Who Has Used An Architect?

[HPRifleman]

Have you used an architect for your garage build?

How did the process go? Did you find the architect first and then the builder, or the vice versa?

How was payment handled? Was it a flat charge or did you pay by the hour? I feel like if I start talking to an architect it's like a cab with the meter running.

Did you get value out of the relationship? Did the architect give you ideas you would not have thought of on your own? Did they get you a better building? Did they understand what adds cost and what reduces cost?

I know these are lots of questions but I would like to hear about the experience of others.

 

[b-boy]

I didn't, but my boss is using one. He's rehabing a 100+ yr old barn and turning it into living space. Based on our conversations, it sounds expensive, and frustrating. He's been through 3 different people already, and he's had to pay them all. He still doesn't have final plans yet.

 

[Jackfre]

I had an architect draw up the plans which we had discussed over a couple meetings. He also carried the plans through the building dept for the permit. By the time we were done it was a couple thousand dollars. I used the same crew on the shop as on the house and I worked with them. Just like any other big project you have to discuss it with the architect to see if you are going to enjoy working together. In my case it ended up being the best of business as it led to a good friendship.

 

[Jlbc212]

I use to do residential design, designing homes, additions, renovations and garages. The first step in most design projects is to check on lot size, lot location and any zoning requirements. You should obtain a copy of your property deed which should have an adequate, clear description of your land and you should also obtain a survey of your lot stamped by a civil engineer or registered surveyor. Your county, city or town may already have these on file. With this information visit your local building dept. to determine if zoning will be an issue. With this information I would ask a potential client if they already had a general contractor in mind or knew someone who had recent experience with one. Often a general contractor has his own designer, one whom he prefers to work with. I did consultation work with a couple of professional engineers. Like any other profession there are good architects and bad architects. I'd ask for references from known prior clients before contracting with an architect. Most work on a percentage fee of the estimated total cost of the project.

 

[vrinner]

I used and architect when planning a big garage build in a previous home. It was a large addition that was rather unique. He quoted the job at a fixed fee. For the fee there were to be 5 different design revisions including whatever it took to get the plans approved by the city and permit submital. Engineering was an extra fee but he did give an estimate of that cost which came in at that price.

 

[Chilliwack Murray]

I knew the dimensions I wanted but not much else and little about construction. I looked around and most places weren’t interested in a small job like a shop and wanted to charge the same as a house.

A friend suggested a smaller place that had an apprentice (not sure of the right term) provide plans drawn up to code and checked by the senior architect for $375 if I remember correctly.

The city required a stamped plan due to size of the shear walls and surrounding ground slope. Architect also had lots of suggestions and revised a couple times for me after I got to visualize it on paper. It was good value for me but I guess it depends on the complexity and your or your builders capabilities.

 

[Innovate1]

I used an architect for our custom home 15 years ago. Acquaintance of my wife. Think it was around $10k. We had agreed on a price and at the end they had some overage and as I recall we paid a bit more but they covered the rest of the overage. They just did the plans - no on site work. Was nice that they had ideas of what would work well for layout. Most I accepted but some we said that we had other desires and overrode. Now that I think about it there were a couple things they should have caught but didn't. They placed a stairway in an atrium (open between basement and main floor) that didn't have sufficient headroom. I caught it and moved the stair 90 degrees with a landing near the bottom. Since we were acting as our own general and the AHJ wasn't looking closely at details I was able to just give the carpenters a sketch of the change with no real impact but I had to do the stair rise and run calcs myself. The placed a beam in the joist space in an area where it wasn't needed and caused some issues running HVAC ducts and have some floor squeaks because the carpenters didn't get the hangers tight (not unsafe but allows a minor amount of movement). They used an I beam for the main floor at the walkout which would have been difficult to attach to and fit in the space available so I moved the doors a small amount (aligned upper and lower doors) and was able to meet the load requirements with LVLs.

More recently we worked with a drafter that does house plans and works with an engineer that stamps the plans. It was a disaster. About $4500. Numerous revisions, some for changes we wanted but many to correct his errors. At one point we got a revision of our plans with someone else's name on it (who we called for their opinion of the drafter - will just say it was interesting).

