Garage Design / Architech Costs

[NWOhioChevyGuy]

OK, well we have an 1886 Brick farm house and I have met with an architech to design the garage and do drawings for permits and it basically comes down to these #'s.

Design $700
Eng Drawings $625

28'x32' w/ bonus (14'x32) room over and 2 story breezeway(14' x 14').

Think it's fair?

 

[61scout80]

i think that's pretty fair. The architect i used to draw for charged about $100 an hour...

 

[Shocker]

Seems pretty good to me.

 

[ghnl]

It will much cheaper to fix problems on paper vs brick...

 

[NWOhioChevyGuy]

That's what I figured, I just wanted some feedback for the other half.

The unfortunate side of things her father is a contractor and he said this weekend "I've never used an Architech"

So my wife things of it as not a need, but she does agree that we need to make the garage so it looks like it belongs. And also have a full design so we don't have to re-work or pay for something twice.

Thanks guys

 

[blkhonda1991]

very fair, its about $1.50 a sf. we charge 3$ a sf to do residential typically unless you want to do the project on an hourly basis. I do question the need for an engineer based on such a simple building unless it is a steel building, but for $1300 id say its a good deal.

 

[blkhonda1991]

That's what I figured, I just wanted some feedback for the other half.

The unfortunate side of things her father is a contractor and he said this weekend "I've never used an Architech"

So my wife things of it as not a need, but she does agree that we need to make the garage so it looks like it belongs. And also have a full design so we don't have to re-work or pay for something twice.

Thanks guys

is her father doing the job for you? one thing that is great about architects drawings are they spell out exactly what is required of the contractor so he cant nickel and dime you on things that "werent included in his pricing"

 

[boiler7904]

Price seems way low compared to what I'm used to seeing.

Have you seen any of his previous designs or talked to people that have built off of his plans? Were the plans buildable with standard materials?

If you feel comfortable with the answers to those questions, jump at that price.

Find out what the cost for construction site visits is now before you need to have him come out and budget for one or two visits just in case something goes wrong.

 

[boiler7904]

is her father doing the job for you? one thing that is great about architects drawings are they spell out exactly what is required of the contractor so he cant nickel and dime you on things that "werent included in his pricing"

You're assuming that the contractor will actually bid according to the plans. You'd be amazed at how many ******* matches you can get into over the course of a project on things being included or not included that are black and white (or blue and white) on a set of architectural or engineering drawings.

 

[blkhonda1991]

You're assuming that the contractor will actually bid according to the plans. You'd be amazed at how many ******* matches you can get into over the course of a project on things being included or not included that are black and white (or blue and white) on a set of architectural or engineering drawings.

true, thats why it depends on the drawings really. A good set of drawings will help in keeping the contractor from trying to add additional work on top of his intial bid. So make it clear to the architect exactly what you want in terms of finishes, fixtures, doors, windows, etc. so that the contractor is bound to furnishing those items, try to leave as little gray area as possible. If he doesnt carry something in his bid that is clearly in the drawings he cant charge you extra for it.

 

[spchiv]

Very fair, it's a good deal.

 

[mikeyr]

super cheap compared to what I was forced to pay 2 years ago. The city required a engineer's stamp which forced me to get plans drawn and then the engjneer, cost was near $5k for a friggin garage addition.

(no complaints about it though, I could have saved that if I did not insist on the exact location of the addition and moved it over about 8feet, but I got exactly what I wanted)

 

[GeorgiaHybrid]

Around here for a garage or mostly open building (like yours) the Architect will charge roughly 5% of the cost on the project (they will check on the contractor once or twice for that rate) or do a flat rate for the building based on area ($1.50 to $1.75 a sq. ft.) or by the hour ($85.00 and up).

 

[91FE]

I'm a registered architect in Pennsylvania and do small things like garages and additions on the side. My fee for sealed permit drawings would be closer to $3000-$3500. Not to sound like an ***, but there isn't much I'd do on the side for $1300... it's just not worth it. You're getting a deal.

 

[BLUBAYOU]

I paid $1000 for my garage plans/engineering last year, which I thought was fair. I wasn't charged anything additional for site visits after the fact, either.

I guess some of the "fairness" in cost come down to the customization, too. a 24x24 box with trusses is different than a more complex shape/addition.

91FE, what are your clients getting for $3-3.5k that I didn't get for $1K? Just curious....

 

[Stuart in MN]

I don't know what the hourly rate is for an architect in Michigan, but I'll guess it's in the $100/hr range (that's an hourly billing rate, not his take home pay.) If that's the case, he spent less than two days on the design and drawings which isn't very much time.

