ᐅ Looking for a creative architect to design a house for us.

Chrisss83 schrieb:
Is there a creative architect here to whom I could send our documents...?

What exactly are you expecting: an aha or eureka moment, like shining eyes when you unwrap a gift, or how do you determine if an architect deserves the attribute "creative"? And what kind of compensation would you consider appropriate? An architect can hardly work as a taxi driver at night just to afford producing samples as promotional gifts during the day...

Chrisss83 schrieb:
I think I know what an architect is and what they do.

A "creative" architect, for example, manages to balance the four key factors: client’s wishes, the plot of land, planning permission / building permit, and budget. Very rarely, a round stairwell window might emerge as a nice side effect, but that can only be incidental.

You can recognize a creative architect by their willingness, like wpic, to take on renovations of older buildings. While it might be an exaggeration to say "anyone can design new builds," this is definitely where the real quality difference shows.

Chrisss83 schrieb:
But I wouldn’t enter into a contract with an architect before I know what exactly for. Who would buy a pig in a poke???

Please don’t be one of those freeloader type people who think, "It’s great publicity for you if you’re dumb enough to show me your skills for free." The "knowing what for" is quite simple: it means the architect isn’t dependent on charity or volunteer work. Freelancers also have living expenses, no matter how unromantic that sounds.

Why do you fear not getting good value in return? Under a fee according to HOAI, the architect owes you a design that is approvable. "Approvable" automatically implies that it is legally permissible to build that design on your specific plot of land.

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I understand what you’re getting at, but you won’t get that. At least not from a professional.

We followed this path after clarifying a mutual "wavelength" and agreed to be billed hourly. Design phases 1-4. If you skip phase 4, you’ll notice that for exactly what you want, there is a design phase with a fixed fee. And you will have to pay for that.

Unless an architect happens to get bored on the weekend and is willing to work online for free.

How do you handle it with doctors? They send you their invoice regardless of whether you are satisfied with the treatment outcome or not.

That’s just how it is with freelance professions.

Of course, you shouldn’t have to pay anything at a first appointment, but you won’t get much more than a friendly conversation to see if you’re a good fit and/or a few references.

A colleague once organized a kind of architect competition. Each architect could freely design based on the given requirements (number of rooms, plot geometry, etc.). Each was paid a set fee (I believe 1,000€) – three architects with good references were contacted in total, and one of them was eventually chosen. But that was years ago (before the general construction boom).

Recently, we had a new house planned for our mother as well. The first architect did not follow any of the specifications and produced a completely useless design... You could see seven room doors from the dining table... Sorry... On the other hand, another architect spent two hours listening carefully to our mother’s wishes and taking notes. Then they created a plan including a 3D visualization and reviewed the previous notes and requests together. The plan was adopted almost exactly, with only minor adjustments... In that case, the fee structure was fair. In the first case – even after multiple revisions – it was an outrage.

I would give everyone the same advice: plan the house from the inside out. That means considering the furniture needed in each room individually. For example, a bed measuring 2.20m x 2.20m (7 ft 3 in x 7 ft 3 in) in the bedroom, with a circulation space of at least 0.80m (2 ft 7 in) around it, and so on.
As a result, you create a room layout that you then orient according to the cardinal directions.
This is ultimately how we arrived at our design.

So please... I wasn’t looking for know-it-all answers, just someone who might be interested in being creative (doesn’t have to be an architect).

I’m not asking for an official drawing for a building permit / planning permission, but just thought someone more creative than us could provide a basic starting point.

Some people here seem to feel the need to add pointless comments, as if they get paid for it.

To the members with constructive answers… THANK YOU.

Still, my question is… if anyone here is creatively inclined and can help us a bit, please get in touch.

THANK YOU