updating. We are looking st buying a place between 1600 and 2000 sqft and would have between 100k to renovate. We are looking at spending between 300k and 350k for a place and would want to live in it for as long as possible afterwards. We would obviously not be looking at doing any additions or anything too crazy. My questions are are the following:
1) is a project this size worth getting an architect involved or is this budget too small and will we just be wasting his/her time?
2) If it is feasible to get an architect involved, what is the best way to identity someone that could be suitable? Most of the architects in my area that have a significant web presence seem to be local starchitects with bigger fish to fry.
I mainly want to contract with an architect for his or her design expertise and ability to manage the project and the contractor. I don't fancy myself an expert in any of this so I would want to bring in a pro but I am wondering if this type of project will be too small.
Thanks in advance for any insight! It's much appreciated.
There are architects and designers who do this kind of work, but they are often under the radar. I've done a few hundred projects of this scale in various capacities, and would suggest that you start by interviewing builders, and ask them for suggestions on design help. Some builders will have someone on staff who can do this kind of work. If not, they should be able to give you some names of architects to follow up with. If you stumble across an architect first, that's great, as you really do need a design of some sort for every project.
Thank you very much for the reply! By "builders" do you mean general contractors or actual home builders? In my area there aren't many new home builders as it is mostly large condo projects.
i would start with googling 'home remodeling near <your city>. you should get a few companies to compare, and see if the pictures on their websites match the aesthetic you're looking for.
I'm a former residential remodel architect and this would have been a good-sized project for someone like me to take on.
I'll suggest two things:
1. Call your local AIA (American Institute of Architects) to ask for some names of architects who specialize in residential remodel. Most AIA membership rosters are organized by project type - a firm that does hospitals won't likely take on your project, but small firms would. 2. Ask EVERYONE you know for recommendations. Your dentist/doctor/accountant/dry cleaner/farmer's marketer/coworker may have worked with an architect OR have a family member or close friend who has. When I was in practice virtually all of our work came from word of mouth recommendations from former clients or their friends and family.
Thank you so much for the great info! It is appreciated.
A (hopefully) final question: will an architect specializing in residential remodeling usually handle both the design and the project management/relationship with the contractor, or is this usually two different things?
I've done it both ways, personally. Currently I'm working on one where I will do basic design drawings and hand them off to a contractor the client is friends with, then I'll only come in to answer questions during construction when needed.
I've also done projects where I do complete bid sets (specifying everything down to drawer pulls and tile and paint color) and then been involved the entire time on site making sure that the contractor the client selects builds things properly.
Whichever way you do it, you will have a written contract directly with the architect for design services (adding on however much scope of construction involvement you want) and a separate written contract directly with the builder. That's the typical client-architect-builder 3-party arrangement. If you sign only one contract with an entity that both designs AND builds the project, that's called a design-build arrangement, and it's different.
Not to be too much of a salesperson, but I do think the AIA official contract documents are very useful in helping define the responsibilities of each party. Anyone can buy them to use, you don't have to be an AIA member. I have worked with contractors who use them with their clients even when no architect is involved. Note that there are project-specific contracts, some are many pages and sections long, but they also have them for small projects and for owner-contractor relationships that are only a couple-few pages long.
Thank you very much for the advice Donna and thanks to everyone who answered in this thread. Your answers have given me some good next steps and I will start looking into the different options available to us and also get in touch with the AIA,
In my experience as a designer, I discovered that the best way to do projects was 'with good people'. This discovery came from a remark made nearly 30 years ago by a friend from Egypt, who, in response to part of a discussion we had at the time, said that "nice people know nice people." I have found that this jewel of knowledge helped me to know how to select clients, contractors, as well as architects & home designers, if I was too busy. If you feel comfortable with someone, and feel that you can trust them - that you are on the same wavelength - and not to sound campy, but if you can trust your gut feeling, most of the time it turns out to be a good decision-made.
Basic question about hiring an architect
Hello!
I am not sure if this is the right forum to ask but I am looking for info on hiring an architect and since this is a forum filled with architects, I figured I would give it a shot. Apologies up front for the newbie nature of this post.
