Why hire an architect?
The design and construction process is a team effort generally viewed as involving an owner and a contractor with a team of subcontractors. The owner initiates the process by deciding to build a new house, add a bedroom, remodel a kitchen, or enliven the walls with a new color palette. The contractor has the capabilities to build the house or addition, or remodel the kitchen and paint the walls. Sometimes contractors have designers they work with who can select finishes, design a floor plan, or design custom cabinetry.
What’s missing?
An architect.
An architect has the education and experience to view the entire project as a whole. Following are some of the areas where an architect's expertise is useful:
Land use:
The jurisdiction where you are building will require that a number of site planning issues including setbacks, stormwater management, site disturbance, and landscaping be addressed. A good site plan is integral to expediting the permit review process.
Design:
Before you make a decision on what to build, you need to be able to visualize it. It is one thing to copy a kitchen design from a magazine, but another huge step beyond that to take your ideas, your property, and your budget and develop a design concept which is unique to you and your lifestyle. The design is illustrated with floor plans and interior and exterior sketches, which allow you to preview your project and participate in all of the design decisions.
Structural Engineering:
Most projects require at least some structural work. Often it is assumed that an interior wall can be moved, and it is then discovered to be a bearing wall. If it is to be removed, it requires a new beam and columns. An architect typically has an engineer on their team to take the uncertainty out of remodeling and to provide detailed calculations and specifications to meet building department requirements for both new construction and remodels.
Team Coordination:
An architect is accustomed to bringing together ideas and translating them into "bricks and mortar" so that the contractor can build the project. In doing so, the architect is the ideal person to assist the owner in overseeing the project, provide clarifications, as needed, to the construction documents, and make sure that, when the project is completed, the owner can say "Yes, this is exactly what I had in mind."
The design and construction process is a team effort generally viewed as involving an owner and a contractor with a team of subcontractors. The owner initiates the process by deciding to build a new house, add a bedroom, remodel a kitchen, or enliven the walls with a new color palette. The contractor has the capabilities to build the house or addition, or remodel the kitchen and paint the walls. Sometimes contractors have designers they work with who can select finishes, design a floor plan, or design custom cabinetry.
What’s missing?
An architect.
An architect has the education and experience to view the entire project as a whole. Following are some of the areas where an architect's expertise is useful:
Land use:
The jurisdiction where you are building will require that a number of site planning issues including setbacks, stormwater management, site disturbance, and landscaping be addressed. A good site plan is integral to expediting the permit review process.
Design:
Before you make a decision on what to build, you need to be able to visualize it. It is one thing to copy a kitchen design from a magazine, but another huge step beyond that to take your ideas, your property, and your budget and develop a design concept which is unique to you and your lifestyle. The design is illustrated with floor plans and interior and exterior sketches, which allow you to preview your project and participate in all of the design decisions.
Structural Engineering:
Most projects require at least some structural work. Often it is assumed that an interior wall can be moved, and it is then discovered to be a bearing wall. If it is to be removed, it requires a new beam and columns. An architect typically has an engineer on their team to take the uncertainty out of remodeling and to provide detailed calculations and specifications to meet building department requirements for both new construction and remodels.
Team Coordination:
An architect is accustomed to bringing together ideas and translating them into "bricks and mortar" so that the contractor can build the project. In doing so, the architect is the ideal person to assist the owner in overseeing the project, provide clarifications, as needed, to the construction documents, and make sure that, when the project is completed, the owner can say "Yes, this is exactly what I had in mind."