In the end we decided to not build there due to several different reasons. Decided to add a garage at our current location where I could draw the plans myself (no stamp required for residential) and not much detail was needed - Also just a garage which simplified things. I do have some building experience and am an engineer (electrical) so that helps.

I would try to get opinions of others that have used them and more than just the references they give you if possible. Good ones do add value and give you ideas that you might not think of. They aren't usually very tuned to costs. For example, the trend is to make more surfaces on a roof and walls to add "interest" or whatever you want to call it. But those cost more to make. It's important to work with someone who understands your cost concerns and your desired balance between cost and features.

 

[rattle_snake]

Yes.
Arch first. Got a referral from a friend who had used him on a shop build.
Flat fee discussed up front. $800 for bidable plan set. +800 for complete plans through approval.
Yes, 1st building project, didn't know enough to do it myself.
Yes, arch had ideas, experience and techniques that were helpful. Yes. Yes.

The architect cost was about 2% of total. It would have taken multiple re-submittals had I attempted myself, which would have delayed project many months (each cycle is 6 weeks). I did my own design and provided drawings to architect.

 

[Innovate1]

Cost must vary a lot with location. I am guessing NE illinois is near Chicago which will likely be more. I wish the costs here were like some people are posting!

 

[theoldwizard1]

Friend of a friend hired an architect because they want to remodel a old (pre-1900) house in a "historic" part of small suburb. They gave him a budget of what they where willing to spend on the remodel. Extensive structural, plumbing and electrical was required. After many months, the architect cam in with the drawing and the company he worked for made a proposal. It was MANY TIMES over their budget (which was not small). They paid the fee and have since started making "other plans".

 

[ddawg16]

I used and architect for the house addition....but did my own drawings for the garage.

In most areas...first step is a plot plan. Here in California, it can be a sketch on a napkin....they basically want to see the lot size and size and position of existing structures....and then the size and position of the addition or change.

This will determine what you can build.

After that, detailed drawings.

If I had been doing a 'standard' garage....a sketch is all I would have needed. LA County has a building code reference that you can follow. Follow it...get your inspections....done.

My garage was not 'standard'....it was 2-story so I needed a wet stamped drawing. I did the drawing...an engineer did the mark up's and stamp.

For the house addition....I farmed it out. $4800...but well worth it. He gave me great drawings....and took care of the permits.

 

[vavet]

I found a GC I wanted to work with. He did mostly garages, but I found him through a neighbor for whom he was adding a mudroom onto their house. He contracted with the architect to get plans drawn. This was a pretty simple project from a architect's perspective. I just had to tell him how big (24x32), how tall (12 foot ceiling), roof pitch, window sizes and locations, door sizes and location. The GC included the architect fee in his flat rate of $42/sq ft.

We had a semi-custom house built for us about 5 years ago. We made some changes to the builder's stock floor plan. The builder then submitted the plans to us for approval. It went back and forth a few times as we saw things we didn't like or had different ideas. At one point, my wife said she didn't like corner kitchen cabinets and she wanted a coat closet in the hallway somewhere. The architect accommodated both of those things by giving us an angled pantry one one side and using a bump from the hallway into the kitchen to eliminate the blind corner cabinet on the other side, which also gave us the coat closet. I forget what detail was not getting communicated effectively, but at some point we just asked if we could meet with the architect directly, which the builder facilitated. That was much easier rather than going through the builder's staff.
I don't know what either architect charged as they were included in the total construction costs. This architect certainly had ideas that we wouldn't have come up with on our own and I would recommend him.

 

[iSpark]

Not that it matters, but commercial work and residential work are vastly different beasts in regards to architect fees.
My dad's church is stick building a 30x60x10 storage building with attic storage, and the architect plans with engineering cost $6000.

