Hello. I don't have an answer to your question, but am very interested in your findings. We too are coming across the same problem with our remodeling project. We are adding on a sunroom (not a prefab) and also a covered porch connecting to the new room. We have a fireplace to remove, and some windows... As long as we've asked anybody's opinion we've gotten much variences. Architect or no? I've heard of people paying for an architect and then not going with the plans after all... Talk about a waste of money! But if we don't go with one will we regret it in hindsight? After all this isn't just a deck... Hopefully we'll both find an answer to our questions here... Good luck to you!

It kind of depends on the level of design sophistication you're looking for. Architects are much more likely to consider sight-lines, the relationship of axis and alignment, the interplay of light with the finished design, and the overall design integrity of any addition with the existing structure and site. You're much more likely to end up with a pleasing AND functional design with an architect. You should expect to pay 12-17% of the overall construction cost in design fees.

On the other hand, if you're more concerned with cost and practical function over esthetics and design integration, there are many design-build firms with totally satisfied customers. Some of them are just as aware of design nuance as a licensed architect -- they just don't have the degree and license. Tracking down these people will take a good bit of research on your part. Looking through newspaper or magazine articles, checking references or the recommendations of friends or people you trust, and making inquiries when you see a remodel or addition that you like in your community.

Personally, I prefer to work with an architect, and in fact, have worked with the same architect on a number of projects. Once you find one that you're simpatico with -- why not? I've been very pleased with end results.

On the other hand, my experience has been that architects usually have a rather limited knowledge of how much things actually cost. Their idea of what I could do with a certain budget -- and reality have seldom matched up. That being said, a design-build contractor might work better for you. If you can find one who is able to design what you need, they very often have up-to-date information on how much things cost, and will be much more able to help you stay within your budget. The trick is finding the one with good design instincts, and good contractor skills. Check and double-check references!

Hope this helps.

James

Thanks, James for all the information you provided. I've decided to keep contacting architects and also talking to builders directly, but as of now, the most appealing this is your suggestion to contact a design-build contractor.
I sometimes watch Designer's Challenge on the Home and Garden Channel. On the show, three designers visit a home and the homeowner shows them the space (s)he wants remodeled. The designers come back at a later date and show the homeowner what designs they came up with. That way the homeowners can see if the designer came up with something they liked and then they hire just one of three designers. Lain or anyone else, do you know if that's just on TV or could that happen in the real world? On the show, the designers have thought of everything, color scheme, flooring, drapers, furniture, etc... All I want to see is a basic floorplan to see if I like it. Yet, I can understand that architects and designers don't want to spend their time drawing a plan and risk not getting paid for their time. But it sure would be nice for the homeowner.

Nat,
We went with an architect for our 2 story addition for many reasons
1) Our town has specific codes on what can and can't be done and we needed an architect to get us through these nuances and get approval from the board
2) We were able to avoid getting a variance (which is a huge pain) b/c our architect was able to come up with creative solutions for our space that did not require going in front of zoning (we still had to go through the architectural review board)
3) We interviewed a contractor who said that he could design the house and have someone "stamp" it but we were not impressed with his "design" plan
4) The architect we interviewed came up with a design that met all our needs and was aesthetically pleasing AND was able to make our house not stick out like a sore thumb in our neighborhood of cape cod homes
5) The architects design might actually end up costing us less $$ to build b/c several of the builders we contacted said to build off the back of the house which would have been a 3 story addition and our architect suggested adding to the front of the house which is only a 2 story addition
6) Our architect gave us a ballpark estimate based on our budget and provided us with several reputable contractors who quoted within our price range. These were real estimates and not just guesstimates which means that they all did a lot legwork to get us accurate estimates
7) Our architect almost doubled as a designer because he drew up a plan for all the rooms which I then took to a designer and had her lay out furniture placement for all the individual rooms

Obviously its personal preference. Our architect was expensive but he was worth every penny. If I had to do it all over again, I'd hire him in a heartbeat. Good Luck.

