ᐅ Architectural Design Phases 1-4 – Which Documents Are Required?

Hello,

we have signed an architect agreement with a planner for service phases 1-4. Now, due to various developments, we have decided not to proceed with the construction and want to cancel the planning contract. The planner has sent us an invoice, or rather just stated the amount he wants to charge for phases 1-4. The sum is around 12,000 + VAT.

We are now wondering which documents he should have at least produced – apart from a finalized dimensioned floor plan, a site layout on the plot, and the elevations of the house, we don’t have any other documents. We don’t know if he has already prepared others – we don’t want to rule it out – but he should be able to provide those to us. He verbally told us the construction costs would be around 300,000. We definitely went through several iterations of the floor plan and even changed the type of house. Still, in our view, not much has happened so far that would allow us to submit a building permit / planning permission application. Since the plot is still being developed, there are no surveys or similar reports yet.

What documents should he at least provide to us?

I want to clarify that we were aware from the beginning that planning involves significant costs, and we want to pay him fairly for the services provided—there is no question about that. However, during discussions, he hinted that he is now making us “pay dearly” because we are not going ahead with the build. He originally quoted us a significantly lower price for the four phases at the start. For now, we have decided to review his invoice carefully. At the moment, it is just the bare amount without any explanation or breakdown. If he can clearly justify this to us, we will consider it a learning experience.

Thanks in advance for your assessment!

prisma17 schrieb:

We have signed an architect contract with a planner for design phases 1-4. Now, due to various developments, we have decided not to proceed with the build and want to cancel the planning contract.

Aside from the fact that this is unfortunately a very popular but quite unsuitable scope of services among clients, which in my opinion a reputable architect would also refuse for that reason: the contract will surely include an agreement on fees, and that is all that needs to be paid.

prisma17 schrieb:

Now we are wondering at least which documents he should have produced—we only have a final dimensioned floor plan, a site positioning, and the elevations of the house, but no other documents. [...] Verbally, he told us construction costs of about 300,000 (about 300k). Certainly, we went through several rounds on the floor plan and also changed the type of house. Still, in our view, not much has happened so far for us to be able to submit the building permit application. Since the plot is still being developed, no survey or similar assessment has been done yet.

What is owed is only one permit-ready design, not endless rounds of floor plan discussions. Regarding the person in post #1 of https://www.hausbau-forum.de/threads/grundriss-bungalow-5-zimmer-garten-im-norden.42400/, I think any compensation in the world is justified, if it was you who disfigured the design shown in post #18 there to such a disastrous state. Design phase 4 only ends with the building permit application, and of course that includes all documents necessary to complete it. A geotechnical survey has nothing to do with whether utility lines are already available on the street.
At which point did you terminate the planning contract?

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11ant schrieb:

Apart from the fact that this scope of services, although unfortunately popular among clients, is very unsuitable and, in my opinion, a reputable architect would therefore not accept it

Hello dear 11ant,

we are currently looking for someone to support us through to the building permit / planning permission application. Therefore, I am interested in why you think that service phases 1-4 are unsuitable and why a reputable architect would not offer them.
I would appreciate it if you could help "open my eyes" here.

Many thanks
SandraAnne

SandraAnne schrieb:

I would appreciate it if you could "open my eyes" here.

Hello dear SandraAnne, but haven’t I already done that extensively (in all posts that can be found here using the search term "Gerddieter")? - please let me know which aspect is still unclear to you or where I might not have expressed myself clearly enough.

SandraAnne schrieb:

We are currently looking for someone to support us up to the building permit application. Therefore, I am interested in why you think that service phases 1-4 are unsuitable and that a professional architect would not offer this.

If you really only want to be supported to such (limited) extent, then hiring an architect with the commission scope of service phases 1 to 4 (although still unsuitable) is sufficient. The plan documents for the building permit serve to inform the building authority about the characteristics of the structure to be approved (in all aspects relevant to the files), nothing more. The approval stamp only means that the realization of these plans is now allowed, but it does not make them technically feasible yet. Architects know this (meaning they are aware that having nothing but these technically rather sketch-like documents is practically like being naked alone in the forest at sea). This is why a responsible architect rejects such an assignment – a responsible surgeon would never leave the operating room before the freshly operated patient is properly closed up!

Service phase 1 requires meticulous work, phase 2 requires skill, phases 3 and 4 are then relaxed drawing of the house, and from phase 5 onward the fee is earned again through hard work and effort. Additionally, service phases 5 and 8 are a real challenge for someone who has not yet been involved in phase 3. Furthermore, by the end of phase 4, one has not proven that the entire house can be delivered within budget.

All of this is well known to every architect, which is why commissioning an architect only for service phases 1 through 4 practically guarantees:
1. relying on the improvisation skills of the construction workers
2. unsightly and purely functional drywall boxwork around all lines and pipes
3. cost-cutting efforts by the builder at every corner
4. still a high probability of budget overruns

Is this really what you want?

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Thank you for your reply @11ant.
I had already skimmed through some posts, but I hadn’t actually used the search term "gerddieter." I will try that.
I looked at your profile, but it only shows the latest posts, and unfortunately, I couldn’t find the sometimes mentioned modules A, B, C or any link to them. I also searched for "house construction roadmap by the building guide," etc., without success.
Maybe I just searched or looked in the wrong way, as I am still getting familiar with this forum.
I had intended to ask politely via private message, but that was not possible due to my low post count.

If you have a website or a specific post with an overview of the housebuilding process (I think I read between the lines that something like this exists), I would be very grateful to receive a link by private message. Or a hint on how to find the page/post.

Thank you very much.
Sandra

SandraAnne schrieb:

I had looked at your profile, but it only shows the latest posts, and unfortunately, I couldn’t find the sometimes mentioned modules A, B, C or a link to them. I also searched for the “building schedule of the building advisor” and similar terms—with no success.
Maybe I just searched or looked in the wrong places, as I’m still getting familiar with this forum.
I actually wanted to ask nicely via private message—but that wasn’t possible due to my low post count.

You can scroll through my posts going back almost six years here. The baulotse-hoffmann username is now bauen-jetzt, and I use the same name at gmx de as here. Anyone who can’t send private messages yet also cannot receive them. But you should be able to start your own thread already (and share more about yourself and your building project with us).

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