 

[erik a]

I am an architect.
I have saved my clients money, more than making up for my fee.
None of my clients ever said they wished they'd put the money into granite countertops instead of a good design.
That said, a bad architect is no different than a bad contractor.
Either one will cost you money and create frustration.
Erik A

 

[oldwino]

we used an architect on the last house we built. Wife and I designed floorpan and dimensions and the architect complete structural,exterior elevations, HVAC sizing, etc. Not that expensive as a percentage of the build but defiantly made a better build.

Would do the same again

 

[LOW1]

I think it depends on what you want to build. If you can find an experienced contractor and a good designer (these may or may not be the same person) you should be able to build a "routine" project without an architect. But if you want to follow a particular architectural style or have a complex project an architect would be helpful.

We hired an architect to design a total rehab Prairie Style for us. Architects think differently than contractors and designers and can be helpful. My only complaint was that the architect was not very good at predicting what the contractor would bid the project at. For this reason working as a team rather than one first, then the other may be wise.

 

[2level]

I used an architect for my two-story L-shaped garage. 2,750sf with 1,100sf of that upstairs, so the city required a stamped/engineered plan. The architect took my design and made a couple of modifications.

Process went well. Found the architect first, and then the concrete and framing crews. Paid a flat rate for 4 sets of plans/elevations - $500 for architect and $300 for the engineering firm, of whom only the architect dealt with. Considering that the building with finished interior would cost well over 100k had I not DIY'd over 2/3rd's of the labor, engineer/stamp and architect fees were under 1%. That was in 2008. The main value I got was help with the foundation design/specs and shear wall design. And I believe that the fairly-well detailed plans helped attract contractors/bids.

 

[ConCretin]

I utilized an architect for the Concrete Underground. The fee was a percentage of the construction cost. It was quite expensive and we parted ways partway through the build but I have to say it was probably worthwhile. The plans I got weren't great but I couldn't have built it without something on paper. My architect handled the structural design, which was obviously important. I had a lot of input into the design and I didn't end up building exactly what she drew but her imprint is definitely there in a positive way.

An architect provides plans, which are obviously important but he/she also shapes the appearance, flow, feel and livability of a structure, which is a large part of the cost. Since most of this wouldn't apply to a basic structure like a garage, I'm not sure it's worth the premium.

An architect can also assist with budgeting, bidding, construction oversight, etc. This adds even more to the cost and in my experience, many of them aren't very good at it.

For a garage, I'd probably get plans from a book, a lumberyard or draw them up myself and put the money to use elsewhere.

 

[Slednut]

I did for an addition to my attached garage with living space above it. He charged a dollar per square foot. I found a GC that would do the concrete and framing only so I could finish the rest of the addition. The GC could have also done the same job as the architect but at a lower cost.

 

[isb cornbinder]

we used an architect on the last house we built. Wife and I designed floorpan and dimensions and the architect complete structural,exterior elevations, HVAC sizing, etc. Not that expensive as a percentage of the build but defiantly made a better build.

Would do the same again

100% the right thing to do. It worked for us.

 

[Angelfire]

I used a draftsman that was well versed in the code requirements of my area. Cheaper than an architect but, I got prints that worked well and kept my inspector happy. This was for my home addition and detached shop.
Cheers.

 

[u2slow]

The builder/contractor was the main 'goto' guy for me. I chose him based on work I'd seen him start, finish, and get put to use without delay. I liked that he had the 'business depth' to do his own site prep, concrete, framing, and roof/siding without farming stuff out to a multitude of other sub-contractors.

I drew up as good a design as I could on a few pieces of graph paper (front, top, side views). I took that to a local architect/draftsman that my contractor recommended. He thought the design was viable, and gave me a quote. In about a week it was ready and I paid the guy. (I forget the amount)

On submission at the building department, they cited two wall heights exceeded their tables (over 16'), so they could not approve it. I sent it to an 'engineer' who spec'ed 2x8 studs at a tighter (12") spacing. $500 later, my drawings could now be approved to start the permit.

No power or HVAC were considered in the design. Water and sewage rough-ins happened on the fly - just enough to not have to break thru concrete after the fact. I wanted this built to lockup as fast and efficiently as possible.

