26. February 2009 by admin.

I recalled a conversation I had a few months ago at the local YAF meeting.  Somebody brought up the topic of illegal remodels and their ilk and how they often get calls from these owners to have the drawings done for them (after the fact).

I have had quite a few of those calls over the years.  The gist of it is that a commercial or residential building was remodeled without obtaining the proper building permits.  Something that is fairly common.  Truth of the matter is that you don’t need an architect to design most homes (you do on commercial projects) and most people don’t see the need.  The problems is that you still need to ensure that the building meets code.

So along comes the building department and slaps the owner with a fine and requires they submit for a proper permit.  The first thing the owner does is to call around the usual retinue of local architects they Googled.

So herein lies the problem.  They never wanted to obtain a permit in the first place because they didn’t want to pay for it.  They see no need for it and for the most part believe it is an imposition.  This viewpoint then carries over to having to use an architect.  They see no need for one and don’t think they should have to pay for their services.  So the first question out of their mouth is, ” How much do you charge to ….?”

Not so much as a,”Hi, how are you doing?”  Well, how do you expect me to know how much to charge if I don’t even know what the project is about?  Plus we don’t just throw numbers out there hoping for it to stick.  We actually have to consider the scope of the work, the budget, the client’s needs, the site, regulatory requirements, zoning, etc before we even start to work the numbers.

One other thing.  For some reason if a contractor tells you that they know what they are doing because they have been building for 25 years, everyone is more than happy to believe them.  Well if they really knew what they were doing, how come you just got slap for that illegal unit?  Yet nobody wants to listen to the architect.

No architect worth his/her salt will take on the project and “just draw what’s there”.  They just took on a whole bunch of liability and risks for something they didn’t do.  Just because it was built does not mean it was built right.

If you want to do something, do it right the first time.  Trying to cheap out tends to end up costing you a whole lot more.  If you already made the mistake once, then listen to the architect that agrees to work with you this time around and don’t expect the process to be a slam dunk.  Man, I can talk about the sushi restaurant that ended up paying double what they expected because they didn’t get the design approved by the local health department.  But that’s another story.

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25. February 2009 by admin.

For some people the answer is yes.  If you have the ability to obtain credit which is rather tight at the moment, you stand a chance of reaping major deals.

Unless you have been hibernating in a cave deep within the Rockies and haven’t been following the news lately, you’ll probably notice that with the collapse of the housing market the construction market took a major hit.  If nobody can sell their home, there is no incentive to build new ones. Ergo, lots of out of work contractors.

So for the person who wants to build or needs to remodel it means that there are deals to be had.  Lately I get calls from contractors, many of whom normally only work on commercial projects, who are looking to be included on any project.  Including houses.  There is an ample supply of contractors available.

The same theory applies to building materials.  There are discounts to be had since the present supply outstrips the demand.

So while the recession is a bad thing for most people, for those with the means or who have to remodel/ build, these are actually fairly good times.  Nobody knows how long it will stay this way.  If the economy picks up and building construction increases, those discounts will disappear along with it.  If the recession continues its downward trend then many contractors will go out of business and the supply side dwindles.  Less contractors even in a down market means less competition to contend with and therefore the ability to raise prices again.

For the home owner watching their equity and value of their home lowered due to surrounding foreclosures, the means to sell and move to a home that has the amenities they desire becomes harder or non existent.  So staying put and remodeling the home to improve its functionality is probably their only recourse if they absolutely had to have that new kitchen or rec room or whatever.  You need not necessarily increase the size of your home by much.  A home can be designed to be small but efficient.  Larger is not necessarily better and in many cases results in inefficient houses that bleed energy (& your money).

Keeping the size of the home in check in turn can keep your construction costs down.  Just as it makes sense to improve the energy efficiency of your home before throwing technology at it, the same goes with the functionality of your home.  Keep it simple, smart and save costs at the same time.

Edit (3/13/09): Follow this link to an article in the AIArchitect newsletter: Falling Material Prices Make a Builder’s Market—Minus Credit

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23. February 2009 by admin.

Why on earth would you want to read the ramblings and musings of an architect?

Let alone mine.

I just happen to be an architect who likes to design green buildings whenever the opportunity provides itself.   The reality is that while many architects tend to lean towards designing green or sustainable buildings, we still design to a budget and for a client.

If the budget does not include a sustainably designed building, then a conventionally built building might just be the result.  Most clients if educated about the benefits of going “green”, are supportive of it but leery of adding costs.  In many instances for a small developer or home owner, it just doesn’t and going green falls off the balance sheets. 

Over the last few years we have heard the klaxon call for LEED certified buildings.  You did think that before LEED came along there were no green buildings being built.  Now almost everyone out there is a LEED accredited professional (AP) and you can’t help but step on one every time a building project becomes more than a glimmer in its owner’s eyes.  However going LEED has costs implications and it takes a lot of time and money to go through the certification process.  In this economy, it appears that is one of the first things that get shown the door.  LEED has some pros and cons associated it with.  Maybe I’ll get around to talking about that one day.

Right now my focus is about greening your project.  It doesn’t have to be LEED to be green but the hype and marketing behind it can’t hurt if you want the project to stand out from the crowd.  However a well thought out building that is designed to respond to the site and climate is probably going to save money over the life of the building.  There is more to being green that fancy letters after a name. 

So bear with me and as I find the time, I’ll write a little more each time. 

In the mean time, if you want to learn a little bit more about me, feel free to check out my firm’s web site. 

http://www.gleearchitects.com

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