The great British architectural thinker, Cedric Price, once said that, “sometimes the answer is not a new building.” He went on to tell the story of how his firm had been approached by a large London company who were convinced they needed to invest in building a new facility for […]
Finances
15 posts
Remodeling clients often have questions and concerns about the return on their investment for including various features and amenities they might be considering. I get it. Construction isn’t cheap. If you are going to invest $30,000, $100,000, $250,000 or more in the remodel and / or addition to your home, […]
Architectural services aren’t cheap. There are many reasons for that. Among those reasons is what I refer to as drawing bloat. There are several reasons for drawing bloat. First, local jurisdictions, and in California, the state, require including information which demonstrates compliance with various laws which are not directly related […]
The answer is and emphatic “YES”! Check out the video below to learn why: Helping you navigate the weird ways of city bureaucracy is one of the many things architects do. Before you are even tempted to get started on your project, check out my Project Planning Cheat Sheet. You […]
Establishing the construction budget for your project is the FIRST thing you should do after you have decided that building or remodeling is the way to go. In this video I walk you through the 4 steps to establishing a construction budget. There is a little bit of math, but […]
A question I get all the time, as many architects do, is a variation of “What will it cost to draw my plans?” I get this question so often, I’ve made a video in which I answer this burning question: Now you know! If you are thinking of remodeling your […]
Henley Wood, the publishers of Remodeling Magazine, put out an annual report on the cost of remodeling construction. It is interesting in many ways, not the least in illustrating the wild variances in construction costs from region to region. The 2019 report is no different. Based on this year’s report, […]
Have you claimed your copy of my Project Planning Cheat Sheet yet? Check out the video: Get your copy today! by
I have shared images of this project before. We are wrapping up schematic design right now. The design we came up with worked very well, but came in over budget. Working with the Church to set and determine their priorities, they determined that the new structure that will define the […]
When should you hire an architect? The folks over at Curbed.com, the real estate website, recently posted about the house pictured below. It is buildings like this that make me think, if it requires a permit, it requires an architect. Seriously. I am sure that the original owner who designed […]
I have been doing some research on residential construction costs in the SF Bay Area. It’s always good to be up to date on this subject. Clients and potential clients are always asking the question. Not surprisingly, the numbers I’ve seen have ranged all over the place from unbelievably low […]
Your remodeling or addition project will exist in several different realities. There is the reality of the exiting house. There is also the reality that exists in the space between your desires and your budget. The folks at Houzz.com wrote about setting a budget back in April. While the post […]
One of the most common questions I get asked as an architect is a variation on “how much does it cost to remodel my kitchen?” Or, bathroom, or living room, or – well, you get the idea. The answer I have to give is necessarily vague. It depends on how […]
Bob Borson over at Lifeofanarchitect.com recently wrote an excellent post about the benefits of Deconstruction versus Demolition. In it he talks about the environmental and financial benefits of deconstruction instead of demolition. The post can be boiled down to the following: demolition is quick demolition puts everything into the landfill […]
I am often asked what remodeling project provides the best return on the investment? That is actually a complicated question. The answer depends on many factors: location, age of the house, how long you intend to stay in the house, and how you calculate the return. So with that in […]