 

[Ezzie]

I just had a building designer do up a set of plans for me for a straitforward 26' D x 28' W 2 car garage for $400. He supplied 6 sets of blueprint plans so I could submit them with my Application for Building Permit.

 

[rwhite692]

That seems entirely fair. Are you doing the construction yourself or acting as your own General Contractor?

 

[91FE]

Re: Garage Design / Architect Costs

91FE, what are your clients getting for $3-3.5k that I didn't get for $1K? Just curious....

That's tough to answer without seeing what you got for your money. I usually have 40+ hours wrapped up into a simple garage design. That includes me meeting with the client to get an understanding of what they're looking for, figuring out what the local codes are and what they require, designing/drawing/detailing whatever it is, engineering the structure, another meeting or two with the client to review everything and make changes if necessary, delivering however many copies of the drawings are necessary for permit, being available to answer questions from the builder and inspector and stopping by for a few site visits during construction.

 

[PurdueSD]

I think i paid like 200 bucks to have a company draw up my plans. Granted i basically hand drew every detail and handed it to them just to appease the building commission. Here's a couple of the pages....

 

[ddawg16]

If your were just doing a simple garage.....in most cases a hand scetch would work.....but the moment you step outside the normal realm of 'simple' garage, then you need detailed plans and engineering.

In my case, I did the autocad but had to have engineering...that cost me $1200....basically I was building a 2 story structure....not a 'simple' garage.

So your price sounds cheap....as long as the building office buys off on it....go for it.

 

[GarageEnvy]

I'll chime in with cheap. I have plans being drawn right now by a draftsperson (not a licensed architect) in central California for a basic box (53'x34') and the bill is $2500 for him and another $800 for the engineer. The garage is attached to the house and engineering is required for lateral forces I'm told because I want the posts between the doors narrow.

 

[willymakeit]

Get a decent set of drawings. A sound proposal from you contractor showing what is included in their bid. Attach to your contract. As much clearly defined communication on the front end will save a lot of grief on the back end.

 

[Schrodingers Cat]

dirt cheap...

a rule of thimb is 5-10% of construction cost, depending on services
design
permitting
bid/handling the finances
CM/inspection

I would say for design/permitting alone 5% or so, unless he's using 'canned' drawings...
that's ~1500+ sq ft...figure low end 30-50 sq ft for a cost of ~$60k
5% would be $3k...

is he including the foundation/structural, elec & mech/plumbing?

 

[Daniel Dudley]

A few years ago, getting a permit was a pretty simple deal. These days it is in many cases mandatory to have a stamped set of prints. Many inspectors want them even if it isn't required by law. It becomes a question of liability, and who is liable.

 

[z28snksknr]

For every dollar you spend on engineering a building you will save a multiple of that on construction costs. A detailed and well engineered design will always give you a better end result than a poorly defined and "left for contractor interpretation" design.

I would hope that any engineer that is putting his P.E. stamp on a set of drawings will be HIGHLY involved to insure that the design he stamped is correct, to code, and followed to the letter by the contractor. It's his license that's on the line.

 

[blkhonda1991]

A few years ago, getting a permit was a pretty simple deal. These days it is in many cases mandatory to have a stamped set of prints. Many inspectors want them even if it isn't required by law. It becomes a question of liability, and who is liable.

All depends on location and then to individual building depts when it comes to what is required to be stamped/engineered. For the most part small additions and houses below a certain sq footage dont really require stamped sets or engineering (atleast thats the case here). In those cases the architect is really only designing the way the building looks and the contractor builds it (stick framing w/ dimensional lumber/tgi's, trusses, etc. which the lumber yards will size) however they are familiar/comfortable with. As you can see its quite a range people have draftsmen, architects, engineers doing their plans ranging from 400-3k so id say your making out ok pricewise at 1300 for your plans.

I'll chime in with cheap. I have plans being drawn right now by a draftsperson (not a licensed architect) in central California for a basic box (53'x34') and the bill is $2500 for him and another $800 for the engineer. The garage is attached to the house and engineering is required for lateral forces I'm told because I want the posts between the doors narrow.

sounds like you are getting hosed on that deal, thats a lot of cash to pay for a building to be drawn/designed by a draftsperson, i hope they atleast have some kind of credentials to be charging that much.

 

[NWOhioChevyGuy]

Sorry been a day or two since I checked this post.

He did work for both my older Brother & my younger Brother and is a friend of my Uncles from HS. All really good referances and he does this for a living, this is not a side project.

