Choosing the Right Design Professional

By Alex May

Australia is a nation of mad renovators, according to the Housing Industry Association economist Simon Tennent.

"We have never spent so much money on our houses - in just three or four years, the costs have gone from something like $900 a square metre to $1300 or $1400 a square metre," he says.
But just how do you go about renovating a house without blowing your budget or drowning in a sea of stress over lengthy council approval times or builders who don't turn up?
Tennent says there is no hard and fast data about how people are undertaking renovations, but all HIA members have noticed a big increase in inquiries about renovating.
"People are spending more than ever before but at the same time the value of their houses has gone up an average of 20 per cent per annum," he says.
Short of begging one of the plethora of lifestyle TV programs to make your house over, most people need to call in - and pay - professionals to help achieve their renovation dreams.
Domain has interviewed three renovators to talk about how they approached their renovation, the professionals they paid and the processes they went through.

THE ARCHITECT

An architect can come up with clever solutions to add light, space and make rooms work better in dark and poky older-style Sydney homes.
Architect Teresa Serrao, who runs an architectural and engineering practice Serrao Smith, transformed this three-bedroom freestanding house on a small block of land in Annandale into a two-storey house with open plan living, parents retreat and ensuite bathroom.
Sure, the renovation cost owners Kathy Bluff and Simon Cowap around $300,000, but they knew their house needed a good designer to create more space on a small land size.
"We were hoping to spend around $200,000 at the start, but I am happy with what we have spent to achieve a house that we can stay in until our children are teenagers," she says.
Serrao - who charges between 8 and 12 per cent of construction costs - says people baulk at paying high fees to architects as they don't understand the amount of time it takes to design a job well and make sure it is planned so that the construction phase goes smoothly.
"People pay other professionals like accountants or solicitors up to $250 an hour but they think paying an architect thousands of dollars for three or four months work is outrageous," she says.
"We've found that good design can add more capital value to a house than the cost of the architect's fees."
Bluff hired Serrao to oversee their renovation after initially contacting Archicentre for a renovation report in 2001.
"We paid a fixed fee for the report and liked Teresa and thought she would listen to us as well as give good ideas. We then decided to go with her for the next phase and got her to oversee construction as well," Bluff says.
The design phase took about six months to complete and the plans took six months to get through council. Construction took another seven months, which meant the family had to move into rented accommodation.
Serrao says you can pay as much or as little as you want to if you engage an architect.
"You don't have to employ an architect to oversee every stage - you might just want to spend a couple of thousand dollars getting concepts drawn up and then oversee the rest of the renovation yourself," she says.

THE DESIGN AND CONSTRUCT BUILDER

When Carmel and Phil Paterson expanded their family they needed to extend their two-bedroom semi in Willoughby - but they didn't know the first thing about organising an architect and tendering for builders.
"I just knew that I wanted someone who could look after the whole thing," Carmel says, so she called in three or four design and construct builders who can design, organise council approval and build an extension.
"My biggest fear was that the renovation would cost more than $200,000 but we've spent about $150,000 to $160,000 for everything."
The Patersons decided to renovate with Attic & Roof Conversions, a design and construct building company who specialise in second storey additions. They have added two bedrooms upstairs and knocked out a wall downstairs to create more living space.
Company director Patrick Houston is a licensed builder who employs architects, engineers and tradespeople to work on renovations. His company supplies sketch concepts and a rough estimate of construction costs for free. If the person wants to proceed with the work, they pay between $4000 to $5000 to get plans drawn up by an architect and lodged with the local council. They then pay the construction costs when building work starts.
"It's been great to not have to deal with anyone except Patrick," Carmel says. "It's pretty easy because all we had to do was choose some tiles and fittings ourselves."
The renovation has not been without its drama - the plans took more than nine months to get through council and in the end the Patersons had to compromise and make their upstairs area smaller.
"We only got approval on the day I had my second baby and by the time I got home the following week, the builders started work," Carmel says.
Construction has taken around 22 weeks, and the painters are due to finish any day now.
"The hardest thing is living with all the dirt," she says.

