FAQs
- What types of customers have you worked with?
We specialize in the design or renovation of two types of sustainable home sizes: Micro and Standard. Micro homes includes detached houses / apartments / townhomes/ lofts less than 1,000 square feet (the average size home in North America is currently 2,500 square feet) Standard homes / apartments / townhomes / lofts size range from 1,000 square feet to 5,000 square feet. When we work on micro designs they are designed for the most efficient use of space for the kitchen, bathroom, and living. Often, our micro designs will include a room that has more than one function rather than the standard one use per space. We always work very closely with the client to ensure that the finished micro home is comfortable to use and entertain in. Our micro homes are generally less expensive to build and generate smaller operating costs. Many of our standard homes also use a mix of the micro home designs. The standard homes may include micro toilet rooms/foyers/garages/living rooms/bedrooms which leave more square footage for the spaces use more frequently or for longer durations such as: kitchens, breakfast rooms, laundry, bathroom sink/dressing areas, computer areas. Whether the size is Micro or Standard all of our designs included the latest in efficient and environmentally friendly appliances, plumbing fixtures, HVAC, wall and roof materials. Every project starts by asking the client to take a week to analyze which rooms are currently used and how frequently. We give the client a plan of their home which they pin up on a wall in their home. Every evening anyone livening in the home is asked to place a red dot in the room they used during the day. At the end of the week we meet with the client to analyze the plan and discuss which rooms they are willing take square footage from and gain for other more frequently used rooms. All clients are asked to also supply our office with a survey and any existing drawings from the local municipalitys micro film department. Our office is located on Miami Beach and we work closely with clients on the Beach, Key Biscayne, Coral Gables, Pinecrest, and the city of Miami. Because we are an American French Architecture firm we work closely with the Franco-American Community on the beach to guide them through the permitting and construction process in Florida.
- What advice would you give a customer looking to hire a provider in your area of work?
1. The client should first contact local building department to determine if their project will require sealed drawings from an architect 2. If the project will require an addition to an existing building contact a local surveyor (Just search the closest surveyor in the neighborhood) and contact the local building departments micro film department to locate existing drawings. This will save the client time and money rather than requesting the architect to perform these services. The architect will need these items to determine if your project is feasible or allowed by the building department. 3. Set a preliminary project budget of at least $100 per square foot to determine your square footage requirements. The architect will later help the client further develop the budget for the project with any other missing factors. 4. Set a realistic design and construction schedule, most designs for homes generally require 2-4 months if they are not overly complex. 5. Check with the website of the state board for architecture registration to determine is the architect is license is active or suspended or if any complaints have been filed against the architect. All you will need is the name of the architect to find this information. Also check with better business bureau for a complaint history 6. Use the internet to search within a 20 mile radius for 3-5 local architects. A local architect is recommended because the client or architect will be visiting one another quite often. Also a local architect will be more familiar with and knowledgeable of the local building departments requirements. Rather than getting recommendations from past clients get recommendations from other local architects. Architects are the first to hear which firms are producing the best or low quality work. The architecture / building community generally is very small and word travels fast about our reputations. A small consultation fee (generally around $100) can be negotiated with these firms used to recommend other firms. 7. Most firms have a specialty ask the architect if they specialize in your type of building and how many times per year they construct (generally twice a year is enough experience or exposure) 8. Ask to be in contact with the person, who actually drafts your drawings; often times larger firms will send work outside of their firm or use a drafter to work on the design, because they are less expensive. These freelancers or drafter will have the most knowledge of the project and be able to answer questions fasters. 9. Ask the architect the number of projects the drafter/architect works on at a given time. Generally one person can handle up to 3 projects at a time anything more than that and they are considered over worked. 10. Determine how the architect communicates by asking how they respond to emails; do they use their emails like a text messaging system and respond immediately or do they wait to gather their thoughts and respond at a certain time of day. An organized architect that practices high communication skills will generally pick up the phone after a string of 3 emails in a row and wait to gather information before immediately responding to emails. Ask the architect if they have an email policy in place and how they handle working on projects and responding to emails. Some firms spend their entire day just responding to emails and work overtime to work on projects. 11. Ask how often the draftsman/architect takes vacations and determine if it will be during the project design phase, permitting phase, or construction phase. The design and construction is a long process so organizing vacations and time off from beginning will put the client at ease. 12. Ask the architect to show and explain a finished set of permitted plans- good drawings are clear and organized with lots of information, it should include a cover sheet listing the pages, a site plan with zoning fact information, floor plans with dimensions and texts, elevations with dimensions and texts ,at least 4 building sections with dimensions and text, at least 3 wall details with dimensions and text, window door details, typical roof details, door / window schedules, stair & railing details, specifications. Also pay attention to how to amount of pages and how much information is shown on one sheet. If you see more white than drawing then the architect is not very efficient with paper and the client is literally paying more for printing. 13. Ask the architect to show a list of questions that came from the building department during the permitting phase. An organized architecture firm should have some procedures in place for organizing and collecting permitting questions and responses. Ask if they have multiple copies of the permitted drawings which tend get lost during construction. Pay attention to the date the questions were received and the date the responses were sent. The permitting process can be delayed by either the building department or the architect. 14. Ask the architect to show a copy RFIs (Request for Information sent by contractor during construction) received from their last project constructed. Pay attention to the number of RFIs received which can range from 2 to 100. Ask the architect to explain how they responded to the RFIs and why certain questions came about. An organized architecture firm should have some procedures in place for organizing and collecting RFIs from past projects. 15. Ask the architect to show a list of shop drawings submittals with the dated and stamped responses. An organized architecture firm should have some procedures in place for organizing and collecting shop drawing submittals. 16. Ask the architect to show a copy of their last construction field report. The field report is created by the architect during their construction visits. The report should document the date, weather conditions, and percentage of completion, questions, and pictures of work. The field report is then reviewed with client and the contractor. An organized architecture firm should have some procedures in place for organizing and collecting their field reports. 17. Ask the architect to show the project closeout procedures. An organized architecture firm should have some procedures in place for organizing the end of construction. The project closeout procedures should include: punch list(detailing items that need to be completed before the owner moves in), maintenance manuals for lighting/plumbing/appliances and any final change orders.