I got what I wanted in the end, but site prep blew up the budget early on. I almost stopped building after the foundation was poured and backfilled.

Good luck!

 

[HPRifleman]

I appreciate all the replies.

As I mentioned originally, the intent is a garage. I would assume an architect for a house but not a shed. A garage is something in between so it seems like a gray area. We do want the garage to look like it fits in with the house and the rest of the property. That's where I would imagine the architect provides value.

I like to know what something is going to cost before I get started. But if I go to an architect and ask him to start designing he may come up with a pretty grand plan. If I take that plan to a builder and the cost is too high, now I have to go through the design/quote process over again. The garage is already going to be expensive so I'm wary of adding on fees for multiple redesigns.

When designing the garage I want someone to tell me that some feature is going to cost "X". Then I can make the decision to put it in or not based on the value to me. I'm not sure this process would work with an architect unless he/she is well versed in construction costs.

 

[yeldogt]

I'm a bit confused with some of the posts ... I'm not sure why someone would "do the floor plan" and then have the architect .. do whatever?

An architect is for the design -- first ... layout.

And yes -- a house is more involved. Typically a garage will want to be a "quiet" .. to not take away from the primary structure ... the house.

I like working with an architect. A good one brings a lot of knowledge to the discussion .. cut through the **** ... better building design = greater overall value.

Often your local code official will know of a retired pro in your area -- I have done this and it's a great resource. Perfect type of project ....

I have found builders through architects -- and the reverse. Sometimes ..it's luck.

 

[oldwino]

I'm a bit confused with some of the posts ... I'm not sure why someone would "do the floor plan" and then have the architect .. do whatever?

An architect is for the design -- first ... layout.

In my case we knew what we wanted but not being a "builder by trade" there were a lot of details we felt needed to be handled professionally. Also, it does'nt hurt to have a professional set of eyes review your ideas. In addition, a set of. stamped drawings will usually pass through permit process much easier/quicker.

 

[mikeb27]

I appreciate all the replies.

As I mentioned originally, the intent is a garage. I would assume an architect for a house but not a shed. A garage is something in between so it seems like a gray area. We do want the garage to look like it fits in with the house and the rest of the property. That's where I would imagine the architect provides value.

I like to know what something is going to cost before I get started. But if I go to an architect and ask him to start designing he may come up with a pretty grand plan. If I take that plan to a builder and the cost is too high, now I have to go through the design/quote process over again. The garage is already going to be expensive so I'm wary of adding on fees for multiple redesigns.

When designing the garage I want someone to tell me that some feature is going to cost "X". Then I can make the decision to put it in or not based on the value to me. I'm not sure this process would work with an architect unless he/she is well versed in construction costs.

PM Sent

 

[cderalow]

this is one of those things that I would say to check with your local building department on their requirements before saying you do or do not need one.

There are things that an architect can provide, that the typical person off the street will not be able to. Its more important when it comes to full complex structures such as homes, and probably less important for garages or sheds, but they still have value.

in some locations, if you are required to pull a permit and have plans that have been signed and stamped by appropriate engineers or designers, you may be required to use one whether you like it or not.

I work as a Construction manager in the DC area at the commercial level. my typical day involves talking to numerous clients and architects.

the key to finding a good one is to find a working partnership. find the one who you can talk to and seems to be receptive to your ideas, while still providing a few of their own thoughts or concepts to the mix as well.

 

[yeldogt]

In my case we knew what we wanted but not being a "builder by trade" there were a lot of details we felt needed to be handled professionally. Also, it does'nt hurt to have a professional set of eyes review your ideas. In addition, a set of. stamped drawings will usually pass through permit process much easier/quicker.

Well -- I normally have an idea what I want..... and ... spend limit. Size and style ...

Always seems that a good architect turns thing on its head and one ends up doing things differently .. you don't know what you don't know.

Like any other profession -- good/ bad ... and they have a style/ look/. It's important to pick one for the project. I like old buildings ..historic houses. I did not hire the same architect when I did a modern glass /concrete on a river.

