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| 1 |
"Is your column a weekly feature? I really love it and we only get it occasionally in our paper." |
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It is supposed to appear weekly,
and is designed to be read every week. If it is
not in your paper every week, please contact your
paper and complain. I send each paper a month's
worth of weekly columns in advance, and some papers
bump it in favor of advertising space, or they
are saving their funds budgeted for editorial
content. If you want to see it regularly, demand
it!!!!!
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| 2 |
"What career path did you take to become a Remodeling Designer ?" |
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The only real way to get to
do what I do is to get an architectural degree,
spend a bunch of time at construction sites, and
specialize in residential remodeling. I call myself
a "Remodeling Designer" because there
is a law that states unless you are a REGISTERED
architect, you are not allowed to use the title
architect. I have all the background necessary,
but I didn't get all of my apprentice time signed
for, therefore, I didn't qualify to take the registration
exam. It truly is a catch 22. In college, they
don't teach residential. It is primarily conceptual
design theory and preparation to design commercial
projects. I worked for various architects after
college and spent as much time on the construction
site as possible, learning quite a lot from the
contractors. I worked for a firm in Chicago that
did residential restoration and remodeling design,
and I got hooked. When I opened my own firm, in
1977, I started out to specialize in residential
remodeling. I had virtually no competition because
there s very little money to be made doing this.
My colleagues were raking in the money on big
projects because standard architectural fees are
from 10 to 12% of construction costs. I chose
this specialty because it is so rewarding. I did
a lot of work for Better Homes and Gardens magazine
and other magazines, but it wasn't until I started
the column and self syndicated it that I began
to get enough work to earn a decent living. It
is important to keep the fees reasonable for average
people, because that is my market. I travel to
the cities my column appears in and do consulting
for the people there. So, to sum up, it takes
an unusual set of talents and plenty of dues paying
to get to where I am. I am extremely happy with
what I do, and feel that I do a lot of good for
a lot of people.
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| 3 |
"What do you mean by Conceptual Design?" |
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Conceptual Design is essentially
the "concept" or the ideas. It shows
in general terms the scope of the project. This
does not include any architectural details or
specifications, but the overall concept. What
I produce in a consulting session is conceptual
design. I feel that most remodeling projects don't
need complete drawings, however if it is a particularly
complex project, it might. Generally my drawings
are used to get bids from contractors, and often
they use those same drawings to obtain their building
permit. You, as the homeowner, and client for
the contractor, need to add information to the
drawings in the form of a list making the job
more specific, so the contractor won't guess on
materials and products.
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| 4 |
"I've never done this before and am a bit overwhelmed. Where do I start?"
Where do you start? |
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Well, start by making a priority
list. Determine WHAT you want to end up with,
and don't worry at this point how it is going
to happen. Determining the problems is most important.
Most people start by calling in contractors, and
put the burden of design on someone who is not
trained in design and may have questionable taste.
Many contractors don't even return calls or show
up for appointments because they spend so much
time with people trying to get something specific
to put a price to. Naturally, the homeowners want
a price, and it is a frustrating deal for everybody.
Remodeling should NOT be priced on a per square
foot basis. There are existing foundations or
structures, or if you add a room, you will still
be changing the existing house to accommodate
access, therefore, square footage pricing doesn't
work. To design your project is usually a problem,
too. Registered Architects usually charge a percentage
(usually around 10 to 12%) of the cost of construction.
Naturally, they would rather work on projects
where people have a substantial budget, which
is not the average homeowner. Some contractors
feel that they are qualified to design. They are
usually qualified to tell you what CAN and cannot
be built. But even if they have a draftsman, or
student architect, the experience and sensitivity
is rarely there. This leads you to me, because
I don't know of any other architecturally trained
designer who specializes in remodeling. I have
been in private practice for over 25 years doing
this, and inspecting my construction sites as
well. There isn't much money for a remodeling
designer, however, since I have started the column
(and presently in several major cities), I have
changed my practice to doing only the conceptual
design. I do this in a single session for a flat
fee, regardless of scope (for one house only,
please!). This is comfortable for everyone. The
homeowner knows what they are going to pay, and
I am ready to take on any space problems they
have. In this consulting session, I work with
you to help you to determine your true needs,
and incorporate your wants. I will walk through
your house and create a "before" drawing of your
existing floor plan. Then we sit down and using
tracing paper for overlays, I will show you your
options. You are actively involved with this process.
I am always successful because I get immediate
feedback. If you aren't comfortable with the direction
I'm going, I'll back up and go in another direction.
At the end of the session, you will have your
own "before" and "after" that you will agree on,
fully understand, and be able to use to communicate
to contractors what you want. In the session,
I will also talk about products and materials
if needed, and about how to find, qualify and
work with contractors.
