What do you need to think about before briefing an Architect?

Once you have decided on building, it is useful to have the following when briefing your Architect:

• Design ideas about what you would like to incorporate in the new home or addition (if you have a partner, ensure you both agree on what you want)
• An approximate budget of what you want to spend
• Any existing plans that you have on the building or site, or history of the site

The Top Ten things to think about when renovating the family home

Building or renovating a home to take your family through the generations can be challenging. Before you start, you need to think about:

1. Creating flexible living spaces. How will your family’s use of living spaces change over the coming years? For example, what alternative use could the nursery have in future? Are the living spaces big enough to cater to an older or extended family?
2. Future-proofing for new technologies. We live in the information age with new technologies coming at us at an ever-increasing speed. You can future-proof your home by designing in smart cabling systems that act as conduits for future technologies such as internet over the TV.
3. Designing for your family’s health. Studies show that families living in well insulated, warmer homes are less likely to visit the doctor. Designs that orient living spaces towards the sun and use passive solar heating and high insulation values keep homes warm and dry - and families healthy.
4. Slashing your energy bills. By building with cost-effective energy efficiency measures in mind – from sensor lighting to double glazing and solar hot water heating - you can create a home that is up to 60 percent more efficient than the average house. The recently launched Government website www.smarterhomes.org.nz is full of useful tips on how to create an energy efficient home.
5. Getting the acoustics right.  Family life can be rowdy. Strong acoustic values in the building’s design create living spaces which can shut out or let in noise. Choosing the right soft furnishings and textiles is also critical in designing for good acoustics.
6. Creating outdoor living spaces. People renovating often add a lower level or build on top. Both options allow you to create a linkage to an outdoor setting which can be designed as an extra ‘living room’ for the family.
7. Accommodating more kids. Whether planned or not, the possibility of having more children needs to be factored into design planning. How would you accommodate another child? What extra bedroom, storage and living space would be required?
8. Enter the teenage years. Teenagers need space…and space for their friends. You need to think about extended bedrooms and living spaces with study areas and entertainment ‘pads’.
9. Building in storage. Good storage is often overlooked and undervalued. Yet, for growing families, good storage spaces can be the difference between a cluttered house and a streamlined, functional house.
10. Flexible interior design.  Fashions change. Your interior needs to be able to change with them. Ensure you are thinking not just for the moment, but for future tastes when you choose finishes, whether it be colours, wallpaper, kitchen joinery or cabinetry. Remember, a neutral palette can always be transformed into the ‘new black’.

These are some of the things you need to think about – and put down in writing – as part of a brief for your Architect or designer.

And a final tip. Renovations are messy and create unsafe environments for children (while building sites are fun for boys, it doesn’t mean they should sleep in them!) If you are planning major work, move out.