My suburban town has been dealing with "tear downs" .. and major renovations when almost nothing remains of the original house to get around zoning ... I can tell you who designed the houses ...

 

[frank001]

Have you used an architect for your garage build?

How did the process go? Did you find the architect first and then the builder, or the vice versa?

How was payment handled? Was it a flat charge or did you pay by the hour? I feel like if I start talking to an architect it's like a cab with the meter running.

Did you get value out of the relationship? Did the architect give you ideas you would not have thought of on your own? Did they get you a better building? Did they understand what adds cost and what reduces cost?

I know these are lots of questions but I would like to hear about the experience of others.

I used the architect recommended by the contractor. It was a flat charge that was agreed to up front. I think it was worth it. I did a basic 3D CAD sketch with overall dimensions that I gave to the architect to give him an idea of what I wanted and he took it from there to produce detailed construction drawings for permitting. He also came up with a couple of good construction ideas that I'm glad were incorporated into the final design.
You can see the result by clicking on my signature below.

 

[My Old Tools]

We used an architect on the major gut/remodel of our current home. We moved and removed several walls, reconfigured several baths, enlarged the kitchen and built the wife a new walk in closet. The house has 3900 SF and he charged us $3000 to redraw the plans including kitchen cabinet elevations. We considered it well worth the expense for what we got.

 

[ddawg16]

I'm a bit confused with some of the posts ... I'm not sure why someone would "do the floor plan" and then have the architect .. do whatever?

An architect is for the design -- first ... layout.

And yes -- a house is more involved. Typically a garage will want to be a "quiet" .. to not take away from the primary structure ... the house.

I like working with an architect. A good one brings a lot of knowledge to the discussion .. cut through the **** ... better building design = greater overall value.

Often your local code official will know of a retired pro in your area -- I have done this and it's a great resource. Perfect type of project ....

I have found builders through architects -- and the reverse. Sometimes ..it's luck.

As I mentioned in my post.....if I was building 'just a garage'....I would not have needed an engineering stamp.

If one is building a standard X by Y garage using standard features....in most cases just a sketch and follow the building standards for your city. Our Building and Safety have a building standards doc you can use....follow it....and it's all you need.

But....when you build a 2-story garage....well....they want engineering. It was worth it

 

[yeldogt]

As I mentioned in my post.....if I was building 'just a garage'....I would not have needed an engineering stamp.

If one is building a standard X by Y garage using standard features....in most cases just a sketch and follow the building standards for your city. Our Building and Safety have a building standards doc you can use....follow it....and it's all you need.

But....when you build a 2-story garage....well....they want engineering. It was worth it

Most projects benefit when some professional help is involved ... even if not "necessary". Even something as simple as a garage --

Placement -- orientation -- roofline. People say -- it's only a garage. Well -- it's costing some $$. Why not get the most out of it. Even on simple projects a good architect can save you his fee ...

Most owner driven projects end up being boxes -- stock designs. It's really a shame when they are going to need drawings and don't get someone involved for the space planning from the get go -- they spend most of the money anyway with out getting the benefit

 

[964haus]

I hire architects all the time in my day job for a major educational institution. I hired an architect for a major renovation to my 1920 character house, and the same architect to design my current house. I did not use an architect when designing my previous 10x16 shed, but I'm a designer by training so was confident I'd get the proportions/materials, etc right.

Here's what I'd suggest for your garage:
- If you have any complex regulations or requirements where you live, then I'd hire an architect to navigate the process for you.
- If you know roughly what you want, but would like to explore a bunch of options and want sage design advice, hire an architect.
- If you have tough site challenges, hire an architect.

If you have a simple, 'cookie cutter' garage in mind that you can describe visually to a builder, then I'd go that route.

Note - a bit part of an architect's role is coordinating other subs. So a good architect will design and coordinate with the engineer, mechanical, etc so it all fits together from the beginning. The other is being on site. For my 1920s reno, our architect was on site daily to review construction progress and answer all the questions that arose daily from the contractor - the quick turnaround kept the project on schedule. A good architect is also part of the costing exercise, and should be able to hit your budget pretty closely. These aren't complex buildings (try designing complex buildings with labs, etc) so there's not much to them. Again, a good architect knows the price of construction and should be pretty accurate. Isolating the architect from the subs, from the contractor, from the costing, etc leads to issues.

