While the vast majority of individuals will be very aware of an New York architects role and the advantages of using one when initially designing your construction project, how many of us know where to even begin looking for an architect suitably experienced and qualified to meet your specific requirements? In the rest of this article we’re going to talk about how to find the right residential architects.
1) The first and most common place people tend to search is online. After all, surely any Architect worth his fee would have a website wouldn’t they? The advantage of viewing websites is that the architect can display examples of previous projects and you will be in a position to quickly identify if this particular professional specialises in the type of construction you are working on.
For example, an architect who specialises in office design or multi-storey business premises is less likely to undertake a home construction project, or more importantly, he would be less likely to have the experience and ability to meet your expectations. When browsing online for residential architects, look for those who are located within a reasonable distance of your build location. Local area knowledge and an ability to visit the site of the project will be a great advantage, so you should avoid anybody who does not insist on a site visit when discussing the particulars with you.
2) As there is a broad spectrum of differences between commercial and residential architects, you should draw the line from the beginning and search only for those architects who are exclusively residential in their focus. Another positive way to find a residential architect is by reputation or word of mouth. Depending on the size of the project you’re planning you are likely to have either a building firm or a series of independent builders to work on your construction.
If you’ve done your homework and picked somebody who has years of experience in the industry, they are likely to be able to recommend an architect they have previously worked with. The big advantage of this is that having an architect and building team who already have a working relationship and rapport from a previous job, will mean a more seamless flow from design to build.
3) Another important factors that needs to be considered is the formal qualifications of the architect you plan to use. Do not misinterpret good qualifications as meaning a good architect. Formal qualifications are gained through study and examination, not through experience, natural ability and a working experience of the industry.
This is why those who are able to show examples of past projects are normally far more reliable than those who can only show you a paper based CV outlining their work to date. That does not mean that you shouldn’t want to know the architect is suitably qualified to actually work as an architect, it just illustrates that a number of factors should be balanced up when looking for residential architects.
