Is an architect my first step?

Hi all,
Keen to get multiple floorplan option ideas of how to best renovate our PPOP.
Not sure if going to an architect immediately is the best option as I'm really keen to see many options before locking in something in particular, given that the house will be tricky.
What options have you guys done in the past or do you simply just go to an architect with a brief?
Thanks,
alps

 

Contact Archicentre and talk it through with them.

 

Have you had your existing floor plan drawn up? I've found it helpful to post on houzz.com.au if you're just wanting ideas initially. Otherwise people on here may be able to give you some initial feedback.

 

Hiya again alps
I think if you have an architect that you trust can come up with designs that meet your needs then its the way to go, but quite often they charge a lot and you may end up with layouts you don't like or are fairly basic.
I think I know the house , so maybe looking at what others have done as a good starting point or look up architects/designers that similar terraces have used and contact them?

 

Have you thought about contacting a building designer? Cheaper than an architect but still able to quote and plan on the process for you
Best 15 Building Designers Near You | Houzz

 

Agree with @Jacque . A good building designer will more than suffice for a reno and you'll likely save money .

 

Thanks all,

Looking more for different concept ideas at this stage as this will really require some out of the box thinking. Once I find a concept that I like, plan with be to personalise it even more and then pass over to an architect for final touches. I just don't want the architect to lock me into a specific design from the onset, which they have a habit of doing

 

Depends on whether you want to do something interesting or not. If you want interesting, use a good architect. I have used them a few times for renos. The key is to tell them what your budget is (keeping 10% a secret for over runs) and tell them their fee comes out of the total budget.

 

I think you have had very good feedback from Meristone and Jacque.
Getting a trustworthy Building Designer in to take a full brief from you and do what they do best is a very good start.
Building Designers generally do not charge the earth so the stakes are not so high.
We are building designers in Melbourne so we cannot help you here but we often surprise people with what is possible. We have many stories where we "floored" people with our designs and reintroduced things they thought were impossible on their properties.
We do not always "hit the bullseye" but where we miss we continue to work with our clients until we get it right.
As our costs are low the pressure is off and we almost always arrive at a good result.
A good building designer who cares and is in touch with builders is a very good starting point.

 

Thanks for the advice all.
Never used a Building Designer (vs architect) before, but sounds like like a good idea, as what I'm looking for are high level options for now, before seeing an architect and providing them with a more detailed brief.

 

Hi all,
Small update - using a building designer was a good idea and I now have a floorplan that I'm reasonably happy with.
Plan will be to get a survey done and then contract an architect to further detail and hopefully improve what the building designer and I have done. Still debating about whether to use a big firm (no doubt costlier) or not. Definitely want great design as its our PPOR, but what I'm looking for will be plans and assistance up to and including DA approval. From there, we will decide whether we want the same architect to do the construction drawings or go our separate way. Most the big firms want the whole gig up to supervising the build, which won't work for us.
Would appreciate any thoughts?

 

Would you consider using the same building designer you have used so far to proceed with the project. Are they able to get the DA you need?

This seems the most logical option as unless we misunderstand there seems no point in introducing an architect now that you are happy with a design.

 

So you are thinking about using an architect as your second step? I reckon that's a bit odd. A good architect won't be interested. A good architect will take a brief and come back with a concept, they won't want to be given a concept and asked to fiddle with it.

 

If you are happy with your building designer, you may as well stick with them. Building designers are more than capable in preparing all the DA & CC docs for you. Design was probably created with a realistic approach to your budget too. Bringing the design to an architect now will risk adding opinions to a design you are already happy with, blow out reno costs and most likely come across copyright issues.

 

Where does a building designer fit in? Are they a draftsman or between a draftsman and an architect?

 

Draftsman generally are Tafe qualified, and would normally work under the supervision of an architect or building designer. Some will also produce drawings for builders. A draftsman is not licensed and in Queensland ( as I know) is not permitted to produce plans directly for a consumer.

BDs either tafe or tertiary qualified and must be licensed in Queensland by the Building Services Authority , and registered under the same licensing system as all builders and building contractors. A condition is that must hold professional indemnity insurance. In Qld there is no difference in the work that can be done by a building designer as opposed to an architect. A BD must be registered in order to prepare plans directly for a consumer.


To the OP if your confident with what you want and in your abilities to articulate it, I'd be wanting to look at a BD or good drafty for the Reno.

If you're building a new high end home I'd most likely go the architect route.

 

We've just got to the end of this on our reno. We found a smaller architecture firm that was happy to take a fairly developed brief and work from that.

I found most of the fancier arch firms weren't too keen on working from an established concept and also wanted drug money for concept drawings/sketch design. I found the smaller firm by looking at DA drawings on the council website and contacting the firms which had the best looking drawings and meeting them all etc. We have had a really good experience with them since.

I wasnt keen on the 10-12% of build cost fees from the big firms even for full project management not worth it to me.

 

Building designers are very experienced draftsman who have also developed a design flare through working with other designers or architects. They generally have all the practical experience and real construction knowledge, and has a more realistic approach when it comes to budget management. They are definitely the more economical option to an architect for a similar outcome. Building designers are currently not regulated in NSW so almost any drafty can call themselves building designers. We currently rely on the BDAA to help distinguish a qualified building designer who creates quality buildings and ensuring they are insured with knowledge kept up to date via CPD points.

 

We had a similar experience.

We were looking for a "fancier arch firm" to work off our established detailed concept design and improving it and then getting them to take it full DA approved stage. We were trying to avoid the concept/sketch phase as we were totally invested in what we had in mind already. Additionally, we wanted to manage the CC and build ourselves or at least have the option to if we decided to. Most of the fancier firms were only interested in concept to turn key solutions (Concept/Design/DA/CC/Project Mgt) so we really struggled to find a firm, though we eventually got there in the end.

We are currently working with a BD on another project (our PPOR) which we intend to be even more hands on with, so will be interesting to see how this one plays out for us.