Ask around - who has a good architect, who gets used a lot where you live, who does the municipality like to work with, etc. And get references.

There are also a number of 'design/build' shops around here that do great work on these sorts of small projects. Might be worth looking around for something like this as they can provide more of a one stop shop service.

M.

 

[u2slow]

I'm a bit confused with some of the posts ... I'm not sure why someone would "do the floor plan" and then have the architect .. do whatever?

An architect is for the design -- first ... layout.

The purpose of my 'architect' (that's what he called himself) was to turn my hand drawings/sketches into drawings the building department would accept. He had no other involvement in the project. That's also why it was an easy one-time billing.

What layout? I was building a 753sqft unfinished 'box'.

 

[yeldogt]

The purpose of my 'architect' (that's what he called himself) was to turn my hand drawings/sketches into drawings the building department would accept. He had no other involvement in the project. That's also why it was an easy one-time billing.

What layout? I was building a 753sqft unfinished 'box'.

Well ......... what if you had said -- "I don't want to build a box"

Anybody can build a box. What if you had said ... this is my lot .. what can I build .. how would you do it.

Pay for a few hours of pencil drawings ..

 

[u2slow]

Well ......... what if you had said -- "I don't want to build a box"

Anybody can build a box. What if you had said ... this is my lot .. what can I build .. how would you do it.

Pay for a few hours of pencil drawings ..

I guess I was confident in my design. And was happy to save the cost. My 753sqft enclosed is still a 40x50' building.

 

[HPRifleman]

I wanted to provide an update on this.

Our project turned into not only a garage, but also a conversion of our existing garage into living space. This last part was to get around some municipal requirements.

We decided to hire an architect to generate all drawings that would have to be turned into the municipal building department. He met with us and our builder, listened to our needs, provided valuable suggestions, generated drawings, made alterations as we required, and was available for consultation.

Currently, the plans are with the village for permit approval. The village did a permit review and required additional information such as clarification on codes, more drawing detail on some walls, etc. Our architect provided this in a timely manner and made himself available to the village in necessary.

We are glad we hired an architect for this job. He had ideas that we would not have though of and made the process of permit submission smoother. Thinking back, it was easy to say "we don't need an architect for this". But it was well worth the $3850 fee.

 

[NWOhioChevyGuy]

In my case I used a friend of a family member who is an Architect. Small town Mid-West America. Plans were a flat fee ($750) then a small additional fee ($75) when I made a few changes down the road. Bonus was he drew up the whole house, not just the garage

I built my garage myself, but the drawings made permitting and contracting out the concrete a lot smoother. As we were all working off the plans.

I could have built mine without plans, per township / inspector rules, however giving a set to my material supplier made it easy to get all the materials I needed as a package deal. 5 deliveries; Lumber, Trusses, Windows/Doors, Siding/trim, roofing

Without the plans I would have had to provide a material list and figure it out myself.

 

[My Old Tools]

We used an architect to remodel our 3800sf home when we bought it 3 years ago. Took out walls, moved plumbing around, 3 new renovated bathrooms, new high end utility with island and cabinets, new high end two island kitchen. It cost us $3000. We had the original plans. We were quite happy with the outcome.

 

[LegacyIndustrial]

Have you used an architect for your garage build?

How did the process go? Did you find the architect first and then the builder, or the vice versa?

How was payment handled? Was it a flat charge or did you pay by the hour? I feel like if I start talking to an architect it's like a cab with the meter running.

Did you get value out of the relationship? Did the architect give you ideas you would not have thought of on your own? Did they get you a better building? Did they understand what adds cost and what reduces cost?

I know these are lots of questions but I would like to hear about the experience of others.

Working with one now in TN. Flat fee for each level of need (elevations, full set of drawings, 3d walkthru, etc...) I suggest architect first, then ask several builders to bid the plans.