Hello everyone,
I have a general question about the costs when building with architects and with a general contractor (GC), as we are currently considering how we want to have our house built. There are several options to consider.
1) Architect contracted individually for all phases of services
2) Architect handles the design and the GC handles the construction
3) GC takes care of both design and construction
From what I have learned and understand, theoretically, none of these models should be inherently more expensive or cheaper if the quality and scope of services are the same. I also assume that a GC cannot manage without planning and site supervision, which must be included in their calculation. That’s why I’d like to ask those of you who have experience with this: Is a house built with an architect generally more expensive in practice?
Best regards
I have a general question about the costs when building with architects and with a general contractor (GC), as we are currently considering how we want to have our house built. There are several options to consider.
1) Architect contracted individually for all phases of services
2) Architect handles the design and the GC handles the construction
3) GC takes care of both design and construction
From what I have learned and understand, theoretically, none of these models should be inherently more expensive or cheaper if the quality and scope of services are the same. I also assume that a GC cannot manage without planning and site supervision, which must be included in their calculation. That’s why I’d like to ask those of you who have experience with this: Is a house built with an architect generally more expensive in practice?
Best regards
Ok. The background is that we are now also working with another architect, whose task was to provide us with a quote for a preliminary design. He broke down the eligible costs/construction costs based on the budget. Now, when the fees for all service phases are listed on paper, and you mentally have to deduct the fees from the budget, honestly, I find it difficult to make a comparison or assessment. This is because we have never previously separated the planning and construction management costs from our calculation (which, of course, we realistically couldn’t do either).
DASI90 schrieb:
Hello everyone,
I have a general question regarding costs when building with architects and with a general contractor (GC), as we are currently exploring how we want to have our house built. There are several options to consider.
1) Architect contracted separately for all phases of service
2) Architect handles the planning and GC handles the construction
3) GC is responsible for both planning and construction
From what I have learned and how I understand it, theoretically none of these models should be inherently more expensive or cheaper if the quality and scope of work are the same? I also understand that a GC cannot operate without planning and site supervision, which they must include in their cost estimate. Therefore, I would like to ask those of you with experience here: In practice, is a house built through an architect generally more expensive overall?
Best regards You can’t really say that. It’s less predictable cost-wise, but you do have more flexibility compared to working with a GC.
The challenge with an architect is if they can’t access “their own/known/favored” tradespeople, maybe due to workload, market conditions, or intuition. Then they have to tender on the open market and are subject to the prices and standards of the tradespeople just like anyone else.
EDIT: Option 2 is usually chosen only if the architect is not capable as a GC. With this, you risk losing some of the cost advantages that the GC would normally offer.
Do you have a good architect "at hand"?
I'm currently experiencing in my environment how stressful it can be if you don’t find a truly good architect… During the planning phase, the plans were repeatedly not changed as agreed, even when essential modifications were needed (for example, the rain gutter pipes would have had to carry water uphill otherwise, among other issues). Then, the architect eventually demanded more money, right before the deadline, to make the changes he had been repeatedly reminded of for months. Now it’s starting to be similar with the structural engineer handling the tendering process…
That’s why I appreciate our “relaxed” but less flexible construction approach with the general contractor.
So if you go with an architect, make sure to find a really good one.
I'm currently experiencing in my environment how stressful it can be if you don’t find a truly good architect… During the planning phase, the plans were repeatedly not changed as agreed, even when essential modifications were needed (for example, the rain gutter pipes would have had to carry water uphill otherwise, among other issues). Then, the architect eventually demanded more money, right before the deadline, to make the changes he had been repeatedly reminded of for months. Now it’s starting to be similar with the structural engineer handling the tendering process…
That’s why I appreciate our “relaxed” but less flexible construction approach with the general contractor.
So if you go with an architect, make sure to find a really good one.
You can definitely compare, but you need to know what you want.
If you order a catalog house from one of the major homebuilding companies without any changes, it will almost certainly be cheaper than the same house designed by an architect.
If you want to use a standard house as a template but change the dimensions, room layout, etc., the prices should be roughly the same.
A "special" house is better planned with an architect, as homebuilders are not typically set up for that; it will be more expensive and often prone to problems.
This is regardless of the fact that a 120 m² (1,292 sq ft) house with standard X in location P ultimately cost 231,450 €, while the basically identical house with the same standard but different project participants in a neighboring town cost 267,544 €.
If you order a catalog house from one of the major homebuilding companies without any changes, it will almost certainly be cheaper than the same house designed by an architect.
If you want to use a standard house as a template but change the dimensions, room layout, etc., the prices should be roughly the same.
A "special" house is better planned with an architect, as homebuilders are not typically set up for that; it will be more expensive and often prone to problems.
This is regardless of the fact that a 120 m² (1,292 sq ft) house with standard X in location P ultimately cost 231,450 €, while the basically identical house with the same standard but different project participants in a neighboring town cost 267,544 €.
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