An architect has three primary roles in the construction process; design, plan, and develop concepts based on consumer requirements. If the client has an ” X ” dollar budget, the architect must abide by this in the plan and development stages.
If you’re hiring an architect in NYC for a project, the first question that you need to ask is, “How will you manage the design process to align with construction budgeting?”. Knowing this is incredibly important, as it’s your money. To learn more about the importance of this and the architect’s obligations, read below.
The importance of construction budgeting
Construction budgeting is essential to ensure you have sufficient funds to create the desired design. In the budget, it should include a quantitative allocation of research such as the money, material, machinery, minutes, people, etc. –required to complete a particular task. Good construction budgeting doesn’t only guarantee you stay within the allocated funds but can also help with cost-effectiveness, quality of time, and the general organization of the project. For this reason, high-quality and trained architects should be able to design to budget by appropriately planning the project.
Failing to stick within a construction budget can result in catastrophic financial consequences for either the project owner or architect (depending on the agreement). There have been many poorly budgeted projects worldwide, with the below mentioning a few:
Not planning, managing, and executing a construction budget correctly can produce awful problems. Therefore, you might need a professional to help – like an architect.
Are architects obligated to design to budget?
As you can see, the importance of construction budgeting is remarkable. However, that leads us to another common question: “Are architects
obligated to design to budget?” Well, it depends.
As an architect will be using your budget, planning the project, and likely managing it, there will be contracts that need signing before the work commences. Ideally, the contracts will include obligations from the. architect that might include:
- Provide conceptual estimates of construction costs
- Design with the intent to stay within the allocated budget
- Consult with the project owner regarding budget, program, schedule
- Obtain the approval of the design from the owner at each phase before moving on to the next
- If any of the estimates of the construction budget change, they must inform the owner of the project
When you receive an architect’s contract, find pieces of information like the above. If the agreement is written fairly, it’ll include these, meaning the architect assigned this job is legally obliged to try and design to budget.
How to ensure you stay within a construction budget
After reading the above, you should have a clearer understanding of an architect’s role and obligations in construction budgeting. It would help if you had the right team alongside the project to guarantee you successfully design to budget.
At Parkbench Architects, we can help. We’re NYC natives who have planned, managed, and built flawless properties, including restaurants, bars, retail, etc. For more information about how we can stay within your construction budget, contact a professional representative today.