Building your own home is one of the most exciting projects you will ever embark on and often, one of the biggest personal investments you will make. When the opportunity arises to make your dream home a reality, it can be an incredibly rewarding journey, one you have long dreamed about but, it can also be a very complicated one. Knowing what you want is often only a fraction of the story, the greater part is making it happen. An architect can help you not only navigate the journey more smoothly, but also ensure that you achieve the best possible version of your dream home.
Streamline the Process
Whether it is a new construction or renovation of an existing building, there are hundreds of decisions to make, regulations and conditions to meet, options to evaluate and processes to navigate. Architects are professionally trained to help you plan, design and implement your project. An architect has typically been through the design and build process many times before, on different sites and locations, dealt with a range of surprises and challenges, and managed a number of different needs and requirements. Architects are well versed in managing risk and anticipating needs and requirements during the various stages of design and construction. An experienced architect is able to significantly save you time, money and stress during the process.
Enhance Value
Your architect will encourage you to think outside the box, looking not just at your immediate brief, but at your wider goals and objectives and how to deliver them. What do you want this building or site to do for you in the next year, next five years? Understanding your long-term goals will ensure that any investment now, will better serve you in the long-term.
Not only that, but by asking the right questions and delving deeper to really understand you, your lifestyle, budget and requirements, an architect can help you identify the best design, strategy and approach to achieve your objectives. For example, adding a simple extension to a property will raise its floor area and prospective value however, assessing how additions work in the context of the existing building and what adjustments could be made to create a property that flows naturally from space to space and offers additional functionality, will lift value beyond that of just adding floor area.
Mitigate Risk
Once the project brief is established, your architect will conduct thorough research to evaluate the viability of your project and ensure any risks are minimised from the outset. Often, you will never know the full extent of the conditions of your building and site until relevant research has been carried out. This research extends beyond looking at the immediate site context. It will not only determine if your project is viable, but it will also identify opportunities to realise, constraints to overcome and conditions to meet. This research is critical for making informed decisions going forward and streamlining your project program.
Achieve the Best Design & Outcome for your Investment
Once the project parameters have been set, the design process can begin. An architect is often impartial and will work with you to determine how your budget can be best utilised to give you optimum results and achieve your aspirations. They often know exactly what can and can’t be compromised. An architect will know where it’s worth spending on structural elements to create that dramatic opening, and where you can scale back to stay within budget without affecting the final outcome.
Through a process of meaningful communication and creative collaboration, a good architect will incorporate inventive and practical design solutions to address any challenges, optimise results and add that little extra detail that is unique to you. Whether maximising light and space or adding functionality and storage, they will ensure the best design solution reflecting your personal preferences and complementing the existing context of the building or site.
Ensure Quality
Having considered and detailed drawings for your project means that any coordination issues that might arise are addressed first on paper before being implemented saving time, money and disappointment. Unsightly junctions or ill-considered spaces can be avoided and a good drawing set gives the builder greater confidence and conviction when making the design reality, reducing costly mistakes.
Give you Peace of Mind
Your architect can be relied upon to assemble and coordinate the best team for your project from consultants to contractors, keep a watchful eye and hand on budget and timescales throughout the entire process, and prepare all the necessary information for planning, building control, tender pricing and construction to build from. They will be responsible for managing process, time, people and any problems that may arise during the course of implementation, taking significant time and stress out of your hands and giving you peace of mind.
In summary, a good architect is an investment that will not only save you time, money and stress in the long-term, but will also lead to adding significant value to your project and achieving something that you can truly be proud of and enjoy for many years to come.
At Ashman Architects, we are committed to working with our clients as partners to create buildings that fulfil our client’s vision through the best possible design solution. To find out more or enquire about an upcoming project, please go to our enquiries form by clicking here.