He charges $40/hr for anything above the quoted project and all the design is from scratch, as I drew up what I want in AutoCAD but he is doing all the final design and construction drawings for the $1325.

Prints are $2/page as he does not know how many I will need or want.

Design includes:
Design - w/ full house drawing so my wife can get a visual in a 3D version / walk through view
He is also doing a full lot layout to give permit and set backs - easy as it's 200+ feet from closest boundry.

Engineered Drawings include:
Foundation & Concrete - Including floor drains and approach
Structural and truss design for garage and 2nd story Bonus Room
Two Story breeze way with laundry / bath room
Simple Electrical layout - will be modified and or changed to my needs as I wire
Eaves and exterior material specification to match / blend with 1886 house construction

Sounds like I should spend the money and watch for the "got it for steal" police.

Forgot to add:

Father in law will not be doing the framing / exterior - I will be hiring a contractor & crew to do that.
I will be finishing off the inside to a degree and maybe hiring the Drywall work out.

I have framed, roofed & GC'd while going through school but work doesn't allow time for me to do a project of this scale by myself & FIL is a single man crew these days and does the projects / jobs he wants to.

 

[NWOhioChevyGuy]

First Floor layout I provided to Architech.

By kkeiser, shot with HP oj5600 at 2009-10-05

Second floor will be same size as breezeway with 14' x 32' bonus room (inside truss)

 

[Weber1]

I have a residential design firm here in Columbus, Ohio and for a three car garage I typically charge about $1,300 for the design and about $1000 for the construction documents.

 

[jimmie jam]

super cheap compared to what I was forced to pay 2 years ago. The city required a engineer's stamp which forced me to get plans drawn and then the engjneer, cost was near $5k for a friggin garage addition.

(no complaints about it though, I could have saved that if I did not insist on the exact location of the addition and moved it over about 8feet, but I got exactly what I wanted)

i agree, that's really cheap . i paid $3,600 this year for plans and engineering for a 600sf garage addition. south florida building codes require "over kill" construction due to storms. you have the same with quakes.

 

[Weber1]

If I may offer a quick critique of the elevations that you have posted, you might want to step the large overhead garage bay and gable forward, even if just 1'-4" to help break up that long elevation. I know it may cost a little more but an elevation that is 56'-4" long is going to feel really really flat. The step forward may give you a good place to terminate your brick watertable as well as opposed to just having to stop it at the corner. just a thought.

 

[NWOhioChevyGuy]

Drawings were from another poster giving example of what he had drawn.
That is not my garage,

Here is the layout I did for my garage.

<img src="http://img243.imageshack.us/img243/1420/scan0002o.jpg" alt="Image Hosted by ImageShack.us"/>
By <a target="_new" href="http://profile.imageshack.us/user/kkeiser">kkeiser</a>, shot with <a target="_new" href="http://profile.imageshack.us/camerabuy.php?model=HP+oj5600&make=HP">HP oj5600</a> at 2009-10-05

One of the things the Architech is going to work on is the transition of the Breezeway between the garage and house

 

[SamR]

I understand why some of you guys need an architect (complicated designs, etc) but why do you use them for a standard garage (just curious)? If you are talking a basic design, then any good contractor should be able to do the drawings for you. Most Contractors that I know, realize that a basic drawing, for submission to the city's planning office is part of getting the job and don't charge anything (or they hide it in the cost of building your garage)

 

[GeorgiaHybrid]

SamR,

A lot of areas require a PE stamp on any structure, others require one in a high seismic zone or where high winds occur (hurricane areas), others require a registered architects stamp on them. Most contractors do not have those stamps.

Some require just a simple floor plan like you have indicated and some (like where I live) don't even have permits to bother with much less drawings.

 

[blkhonda1991]

I understand why some of you guys need an architect (complicated designs, etc) but why do you use them for a standard garage (just curious)? If you are talking a basic design, then any good contractor should be able to do the drawings for you. Most Contractors that I know, realize that a basic drawing, for submission to the city's planning office is part of getting the job and don't charge anything (or they hide it in the cost of building your garage)

If all you want is a simple garage contractors can provide the drawings, but when you want something that looks good or is a bit different from your normal garage hiring an architect is a no brainer. contractor designed/built buildings always look like **** in my opinion.

 

[pseudorealityx]

An architect and the associated engineers that support full CD's are designing to be a good performing building within a set of parameters. A contractor is trying to make money. Even when we have engineered drawings, we still spend far too much time having to observe what contractors are actually doing as opposed to how the design was drawn, and then going through the process of fixing things. This is in the commercial field where everything is stamped, signed, and sealed.