Design In Mind Architects is a new name (kind of), but the core business remains the same. After more than 3 years in business as Building Designers, DIMA Design Studio, no longer clearly represents what the business does as both registered architect and registered building practitioner. For this reason the business is rebranding with a new name which will properly represent it well into the future.
“I once considered becoming an architect” said three different people to me this week.
There is something about architecture that keeps people interested when you tell them you do it for a living. People don’t then ask what it is that you actually do, they apparently already know. Instead, they tell you stories of their trendy treehouse, their neighbour’s kitchen colour scheme catastrophe or the way no houses these days seem to have doors on toilets (all actual stories). Little do they know that if I had a dollar for every time I designed a treehouse, I’d have zero dollars.
PART II – LIFECYCLE COSTS
The cost of living in a house is a major expense over a long period of time which can often be overlooked by those building their own homes. A key difference which can set a custom home apart from a project home is the potentially much cheaper cost of living in and maintaining your home.
Energy consumption is a major cost of living in a home, but this can be minimised through great design. Correctly orientating your house in order to use the sun’s solar energy to your advantage is one way to achieve this. A great designer will develop the best floor plan for the site, taking advantage of passive heating and cooling techniques and lowering your energy consumption.
If you were looking to build a home, would your first stop be with a building designer/architect or a volume builder? I am biased (I won’t tell you which way), but here is my comparison between an architect’s custom home and a volume builder’s project house. It is centred on everybody’s favourite topic… Money.
There are good reasons to build a custom home (unique design) or a project home (off-the-plan & volume built), with each having benefits over the other. Those believing that one is cheaper than the other will find that it is not that simple.
PART I – BUILD COST
The cost of constructing your home is the main concern of most potential home builders.