Top 30 questions to ask an architect before hiring

When you’re hiring an architect, you need to ask the right questions to ensure that you are getting value for money and that your project will be of good quality and in your budget.

Here’s a list of questions to ask an architect when building a home or any other type of structure to cover all the areas of an architectural project. You can use this list as is or add/remove questions, as per your project.

These questions to ask an architect before hiring will help you understand the work style of your architect, get the right quality of service at a satisfactory price, make the communication process smooth, and get a completed project in a timely and cost-effective manner without too many challenges.

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Here are the main areas cover what questions to ask an architect in an interview:

1. What to Ask an Architect About their Experience
2. Questions About Service & Project Management
3. Architecture Questions About Your Project
4. Green Design - Questions to Ask an Architect in an Interview
5. Questions About Architect’s Fee and Project Cost

What to Ask an Architect About their Experience

1. Can you share some client references?

Ask about past contractors and clients your architect has worked with. This is recommended by AIA. Give those references a call and ask them about the quality of service, communication and designs they received. Most good architects get their business from referrals, so they will have plenty of referrals to share.

2. What is your design philosophy?

Understanding the design philosophy of an architect will help you understand their thought process and how well they’ll be able to interpret your project brief for building or renovation. 

An architect’s philosophy may not match your style a 100 percent, but a creative architect is more likely to carry out your requirement more effectively.

3. What sets your firm apart from other architects with similar experience?

It’s good to hear from the architect about their strengths, so that you can leverage those skills to bring your project to life in a cost-effective and timely manner. 

4. Do you have experience with the building type and size of my project?

If your architect has worked on a similar building type in the past, it’ll help them design your building more efficiently, while minimizing expensive mistakes or modifications.

5. Will you share with me a portfolio of similar projects?

This is one of the most important questions to ask an architect before hiring them. This will also give your architect a chance to share their successful projects and design ideas with proof of concepts, that’ll help you better visualize and chart a plan of action for your project.

Questions About Service & Project Management

6. How will you collect information about my requirements and goals?

Check how your architect or designer plans to learn about your requirements and vision for the project. Also, ask how they will ensure that they stay in-line with your goals throughout the project.

Will your broad objectives be mentioned in the proposal or will they be verbally communicated? Some architects share a sheet with questions architects ask clientswhich is filled in detail by the client to ensure that all the requirements are clearly communicated.

7. Which format of preliminary design will you share?

Ask your architects about the design format they will share with you. They may share illustrations, computer animations, 3D digital designs, 3D models, etc. This will help you visualize your home/office or space in advance.

8. Will you be able to make this project a priority?

Check about the availability of your architect or builder for your project. Inquire about the time they plan to spend on your project. See that their other priorities and projects won’t affect their involvement with your work. You will get your money and time’s worth when your architect is mentally present when working on your project’s requirements.

9. How will you help me fully understand the scope and sequence of the project? 

Ask how your architect will communicate the scope of the project with you on an on-going basis--changes required, additions or omissions made, etc.

Ask about the channels of communication they will use to ensure that you are aware of the sequence of the tasks being performed and their progress on a timely basis. This will help you anticipate things in an orderly manner and prepare yourself in terms of finances and time availability.

10. Are you insured?

Ask your architect if their firm is insured and if they have any open claim against them. Simply confirm if the firm or the professional you are working with comes with the required insurance coverage.

11. Who will be my point of contact and who will work on the project?

Every architectural firm has many team members who will help in various aspects of your projects. Ask who will be your project manager who you will deal with on a day-to-day basis. Also try to get information about other team members who will be involved in designing and executing your project.

12. How can I help in the project?

Set expectations right from the beginning. Ask your architect if they need your involvement in any part of the project and to what extent. Understand the timeline and workflow of the project, so that everybody is on the same page and any documents or updates sent to clients for approval can be sent back timely. Share your availability and ask for the kind of response the architect will expect. 

13. How much time do I need to give to the project?

Often architects need clients to spend some time on various parts of the project. This helps architects move things along faster and more efficiently. When the clients are dedicated and take the time to answer architect’s questions and resolve doubts, it gets easier to build a space that aligns well with the client’s needs and meets other design, cost and time criteria.

14. Am I expected to work with the contractor directly?

Check if you need to find and hire contractors directly. If so, check how you can help ensure that the contractor and the architect are on the same page.