My wife and I are planning on buying a home and we would like to buy something that has a good structure but needs some I interior updating. We are looking st buying a place between 1600 and 2000 sqft and would have between 100k to renovate. We are looking at spending between 300k and 350k for a place and would want to live in it for as long as possible afterwards. We would obviously not be looking at doing any additions or anything too crazy. My questions are are the following:
1) is a project this size worth getting an architect involved or is this budget too small and will we just be wasting his/her time?
2) If it is feasible to get an architect involved, what is the best way to identity someone that could be suitable? Most of the architects in my area that have a significant web presence seem to be local starchitects with bigger fish to fry.
I mainly want to contract with an architect for his or her design expertise and ability to manage the project and the contractor. I don't fancy myself an expert in any of this so I would want to bring in a pro but I am wondering if this type of project will be too small.
Thanks in advance for any insight! It's much appreciated.
There are architects and designers who do this kind of work, but they are often under the radar. I've done a few hundred projects of this scale in various capacities, and would suggest that you start by interviewing builders, and ask them for suggestions on design help. Some builders will have someone on staff who can do this kind of work. If not, they should be able to give you some names of architects to follow up with. If you stumble across an architect first, that's great, as you really do need a design of some sort for every project.
Thank you very much for the reply! By "builders" do you mean general contractors or actual home builders? In my area there aren't many new home builders as it is mostly large condo projects.
i would start with googling 'home remodeling near <your city>. you should get a few companies to compare, and see if the pictures on their websites match the aesthetic you're looking for.
I'm a former residential remodel architect and this would have been a good-sized project for someone like me to take on.
I'll suggest two things:
1. Call your local AIA (American Institute of Architects) to ask for some names of architects who specialize in residential remodel. Most AIA membership rosters are organized by project type - a firm that does hospitals won't likely take on your project, but small firms would.
2. Ask EVERYONE you know for recommendations. Your dentist/doctor/accountant/dry cleaner/farmer's marketer/coworker may have worked with an architect OR have a family member or close friend who has. When I was in practice virtually all of our work came from word of mouth recommendations from former clients or their friends and family.
Oh, also - check Houzz for residential remodelers in your area, some of whom will be architects and some builders.
Thank you so much for the great info! It is appreciated.
A (hopefully) final question: will an architect specializing in residential remodeling usually handle both the design and the project management/relationship with the contractor, or is this usually two different things?
I've done it both ways, personally. Currently I'm working on one where I will do basic design drawings and hand them off to a contractor the client is friends with, then I'll only come in to answer questions during construction when needed.
I've also done projects where I do complete bid sets (specifying everything down to drawer pulls and tile and paint color) and then been involved the entire time on site making sure that the contractor the client selects builds things properly.
Whichever way you do it, you will have a written contract directly with the architect for design services (adding on however much scope of construction involvement you want) and a separate written contract directly with the builder. That's the typical client-architect-builder 3-party arrangement. If you sign only one contract with an entity that both designs AND builds the project, that's called a design-build arrangement, and it's different.
Not to be too much of a salesperson, but I do think the AIA official contract documents are very useful in helping define the responsibilities of each party. Anyone can buy them to use, you don't have to be an AIA member. I have worked with contractors who use them with their clients even when no architect is involved. Note that there are project-specific contracts, some are many pages and sections long, but they also have them for small projects and for owner-contractor relationships that are only a couple-few pages long.
Thank you very much for the advice Donna and thanks to everyone who answered in this thread. Your answers have given me some good next steps and I will start looking into the different options available to us and also get in touch with the AIA,
Thanks again!
In my experience as a designer, I discovered that the best way to do projects was 'with good people'. This discovery came from a remark made nearly 30 years ago by a friend from Egypt, who, in response to part of a discussion we had at the time, said that "nice people know nice people." I have found that this jewel of knowledge helped me to know how to select clients, contractors, as well as architects & home designers, if I was too busy. If you feel comfortable with someone, and feel that you can trust them - that you are on the same wavelength - and not to sound campy, but if you can trust your gut feeling, most of the time it turns out to be a good decision-made.
The most important is proffesionalism and of course search for the work they did so far, maybe ratings from other customers.
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