architects
Fees and costs
Your biggest question after deciding to look at our services is likely to be 'so how much will this all cost?'
As you would expect, some costs are predictable and you'll already know about, such as planning fees, building control fees, and the cost of the builder and their materials. But there are also things you may not have thought about, like ecology surveys, flood risk assessments, SAP calculations, kitchen design, administration and consultant fees.
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From initial discussions and during the refinement of the brief, we can assess your budget in context of these predictable, and unpredictable costs, and will flag as many as possible of the probable fees.
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We can't over-emphasise the benefits of having a RIBA Architect appointed for any design work. You may think that you could get design work done elsewhere for cheaper, but often this cut-corners route leads to consquences down the line, from missed mistakes, unanticipated costs, or amendments for compliance, all when they're most expensive as it becomes too late to fix in the later phases.
Having us as your guide gives you the confidence of highly qualified, highly skilled and experienced hands overseeing the design process, to ensure as much as possible is averted before it becomes a problem. We are efficient in using our time, so do deliver great value for money, and will add significant value to your property by having an bespoke, Architect-designed home.​
Our Architect's fees
These we can be sure of from the outset. We tend to invoice at the end of stage for the smaller stages, or monthly during longer phaases. We try to itemise the invoice as far as we can to make it clear what you are getting for your money, but are always happy to discuss our fees to make it work for you.
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Initial consultation - Free 1 hour initial site meeting.
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Design work up to planning - We usually agree a fixed fee for these feasibility phases, all set out in your appointment letter to take into account your site specifics.
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Technical design - For this phase the time needed can vary considerably depending on the complexity or your scheme, the level of finish you want to achieve, and what materials you wish to use, therefore we usually charge this at an hourly rate. In this phase we ensure as much information as possible is detailled, so that tendering contractors can assign an accurate price to each item. It is at this point that costs can begin to become more accurate.
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Construction and handover phase - During these phases we mainly take a consultancy type role, only acting when specific questions are raised, or extra information is required, and then to produce the final record of built information at the end. Thefeore for the best value for money, this is also charged at an hourly rate so it keeps in proportion with your project.
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BSA Principal designer - The Building Safety Act 2023 requires compliance of the design to be demonstrated throughout the design phases and into construction. We are expected to be performing this role which is largely an administration and record keeping role only embellishing on what we already do, so will charge this at an hourly rate on top of our usual fees.
Printing
While we do endevour to be as digital as possible sometimes you may like to have hardcopies of drawings and information. These we can print in house up to A1 on request and either drop off or post out to you. Prices for each copy are set out in the appointment letter.
Fixed fee based on contract value
Often for the early feasability phases we roll these up into one fixed fee, giving you peace of mind on what fees you are commiting to in exchange for a (hopefully positive) planning decision.
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We usually base our fixed fees on a percentage of the anticipated construction contract value, which in turn is based on a rule of thumb of £3,000 per sqm for residential projects. This assumes a medium quality of specification and complexity. There will be variation depending on current construction costs, the site itself, any planning constraints and your desired level of finish but this is sufficient for a starting point. Also as the project becomes more detailed or as the scope changes, the contract value can become more accurate and our fees will adjust accordingly.
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Using a default example:
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Let's say you wanted a 60 sqm extension, we'd anticpate the construction contract value (exlc 20% VAT) to be £3,000 x 60 sqm = £180,000.
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Our overall percentage fee could then be around 8% of this figure, so £14,400. This is then broken down across the phases.
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Stages 0-3 up to planning: 35% so £5,040
Stage 4 technical design up to building control : 35% so another £5,040.
Stages 5 onwards to completion: 30% so £4,320
Hourly rates
Due to each project being unique, and presenting its own challenges, with individual clients who each have different ideas about what they like. Sometimes an hourly rate is the most appropriate and fair method to apply to our invoicing, and will also be applied where work needed falls outside of the scope of the agreed fixed fee.
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Our current charge out rates are as follows (they will be set out in your appointment letter):
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Director - £90 per hour (plus 20% VAT)
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Architect/Senior Architectural Assistant - £75 per hour (plus 20% VAT)
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BSA Principal Designer - £75 per hour (plus 20% VAT) ​
Other consultant's fees
Each project will face its own combination of statutory obstacles, each of which may need a specialist consultant to address these points for planning, building control, or construction safety.
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We do not sub-contract or employ other consultants, you would make your own appointments with them directly. Therefore we can't say what exactly they may charge, but we can discuss rough estimates with you based on past projects. Sometimes having these consultants on board as early as possible can save you money down the line. This list is not exhaustive, but are the ones we encounter being needed the most, we can also suggest names of firms we have worked with to success in the past.
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Measured and topographical surveyor - At the outset of the project we need measured information of what you already have on site.
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Contamination/ dangerous building materials - Depending on property type, having the specialist removal of Asbestos or RAAC prior to work starting may be required.
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Ecological consultant - There are protected wildlife species and habitats that could affect your project, a specialist can assess potential impact and any mitigation necessary.
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Arboricultural specialist - There may be specimen trees on or adjacent to your site which could affect your project or vice versa.
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Flood risk assessor - Your site could be at risk of flooding or have already flooded, a specialist can analyse the potential impacts of your development and look at what measures are needed to protect your home.
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Geotechnical specialist - As we are a practice based on the coast, we often have sites with unique ground conditions that require assessment to determine the risks of development and the foundation type needed.
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Structural Engineer - Their input on key junctions and calculations will be needed for building control.
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SAP assessor - They analyse the predicted performance for Building Control, and produce your EPC.
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M+E Engineers - They work out the ventilation, plumbing, green technologies, electrical requirements of your build, in collaboration with your builder, plumber and electrician.
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Project Manager - You may chose to have a project manager overseeing the whole build process, keeping it simple for you.
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Quantity Surveyor - You may chose to appoint a quantity surveyor to price the work, to ensure you're getting value for money from tendering contractors, they then hold the purse strings throughout the build and can often save you money overall.​​​​​​