Well, in the beginning....we were thinking of doing a remodel. I am a structural engineer who works on a variety of projects, including custom residential design. Yes, this makes me incredibly dangerous. Much like my spouse, who started by making finish out decisions by walking multi-million dollar homes, my experiences are out of my price range. It may be that everything is out of our price range, but we will see.
Back to the beginning, first things first, I know the value of good design. Without it, companies like Apple and Ferrari would be nothing. So, we have the presence of mind to start with a designer. We began working with someone that I know pretty well and work with frequently. There is a huge range of options here, as residential design can go from a cad jockey to a very high end designer. Fees for the same size house can range from $500 to $50,000. Here comes the first major decision.....I work with a bunch of different architects and designers, so where do we go? We were able to "compile" input. Using a designer who is relatively low cost, has done work we like, and doesn't have the artist ego worked well for us. We also ran the plans through another architect, just to make sure the flow was going to work out well. It costs so much per square foot to build, that I believe you are better off extensively planning and even paying for redesign if it doesn't work. There is value in good design because it should cut the size required to construct, condition and maintain, but when is someone worth twice or even ten times as much, especially when they are creating a sprawling monstrosity? In the end, you need someone who will work with you, be responsive, and provide a design that reflects your values.
In addition to architecture, of course, you need good engineering. I get to see plans from other engineers periodically, and can attest to the fact that you can get good and bad engineering. Without simply recommending the company I work for (we are the best!), I recommend looking for a project history and discussing client base, design philosophy - especially for foundations, and project history. There are a lot of different products in residential construction. If you hire someone who typically designs for production housing to engineer your custom home, you will likely get a minimal design. Minimal design can result in finish cracking and issues that are not out of tolerance.......but present continued maintenance for the life of the structure, i.e., you have no recourse but have problems. The building code is the minimum, the force of production housing continues to push design closer to that minimum. Is your home minimal? Anyway - pay for a good engineer with a good reputation.....and we're off the soap box.
