The question posed: do it yourself, or hire an top residential architects in Miami because the cost involved of doing so will exceed what I am willing to spend on a home improvement? Frankly, the question was sparked from a Twitter query which has since been removed but was nonetheless a good one.
Well the question is better formulated by asking if you can afford to execute an addition or alteration to your home by trial and error.
Believe it or not, some of our clients initially become our clients because they’ve begun their project that way – either they’ve made a mistake which is causing a problem or they’ve been caught by the authority having jurisdiction for executing work without necessary permits and a licensed architect is then required to review the work.
As a result, homeowners have had to pay for the cost of construction, the cost of correcting any construction, in addition to any fees incurred for a review by an architect. Needless to say, hiring an architect before beginning a project avoids headaches, reduces costs, and yields a project that has been well designed by someone who is trained to do just that. This idea holds true for commercial projects only to a magnified degree.
I’ve often heard that hiring an architect is perceived to be a costly luxury which is reserved solely for affluent developers and homeowners but this misconception has only contributed to the hindrance of the profession and diminished the quality our built environment. Generally speaking an architect’s fees are sometimes a small percentage of the construction OR, a sum that is determined prior to commencing with the project.
What I suggest is to simply request a quotation for any work that you intend on executing and then make a determination at that point as to whether it is a reasonable cost for peace of mind.
