ᐅ Developer or Architect – Costs

Not using a general contractor!

I still think it’s great if this approach worked well for you.

However, you are lumping quite a few things together in the same way you criticize them.

First of all, very few homeowners actually have the time to manage individual subcontracting themselves.
Also, you don’t really know how much you saved compared to working with an architect.
Of course, you saved their fee.
But do you know if you would have been offered the same prices through an architect?
You might have ended up working with completely different tradespeople.
Some tasks may have been done differently, possibly at a lower cost without compromising quality, simply because you were not aware of those options.
No offense to your research (which I would recommend for all building approaches, by the way), but you can’t make up for the overview and professional experience with just half a year of internet research.

That doesn’t mean the way you did it was wrong. I find it very admirable.

But a direct comparison is very difficult, and claiming you saved $100,000 compared to working with an architect is simply not possible.

This might be different with a general contractor / building contractor.

face26 schrieb:

Not an architect but a general contractor!

Again, I think it’s great if this approach worked for you.

However, you’re grouping together quite a few things the same way you criticize others for doing.

First, very few homeowners have the time to handle individual contracts themselves.
Also, you don’t actually know how much you’ve saved compared to using an architect.
You saved their fee, of course.
But do you know if you would have been offered the same prices through an architect?
You might have ended up with completely different tradespeople.
Some work might have been done differently and possibly cheaper, without being lower quality, simply because you were not aware of those options.
Nothing against your research (which I would recommend for all construction options), but you can’t make up for the overview and professional experience in just half a year of internet research.

That doesn’t mean what you did was wrong. I find it very admirable.

But a direct comparison is very difficult, and claiming to have saved $100,000 compared to an architect is simply not possible.

Maybe that’s more feasible with a general contractor or construction manager.

But I know what extras I got for the same price, as I listed at the beginning. I even thought of more things we had included for the same price. Since we’ve had only minor issues but no visible construction defects, I don’t think a general contractor would have done better.
I should add that we have friends who regularly inspected our build.
Best regards

face26 schrieb:

Not an architect but a general contractor!

Again, I think it’s great if that approach worked for you.

However, you’re lumping quite a few things together, just as you criticize others for doing.

First of all, very few clients have the time to handle individual contracts themselves.
Furthermore, you don’t even know how much you really saved compared to using an architect.
Sure, you saved their fee.
But do you know if you would have received the same prices through an architect?
You might have ended up with completely different contractors.
Some things might have been done differently, possibly cheaper, without being of lower quality, simply because you didn’t know those alternative options.
No offense to your research (which I would recommend for all types of building projects), but you can’t make up for the overall perspective and professional experience with just six months of internet research.

That doesn’t mean the way you did it is bad—I find it very admirable.

A direct comparison is just very difficult, and claiming you saved $100,000 compared to an architect is simply not possible.

With a general contractor / main contractor, that might be different.

I would doubt that you worked with completely different contractors. I know the companies around here, and we used all our preferred tradespeople. I am comparing with two main contractor quotes we received as well.

Elisabeth78 schrieb:

What more can an architect do there? In the end, the 100,000 we saved is enough.

Elisabeth78 schrieb:

Still better than giving architects and general contractors multiples of that amount.

But you also mentioned architects and made an incorrect claim (negotiation means the architect gets the money).
Compared to general contractors, that might be true—I don’t know your quotes.

I don’t know how rural your area is, but if you live even somewhat near a densely populated region, you simply cannot know every tradesperson for all the skilled trades.

Again, this probably worked really well for you, and the comparison with general contractors might be more valid. But regarding architects, you just don’t know.

face26 schrieb:

But you also mentioned architects and made an incorrect claim (negotiation benefits the architect). That might be true compared to a general contractor (GC), but I don’t know your quotes.

I don’t know how rural your area is, but if you live even close to a densely populated region, you cannot possibly know all the tradespeople from every trade.

Again, this might work really well for you and might be a better comparison to a GC. But compared to an architect, you simply don’t know.

That’s correct. I can’t say 100% regarding architects. I live in a very rural area. Are you an architect? Otherwise, I don’t understand why you’re so upset.

Elisabeth78 schrieb:

That's true. I can't say for certain if they are an architect. I live in a very rural area. Are you an architect? Because otherwise, I don’t understand why you are upset.

You have a strange perception.
Being upset looks different.

Many people here are reading who are about to build a house.
I just think it's fair not to let them believe, for example, that an architect keeps the entire fee for themselves.