Choosing the Right Professional

Justin Brain

23 July 2012

Depending on the size and nature of your project it is essential to choose the right architectural practice or individual for your budget, where the site is situated as well as many other factors. Our website provides an invaluable resource...

Choosing the Right Registered Architect

A Registered Architect can contribute significantly to the success of your project. Choosing the right architect is crucial to the successful interpretation of your requirements and the subsequent successful completion of a quality building. Choosing the right architect for your project is not the 'icing' on the 'cake' it is the 'cake'.

Without the right architect for your project who can nurture your ideas into a built form through close communication your project will, at most, be stressful and devoured of the enthusiasm and commitment it deserves. So how do you choose the right architect?

The First Steps

The first step in choosing the right architect is to find a suitable registered architect close to your project. Unless your project is more than say £100,000.00 it is of little point to commence your search by choosing just one architect from a city or town that is more than 45-minutes minutes away from your envisaged project. Concentrate your initial search of Architectural Practices local to your project.

The next step is to view each practice's statements/design philosophy held within the practice details of the architect's profile. If a practice does not stand out or interest you from their design philosophy, approach or the work examples then they most likely are not the right architect for you. Choose Architectural practices that stand out to you whether this is their design philosophy or an example of their work.

Contacting an Architect

Once you have clear idea of which architectural practices best suit your project make an enquiry with each practice by clicking on the 'Make an Enquiry' (MAE) button. In clicking on this 'Make an Enquiry' button you will be asked for some basic contact information prior storing the information of the practice you are interested in within your short-list tab on the site. This will allow you to fill out an enquiry form later, which can be emailed through to each practice simultaneously. Obviously you may wish to contact the practice via phone or fax which can also be undertaken from gaining the relevant information from each of your short listed practice details. However, the benefit of the 'Make an Enquiry' button is that your requirements are emailed directly through to the practices' in question and if they are in a position to act on your request quickly you will know that the practice is genuinely interested in your lead. 'Make an Enquiry' with your short listed practices and the interested architectural practice will contact you.

Meeting an Architect

On receiving feedback from your short listed practices arrange to meet each architectural practice in turn ideally at the envisaged project's address. You may request to visit similar completed buildings, which have been completed by the architect's practice ;or alternatively you may request that they bring a portfolio to the initial meeting so you can see if their style meet your envisaged ideas and if so discuss your priorities in terms of timescale, cost and quality.

Employing an Architect

It is important to feel comfortable with the architect you are about to employ. Ask as many questions that you feel comfortable with as this will give you a clear indication as to how the project will be realised and how much it will cost for their involvement within the overall process. Ask each practice to submit a fee basis for their involvement for you to assess. Although costs will be invariably be an issue to the viability of your project, it is imperative that you feel at ease with the architect you choose, as you will be working closely with them to realise the project successfully.

On receipt of the architect's fee basis and the information you have gained from meetings with each of your shortlisted practices you will be in a position to choose the right architect for your project.