There are many advantages to using a local architect, but we understand it’s not always easy to find architects who are highly recommended, understand your needs, and provide a clear fixed-fee structure. In our blog article “Residential Architects Near Me” we seek to help those searching for the best residential architect to them locally and have set out some points here as well.
Commencing a home refurbishment or extension can be a daunting prospect and this article provides some tips on doing your background research on potential architectural design firms you might find online; some of the architectural services we offer include:
- Design consultation
- Site surveys
- Architect’s plans
- Planning application, building control, and completion certificates
- Tender process and materials sourcing
- Contractor and builder liasion
- QS and site monitoring
For clients within our wide catchment area, we manage the whole design and build project for you or you can pick the level of engagement to suit your needs at the time.
The size of residential project we work on is anything over £150,000 total contract cost and we are unique in our transparent, fixed-fee structure rather than charging as a percentage of total build costs like some architects do.
We believe this is fairer and allows us to better represent your interests when procuring quotes and defining the specifications with building material suppliers and contractors.
Steps In The Process
1. Home Design Consultation:
This desktop study and video consultation looks at your current property from satellite and other images, a discussion to understand your ideas and aspirations for your new home and also a study of nearby planning applications and local planning authority policies. For clients in the Home Counties, London and across the South of England it is usually possible to arrange a face-to-face meeting at your home or development property.
This scoping and ideas meeting is £200+vat and is aimed at giving you a clearer picture of possible site constraints and planning application requirements, ideas to maximise property value, answering your questions around the design and build process, and an estimated build cost budget range. It also enables us to provide you with a no-obligation fixed-fee quote for the plans and design.
2. Measured Surveys, Architectural Design and Planning Application
Our surveyor will take the necessary accurate measurements of your existing property to allow the architect and designer to create the plan drawings. Other professionals such as electrical or structural engineers can sometimes be involved depending on the project and we are familiar with obtaining competitive quotes from these 3rd party professionals in such instances. Our architect generally provides a choice of 2 or 3 designs based on our initial consultation meeting and can also provide 3D concepts of the final design to ensure you are happy with the proposal. Not all extension projects require planning permission, but if yours does then we can submit the application and liaise with them on your behalf.
3. Design Details, Material and Builder selection
Our team includes Interior Designers and Landscape Designers and we are well-experienced in working with contractors and building companies. Our passionate designers keep abreast of the latest materials, trends and concepts so can often bring fresh ideas and solutions, whilst drawing on proven experience. Competent and trustworthy builders are in high demand so we keep close relationships with local builders and tradespeople, whilst conducting a robust tender with 3 to 4 contractors for each project.
4. Site monitoring
A home improvement project can be a real distraction so many clients instruct us to carry out (usually) weekly site visits so you can leave all builder management to us. We check progress and ensure the builders are following our plans, then send you a short report with photos so you can see the progress made towards completion!
Architectural Services in London:
Aura Architecture serves homeowners and property developers across a wide area in the south of England from their offices in St Albans, Hertfordshire and London head office.
Balham
Battersea
Bromley
Camden
Chiswick
Clapham
Ealing
Earlsfield
Hammersmith & Fulham
Islington
Choosing The Best Architect
Suppose you’re looking for a good architect in other regions of the UK such as the Midlands, Wales, northern England, Scotland or Northern Ireland. In that case, you might find some helpful tips on our blog “Choosing an architect near me” Also, be free to phone us and we’ll be able to tell if we know of a recommended, trustworthy architect in your local region.
Some of our projects - follow us on social media for more
Get Started with your local London or South England Architect today
This is a quick 3 Step process. What you would like to achieve with your home re-modelling?
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Aura Homes - Architectural Design
7 Prescott Place, London
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Overall great design and exceptional value for money. As a first time consumer of architectural services on what was a large project I can not emphasise enough the value add that we got from Ben, Sophie and the wider Aura team. The effort … More and detail put into the design and specification of works along with significant assistance in project management was commendable. As the project evolved it was crystal clear that we saved a significant amount of time and money as a result of having a comprehensive package and most importantly we got what we wanted on budget. Expectations were exceeded in terms of meeting deadlines. Accommodating design changes and assistance with the planning process was also first rate. I would highly recommend the team and look forward to working with them on the next project.
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Couldn't recommend Ben and his team more. We were in a really tricky position with our building project and Ben navigated us safely out of it. Superb guidance, great technical knowledge and what I really valued the most was the communication. … More Always got back to me promptly which makes a real difference when stress levels are high. Thanks Aura!
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Aura Homes is a highly professional firm of architects that always have the clients best interests at hart. The quality of their plans and drawings is superb and their turn-around when making amendments well within expected timelines. … More For bespoke projects, their research and recommendations (both in terms of quality and costs) is superb.
Making Everything Transparent
We often hear from our clients that speaking to architects is daunting and confusing, as they often use industry terminology, making the process unnecessarily complicated and hard to grasp.
Our Director, Ben Richards, when he set up Aura Architecture back in 2017, was set on solving this issue for homeowners wanting to make improvements to their home.
That is why we share our Fees on our website, create Blogs and FAQ articles to share industry insights, and have created the 10 Step AURA Process which is explained via Youtube or can be Downloaded for Free to read anytime.