If the architect hires the contractor, check if you will be needed to give approvals on tasks or team.

15. What will be your role with the contractors?

Ask your architect if they will be involved in hiring and supervising contractors. Some architects, especially those who work for a percentage of the project’s cost, help supervise the contractors to ensure that everything goes as per plan. This also helps reduce cost of modifications, as architects are available to make timely adjustments and offer advice.

Architecture Questions About Your Project

16. What design steps will be followed and in what order?

Understand the design process that your architect will adopt. Will they create a drawing first to get your approval and then render it in a 3D model or computer animation? Will they ask you to sign off the final design before stamping it and sending it for city approvals?

Understand how the architect will ensure that the project goes as per the design, and what kind of modifications they anticipate during the construction process.

17. How will you establish priorities and make design decisions?

Clarify the way your architect will prioritise tasks during construction. Ask architecture questions like, ‘What will you give more importance to when making design decisions--aesthetics, space utility, cost, etc.?’

18. What challenges do you foresee for my project?

A good professional is able to anticipate a project’s challenges in advance. Their experience helps them foresee issues and prepare for them to minimize risks and unplanned costs.

19. What is your estimated timeline for my project?

This is one of the most important questions you should ask an architect. Any project can lose its charm and run high costs if it isn’t completed in time. Ask your architect about the estimated timeline for your project and its various milestones.

20. What important considerations, challenges of the project should I be aware of?

Ask your architect about the important milestones in the project, the permissions required, the challenges you’ll need to overcome to complete the project. This will prepare you mentally and will also give you time to make provisions wherever necessary. This will also help you gauge how prepared your architect is to tackle various aspects of your project.

Green Design - Questions to Ask an Architect in an Interview

21. Your experience with “green” or sustainable design

If you’re planning to make a Green or Sustainable structure, inquire about your architect’s experience with the same. At times, architects employ help from other experts to help with planning the sustainable features of a project. Ask if there will be additional charges for the same or if it’s included in the fee charged by the architect.

22. Low or no-cost sustainable design strategies you use in projects

Ask about the kind of green design strategies your architect employs in general or have used in past projects. This will help you identify strategies you can use or understand if your architect will be able to incorporate the sustainable design features you want to integrate in your project.

23. Upfront or additional costs of sustainable technologies to be used

Ask about the major sustainable technologies your architect plans to integrate in the design and what their upfront and additional costs will look like. Check if these costs are included in the total project budget or not.

24. What are the expected payback times of the technology used

When using low or no-cost sustainable designs, ask your architects about the expected payback times for the technologies used. This will help you choose the most cost-effective and efficient solution.

• 25. How disruptive will construction be?

Ask your architect about the disruption your construction may cause to the land and the surroundings. Discuss how it can be minimized and what features of the environment you’d like to keep untouched.

Questions About Architect’s Fee and Project Cost

26. What’s your fee structure? Approximate proposed architect fee for the project

Ask your architect if they charge per square foot, a fixed charge, hourly or a percentage of the project’s cost. Share your budget cap with the architect clearly. Ask the anticipated total fee the architect will charge for your project. They should be able to share a proposed architect fee after evaluating the estimated total cost of the project.

Related article: How much does an architect cost?

27. What will the total cost of the project look like?

Architects are able to evaluate project costs and even share solutions that fit client’s budgets when they have budget information available from the get to. They give customized or a la carte solutions on top of that, if more modifications are needed.

Your architect will help estimate the cost of the project. Ask the architect’s referrals if their cost estimates were close to accurate or reasonable.

28. Basic service Inclusions and additional service fee

It is important to clarify the service inclusions in the basic fee charged by your architect--designing, taking required permissions--whatever is included, it’s good to clarify it. 

Also ask about their fees for any additional assistance you may need from them, e.g. hiring and coordinating with contractors and procuring materials, if it’s not included in the basic services.

29. Applicable fee for change in scope of project?

Ask your architect if they will charge you additionally if the scope of the project changes due to some reasons. Sometimes the required permissions are not available to build the planned building, at times additional features are needed to be built, etc. Ask how the costs of such changes in the scope will be evaluated, justified and communicated.

30. Record of completing projects within the planned budget

Check how accurate are the estimates given by your architect. Ask your architect about their record of completing projects within the planned budget. You can also talk to the architect’s past clients about their experience.