We used an architect after a designer couldn't get the plans through the building dept. Architect was expensive but plans got approved. We still had to have the plans engineered. By the way, the engineer does calcs on the load, checks to see the beams can hold the new floor, etc. they don't just "stamp" the plans.
Interview your architect carefully, ask what happens if the plans are approved and during building there is a problem. Architects can draw something that is flawed, even if the bldg department approves it. Only 30% of their plans actually get built, sometimes because of cost, sometimes people decide to sell instead.
If you know of a really good architect likejyyanhks does, use them!

Hi All and Thank you!
I haven't met with any architects yet, just designers or draftspeople, but after reading all your posts I decided that it would be best to contact some architects. This morning, I went online and looked for some architects. If I liked their homes on the website, I called them. Two of the architects that I liked won some awards, so I just assumed that they were a safe choice (I hope not too expensive).
I did check out a remodel that one of the designers did. It was a nice home and worked well, but I wasn't "wowed". Maybe that's what the extra money we pay the architect is for.
Anyway, I left messages with four architects and made an appt to meet with one this evening. I am very confident that this is the right thing to do and am looking forward to talking to the architect tonight.
Marge, Jyyank, James, How did you find a good architect? Was is word of mouth? Did you decide he/she was a good choice by looking at their portfolios and calling references?
Thank you

We interviewed 3 architects whose names we obtained via word of mouth. The first person was someone recommended to me by a friend who worked in a commercial architecture firm. This guy had left the firm to start his own residential architecture business. We liked him and almost hired him, but long story short, we decided we wanted to sell rather than remodel so we didn't move forward with hiring him. A year later, when we realized we would rather remodel, we contacted him again but his business had taken off and he didn't have the time for our project (Or maybe he was mad at us for changing our minds the year before)

The second person we interviewed was recommended by a friend who had just finished a major addition. He was nice and professional but I drove by one of his designs and it didn't wow me.

The third and final guy that we picked had done several houses in the area which my DH and I loved. He lived in our neighborhood and one day when he was raking his leaves, we casually mentioned that we were looking for an architect. He showed up at our ppointment with an impressive portfolio and proceeded to present some of his design plans. Then, he walked around our house asking questions about our needs and what we liked/didn't like. After that, he took us through his idea for our house. He was the one who suggested building in the front rather than in the back which no one else had done. He was also so knowlegable about town codes and what we could/couldn't do and how we could get around things etc etc. We were so impressed by his knowlege and his creativity that we decided to hire him although he was 3x the price of the other 2 architects. The others charged a flat fee between $5-$7K, our architect charged 10% of our construction cost.

In between archtect 1 and 2, we met with the contractor/designer which was NOT impressive. We actually got his info from a random website called Service Magic and I am so glad we did not use him.

My advice is to ask around, talk to people in your town who have remodeled their homes and see if they can recommend someone. I would also check to see if your town has strict building codes like ours b/c if that's the case, you want to get someone who has worked in your town before and knows the process. Finally, check out their portfolios, tell them each what you want and see if you like the direction they are going in and if you think they are understanding your needs. Since this is your home and you will have to live there, make sure the architect you choose will be willing to work with you on your needs both functionally and aesthetically.

Absolutely use someone to do the design first. Preferably use someone who knows how to design homes. And review the design all the way down the line.

We asked around the neighborhood and homed in on a woman who never graduated from architecture school but otherwise had all the skills. After her initial design, we probably made 100 changes on paper before the builder got involved. We moved electric outlets, lights, ceiling fans, water supply, and air conditioning ducts all on paper for "free." If you have the builder make those changes, then you pay for undoing the work and redoing it.

Our builder is really good at building but he's no designer. He appreciated getting the design on paper. Our designer also helped push the paper through our town's strict policies on remodeling. She knew exactly who was going to be concerned about what issues and had things all neat and tidy when the questions came up. The money we spent on her was very well spent.