Browse Forums General Discussion 1 Jan 19, 2010 6:18 pm I figure there are 3 ways of large scale renovating - 1. Get an architect to design and project manage - which I assume would cost a fortune. 2. Get a draftsperson/designer to design house plans then I get a builder in. Does this mean that he (the builder) will project manage and organise everything? (from planning approval to various tradies) (do I still need to do anything)? 3. Become a owner builder to which we would organise all the various tradies. (Which I wouldn't want to do)! Does anyone know of a simple checklist to go through when you are attempting a large scale reno. I'd love to get an architect to do it all but am affraid to fork out $10,000, is option 2 the next best thing? Kitty Re: to architect or not! that is the question.... 2Jan 19, 2010 6:52 pm Option 2 no doubt. You don't want to do option 3, and option 1 is the most expensive. Go to a draftsperson, get your plans, and get a few builders to price them. The only thing you may have to do is to organise any planning requirements. You may not need to go through planning however, and a building surveyor may be able to issue a permit, which the builder can organise. Blog is now up - http://www.jbdave.blogspot.com/ Re: to architect or not! that is the question.... 3Jan 19, 2010 7:31 pm To get accurate quotes, 2 things are important; The detail of the drawings. Ideally you want construction drawings to issue to contractors to quote as these show a great deal more detail on them than the drawings you will submit for council approval. The upshot of this is the contractor doesn't have to make as many assumptions (guesses) but for any renovation they will always allow for unknowns which increases the price - or leave them out and charge extra, an example would be where the contractor removes wall lining expecting to find a structural beam that should be there (a previous renovation) but there isn't one and it needs to be installed, someone has to pay for it. To ensure the quotes are as accurate as possible don't get the contractors to quote for unknowns, get them to quote to the drawings and then include a contingency in your budget. This is normally between 5 & 10% of the project costs and is your spare money should issues arise on site. If you don't end up using it, great, but its the biggest mistake that home owners make when carrying out a new build or renovation. Secondly, make sure you have a specification to issue with your drawings for quoting. In its simplest form this tells the contractor how you expect your work to be carried out, i.e. footings and slabs shall be constructed to AS 2870. This is used all the way through to fixtures and fittings, paint finishes etc. If you want dulux paint, list it in the spec otherwise the contractor may specify a lower grade product in his quote. Its essentially a big list of what needs to be done. If that sounds daunting both HIA and Master Builders alond with Natspec produce basic domestic specifications but these are rather general and tend to deal with the actual construction side of things so if you want to specify what type of light fittings you want you just append your requirements to the document. Andy Re: to architect or not! that is the question.... 4Jan 19, 2010 7:40 pm It really depends on what you are trying to achieve. We're doing a large scale renovation and I could never imagine doing it without using an architect. After giving them a brief they designed the concept (which I approved) before moving onto planning stage and then onto detailed drawings, interior design etc. It is at this point you can engage (or put out to tender) a builder who will be able to provide the appropriate detailed costings. You can never under estimate the value an architect can add but again it depends on whether you are trying to achieve something truly spectacular or simply tacking on a kitchen/living/bathroom square box extension. BTW our architect fees were significantly more than $10k Renovation Thread: viewtopic.php?f=31&t=38489 Re: to architect or not! that is the question.... 5Jan 20, 2010 8:09 pm Whilst I had issues with my architect ... not sure I would attempt a big reno without one ... for me, the architect became a 3rd person in the build ... this meant he could get blamed for everything that went wrong ... but it also meant when I had issues with the builder, I didn't have to deal directly with the builder (this was great for tricky moments). The cost was about 15% of the total project at initial budget - the fact that mine will end up costing twice as much as the initial budget, doesn't effect the fee from the architect!!! Times the architect helped: quick need a specific drawing, need another opinion, I don't know what the builder is asking can you explain, builder is asking for money and wants to be paid but the work isn't done - you deal with him!! Re: to architect or not! that is the question.... 6Jan 20, 2010 9:14 pm As the previous posters have mentioned, the cost is well over 10k but worth it. My Architect actually studied engineering also so that was a bonus. They are great as they give you many ideas you wouldnt have thought of and knock back ones that are just so wrong as well as help you along the way with Council and so forth. I found he also explained to us how certain options will increase the cost of building the home and others will keep it lower, and as we are finding out now, the cost does blow out astronomically so every bit counts. Not sure which option is best for you but that was my experience so far. DA approved Waiting on a few more Builder's quotes. Your build is relatively simple, I believe your job can be easily done by a good building designer, you really do not need to pay for the architect. Remember, architect's… 3 10984 I've just had a look at the website. The company are just building broker's. There are plenty of similar companies that basically draw your plans (they own them so you… 8 10917 The HIA contract, in the term & conditions section states that "Commencment" is deemed when the drainage is started or the piers are dug or the slab is formed up (incase… 2 6175 |