Editor’s note: Design + Build is a new series by Steve Lazar, owner and operator of Lazar Design/Build, focusing on aspects of the profession usually left unsaid.
Look up the word ARCHITECT in the dictionary and there is the typical Latin root of the word and other roots of the word, but essentially it says nothing more than MASTER BUILDER. Your architect or master builder will head your process in the proper direction. Let’s call the “point man”, the “go to guy”, or the “solution.” Whatever he is referred as, it is imperative that your chain of communication is with one and only one person to eliminate confusions today, tomorrow, and in the future. There is an inherent challenge to the standard relationship between the homeowner, the architect, and the builder. There are three different entities, all with possibly different goals or objectives.
Home owner: budget
Architect: creation
Builder: conflicted
Who is the client? Is the home owner? Is the architect? If the builder is hired by the home owner than of course the home owner is the client. Typically, this is the standard relationship. However, the builder also has some allegiance to the architect, and this is where things can start to get conflicted. The builder is caught in a pickle between two different entities with possibly two different goals. If budget is not a consideration than there is no conflict. In 20 years of designing and constructing custom homes, I have never been bound by some sort of budget.