Architect - Design-Build - Homebuilder: Making Sense of Your Options When Planning For Your Home
DISCLAIMER: This article is for general information purposes only and is based purely from my own experiences over 15 years in the industry. There will likely be plenty of folks out there who have totally different options and ideas on this topic. My goal here is simply to share my perspective…not to convince anyone that any of these are “better”. Additionally, much of this hinges on your state/local jurisdictional requirements - not everywhere requires an architect for single-family residential work.
If you’ve ever considered building a custom home or addition, chances are you’ve come across numerous sites or companies that tell you the “right way” to go about the process. As any business or affiliate would, each of them will try to make the case that their way is superior to that of other methods. Three of most common methods are:
Architect
Design-Build
Home builder
Architect
Working with an architect directly means that the design of your project is completely independent of the construction of it. That’s not to say the architect is not involved during construction (this varies by architect), but traditionally the process goes something like this: hire an architect, go through their design process to develop the documents necessary for permitting and construction, then take those documents and have a handful of contractors review them and provide “bids” or estimates. Once the contractor is hired, and the project permitted, the architects involvement varies from none all the way up to the point of being on-site weekly/bi-weekly to observe progress, answer questions, help troubleshoot issues, amongst numerous other tasks.
Traditionally this process has been seen as “adversarial”, pitting the architect against the contractor because neither of them want to take responsibility for issues that may (will) arise during construction. Maybe the architect designed a detail that is overly complicated or contrary to standard construction, or the contractor didn’t follow the drawings and something needs to be redone, etc. I’ve been on both sides of this fence and neither are fun.
That said, this is not always the case, and often the architect and contractor collaborate well throughout construction - frankly, this has been most of my experiences. After all, we all ultimately have the same goal to deliver a dream home to our clients, on time and on budget.
The benefits of this process are that the client gets the expertise of the architect through the design process, ensuring their goals and vision are translated through to the final detail. Additionally, in the case of the bidding process, the client is able to compare numbers from several contractors. This helps to better determine the “market cost” of the project and ease their mind about overspending.
In addition to the sometimes adversarial nature of this method, going through the entire design process without the involvement of a contractor means that there is a much higher chance that the project may be over budget or that some logistical aspect might be missed. Architects bring many critical tools to the table - the ability to accurately price and schedule a job are most definitely not in the toolbelt. Contractors are dealing with the actual cost and availability of materials, labor, Equpment, etc. every day, and architects are not. The problem is that, by the time the drawings are done and bid out, it’s much more difficult and costly to make changes to reconcile any budgetary or other construction-related oversights.
Design-Build
The design-build process seeks to alleviate some of the pitfalls of the traditional architect-contractor (aka design-bid-build) method. Clients will work directly with the contractor from the start of the project - some companies have architects or designers on staff, others may contract out for those services. In my experience, if an architect is involved, they are usually in the background to “produce” the necessary documents for permitting. Often, the client will never even meet the architect, and work only with the contractor or designer.
For homeowners, this one-stop-shop concept is very appealing - it’s simpler for them to comprehend, gives them one point of contact for the entire process, and in many cases the design phase is either “free” or at a greatly reduced cost when compared to hiring the architect and contractor independently. Any company that tells you the design is free is either full of sh** or just misrepresenting their cost model. Many companies will simply fold the design fees into the build side costs, either as a line item or sometimes completely hidden in there, while others will charge a nominal fee that often serves as a deposit or initial payment until the design is completed and the total contract cost is determined. Regardless, you are paying for the design in one way or another, call it whatever they want. But yes, it’s often a cheaper design fee than that of an architect (I’m saving the cost-benefit analysis between the two for another day…)
The best part about the design-build process, in my opinion, is having the contractor on board from the beginning. It makes ensuring the budget and constructability of the project much smoother, and minimizes that awful moment when you get the first numbers back and they are far from what you’d hoped for.
The drawbacks are that there is no accountability for pricing the project (you don’t get other numbers to compare against), and in many cases you are not getting the full value of what an architect brings to the table. Additionally, there are no checks and balances during the process, which is actually a benefit of that “adversarial” relationship mentioned earlier.
Home builder
This doesn’t really apply to additions, and in many cases could be construed as no different than design-build. However, I still wanted to share some thoughts, since it’s technically by far the most common way to build/buy a new home.
Generally, home builders are working to build out numerous lots in a subdivision, or possibly building a speculative home to sell. Some subdivisions require that you use the builder, so you don’t really have a say in the matter. Many home builders have a library of stock plans/designs that the homeowner can choose from, often with a few tiers of fit out packages (finishes, fixtures, colors, etc).
This is usually the least custom, and most “transactional” method - more like buying a car or house than building your dream home. But, for many, this is exactly what they want, so it fits a big need in the market.
Takeaway
There is no right or wrong choice among any of these (or other) methods. What is right for one client/project might be a disaster for another. On top of that, the company and professionals you’re working with can also make or break the process. The most important takeaway is that it’s best to talk with multiple people to try and get a feel for what might make the most sense for you and your project. Pick the 3 or 4 most important aspects of your project (Process should be one!) and communicate those to the potential partners for the project - then see who best understands them.
Shameless plug…
I know I said this wasn’t about me selling my services as an architect - but I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention my own methodology.
Rather than make a choice between options, I prefer to help my clients get the best of both worlds. We start the research and design process together, but as early as possible they begin interviewing contractors to bring on board for the majority of the design process, particularly after the concept design is worked out. Many contractors are willing to do this for a nominal ”pre-construction consulting” fee, or upon receiving a deposit for the project. This way, we have the full team at the table to help ensure the design evolves within the budget while remaining truly bespoke for the client. Once it’s time to start construction, they are far more invested and familiar with the project, making the construction process much smoother.
To learn more about my process, check out this guide outlining the phases and steps to get from idea to your dream home.