ᐅ Architect Did Not Deliver – Who Bears the Costs?

Created on: 10 Oct 2020 10:34
J
JohannFugger
Hello dear forum,

House planning should be something enjoyable, right?

Unfortunately, I feel that choosing our architect was a total mistake, and apart from wasting time, money, nerves, and lost child construction allowance, nothing has come of it. :-(
As the title says, after almost ten months, we realized that our architect has led us in a completely wrong direction. Last week, I terminated our contract, and now it is uncertain whether we will agree on the installment payments already made.

I am interested if anyone here in the forum has had similar experiences and how they resolved them.

Our issue is that from the start, a construction budget was set, which also appears in the contract.
After ten months of collaboration, it is still not being adhered to, despite several reminders.
I have now paid installment payments amounting to 11,000 EUR (around 11,000 USD) – foolishly – out of a total of 18,000 EUR (about 18,000 USD) for service phases 1 to 4…

Here is a brief timeline excerpt:
- 01/20 – Architect contract states a maximum construction budget of 450,000 EUR (about 450,000 USD) – excluding building site, architect, special features (this should have been enough for a nice single-family house)
- then design planning until April – first installment payment
- 04/20 – Architect’s cost estimate 546,000 EUR (about 546,000 USD)
- redesign of design planning
- reminder of max. 450,000 EUR (about 450,000 USD) budget – second/third installment payments
- 09/20 – Cost calculation 593,000 EUR (about 593,000 USD)
- confusion, as we realized we were moving in the wrong direction
- revised calculation 539,000 EUR (about 539,000 USD) – mainly due to adjustment of price per square meter and smaller windows
- loss of trust and termination of the contract by us

Looking forward to your feedback!

Best regards,
Johann
Pinky030124 Oct 2020 10:35
I can understand the frustration. If I provide the architect with a budget and a list of requirements that don’t align, I expect them to inform me that it won’t work that way.
P
Pinkiponk
24 Oct 2020 14:26
hampshire schrieb:

A free and responsible person, especially in the role of a client, always bears personal accountability for the outcome.
Some people want to be polite and cooperative, and not everyone has the confidence to correct a professional or direct their work as a layperson.
H
hampshire
24 Oct 2020 22:48
I believe, @Pinkiponk, we are talking about completely different things.