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| 5 |
"How do you get your ideas for the articles you write?" |
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Each article I write is a
real project, generated from a consulting session
with a homeowner considering a remodeling project.
I show the before and after drawings that I generate
right there in their home. The after drawing reflects
their particular choices, with my guidance, for
the solution. My readers don't always agree with
the solutions, however I am not showing "ideal
case scenarios". My goal is to feature good, practical
design ideas, which incorporate the families particular
needs and wishes.
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| 6 |
"What are your credentials?" |
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I am not a registered architect,
however my university and my professional experience
has been architecture. It is not required to be
registered to design residential projects, and
I left the AIA (American Institute of Architects)
years ago. It is now against the law to call yourself
an architect unless you are registered. This is
unfortunate because it takes away from what I
am, as I am as skilled, and probably more skilled
in my specialty than many registered architects.
If you, or your city or township, require working
drawings, a local architect or draftsman can follow
up with my conceptual design. It is unlikely that
you will get a registered architect interested
in your project unless your project is substantial,
since the fee is based on a percentage of what
you spend. I find that unfortunate, and attempt
to make myself available to average people who
want to make their dollars go into construction.
You may find a contractor with a draftsman on
his staff. I would get estimates from the conceptual
drawings to make the contractor selection, and
then negotiate drafting's if they are necessary.
I used to produce complete working drawings for
my clients, and work with them from concept to
completion. I have a great deal of on-site construction
experience. I have come to believe that much of
that is over-kill for most remodeling projects,
and many homeowners prefer to handle the project
themselves. Often the projects are done in stages.
The final product that I produce in my consulting
session is very much like what you see in the
newspaper column. It is the conceptual design.
Rarely will other architects let that go without
doing complete drawings. The most important thing
from the homeowners point of view is getting the
direction, the concept, and having something with
which to communicate with contractors. This is
what I do. Each project is different, each homeowner's
needs are different. I also impart advise on materials
and products. I fill you in on how the process
works with the construction process. This is a
very unique service, and most people consider
it just the amount of advise and direction they
need, at the right moment, and also feel that
the fee is a bargain.
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| 7 |
"Sometimes I disagree with the solutions in your column. I see things that I would have done differently, particularly details about a kitchen layout I saw recently." |
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Thank you for your input.
Regarding the way YOU would have used the spaces,
I need to explain one very major element that
my readers are not privy to, and that is the wishes
of the homeowner. Understand that each one of
these columns are real houses, real homeowner's
problems, and real solutions to those problems.
Many of them I would do differently if there weren't
a client involved. Solutions would also be different
if all houses were for resale, or every problem
was simply used as a learning tool and I was attempting
to "teach" via example. But they ARE real. Many
things I do not change even though they could
be improved because the homeowner said that's
not in the budget, or that doesn't really bother
me. There are many constraints as well. I don't
recall the specific kitchen so I cannot go point
by point to your comments about the kitchen. But
I have written a lot of those guidelines in magazines
such as Better Homes and Gardens and Remodeling
Ideas. The books that Better Homes and Gardens
puts out is largely information reused from their
magazines. A kitchen book or any other learning
tool will suggest guidelines and ideal situations.
Not everybody's kitchen can be the ideal. I personally
am a serious cook. and each time I lay out a kitchen
I look for maximum counter space and ease in preparing
food, and also I try to incorporate the "visitor"
spot so there can be another person in the kitchen,
but not necessarily two cooks. Please understand
that I do not show the ideal, I show the best,
most cost effective solution to that particular
problem, with that particular budget, in that
particular neighborhood.
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| 8 |
"I wish you would
include the price of the projects you feature
in your column. It would be nice to get an idea
of how much we are going to need to spend" |
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Regarding the construction
costs........ I wish I could included pricing
information, but it would become inaccurate in
a hurry and then I would be misleading readers.
These projects are done in a variety of regions
of the US. Some are constructed by the homeowners
and some are bid out. The one you see in the paper
may have been done a year or so ago. Some people
will do an addition with Champaign taste and it
will cost much more than the minimum and the opposite
is true. This format is to show REMODELING DESIGN
IDEAS, not to say " you can build this sun room
for only $22,000.!" If you see a project that
is similar to yours perhaps you could ask a local
contractor. Also, the ideas in the articles will
be valid for some time to come and are likely
to be reprinted. If any prices or costs appear,
they will soon be outdated and incorrect. Other
readers have asked for the same information, so
I know people want to know. I hope you understand
that it is not an element I can include in my
column.
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| 9 |
"How do you select your projects for your column?" |
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All of the projects I feature
are the result of real consultings. The homeowners
and their problems are real and the solutions
are designed to meet their needs. This is why
I don't show ideal solutions to problems because
of the specific family situation.
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