THE BUILDING DESIGNER

Just 18 months ago, there was a humble three-bedroom Federation house on this site at Cronulla - now there is an award winning house designed by Pete Van Ryn that cost seven figures to build.
Demolishing old houses and building a bigger and better house is a growing trend in Sydney, where land is in short supply.
There are two options to renovate in this way - get a project home company to look after the entire demolition and rebuild or organise your own designer or architect to custom-design your dream home.
It is only recently that building designers have gained as much status and prestige for their work as architects, even though many designers do not have the same university qualifications as an architect.
Van Ryn, of Cronulla Building Design Co, says architects used to be at one end of the prestige scale and "drafties" at the other, but times have changed and building designers and architects can achieve similar outcomes.
The owner of this South Cronulla house, who doesn't want to be named, interviewed both architects and building designers to create his dream home and felt "entirely comfortable" with opting for a building designer over an architect to create the palatial pad.
"I interviewed architects but Pete was the one I felt the most comfortable with - he sat up on the roof for a while to get a feel for the site and understand the views. He was the one who had the best ideas," the owner says.
Van Ryn was paid an initial fixed fee for the design of the house and was then paid an hourly rate to help get the plans through council, and specify the job and help with tendering.
The house won two 2003 Building Design Association of NSW awards and the owner couldn't be happier with the new house, which uses glass to capture the views and energy efficient principles.
Van Ryn points out that a custom-designed renovation or rebuild can harness energy efficient ideas while "off the peg" designs cannot.
"That can make a difference to the quality of the living spaces as well as the ongoing cost of maintaining a house," he says.
"Neither architects, building designers nor design and construct companies have a monopoly on good design," Van Ryn says. "It's up to the individual client to decide what suits their needs."

TOP TIPS FOR CHOOSING A DESIGN PROFESSIONAL

Have a rough idea of what you want to achieve with your renovation - do you just need to refurbish your current bathroom or do you need to make it bigger? Do you really need to make structural changes to achieve what you need?
If you want to engage a professional, expect to pay decent money. After all, if you are spending tens of thousands of dollars on construction it is worth paying a small percentage to make sure the design is right from the beginning.
Finding an architect, designer or builder is often done by word of mouth, but relevant organisations such as Archicentre, The Building Designers Association of NSW and the Master Builders Association can all refer you to a company or individual who is experienced in the area you need.
Finding a professional you like and can get along with is more important than having a fancy resume - this person will guide you through a very stressful and costly process so it helps if you like them.
Ask for references from other clients before making any final decisions about a professional - anyone worth their salt will happily show testimonials from previous clients.

If you need to make structural changes to a house and extend beyond the existing boundaries, the stages of renovation are:

1.The Brief
You need to think long and hard about what you want to achieve with a renovation. Do you just want a more modern bathroom or is it better to move the bathroom sp it is closer to the bedroom. Spend most of your time coming up with a clear idea of what you need your house to do.

2.The Budget
You need to be aware that renovating is not cheap. You can work out a rough budget by doing a floorplan of the space and working out how many square metres of space need refurbishing or rebuilding. A cheap refurbishment could be achieved for $1300 a square metre but many inner city renovations are costing more than $3500 a square metre according to local builders and architects. Many renovators spend 10 to 20 per cent more than they originally plan to.

3.The Design
Most people need to engage a professional to come up with a design to suit their needs. An architect has a six-year degree under their belt, most building designers are qualified architectural draftspeople and have extensive experience in the industry. A cheaper option may be to find a draftsman on a low hourly rate, but you get what you pay for at the design phase.

4.The Documentation and Development Application
These are plans you need to submit to your local council and include complex drawings and elevations, as well as extra reports such as a statement of environmental effects, a heritage impact report or a tree report. A design professional can oversee all documentation and council approval stages for a renovation.

5.Tendering and Construction Certificate
Once the DA has been approved, most councils require a construction certificate to start building work. A design professional such as an architect or building designer can oversee the process of specifying materials for the renovation and also calling for tenders to build the project.

6.Contract Administration and Construction
Once you have engaged a builder and construction has begun, you will regularly need to liaise with the builder to sign off on all stages of the job. Alternatively, you can engage a design professional to oversee this stage of the work. This is also the stage where a lot of decisions need to be made quickly to avoid delays.

7.Defects and Completion
Once construction is complete, a design professional can check for defects and call back a builder to repair anything that is not working. Alternatively, you can pay a building inspector to check for defects - it is easier to have the defects repaired before any final payments have been made.