Pay Scale

[alobartn]

Jason,

I envy your planning ability. And congratulations on paying off the house Monday!

[mcqueenhomes]

Thanks. I move Wednesday.
BTW, the planning ability is probably a necessary by-product of being visually impaired. Ever try to take the bus into town? To an unfamiliar place? It takes planning. When you depend on and arrange for other people to help you get around and do things, spur-of-the-moments are really rare. I just ratcheted it up a notch or two to make it as much an advantage as possible.

[alobartn]

Jason,

Will you be at the User's Group meeting in Idaho again? I look forward to seeing you in action during the CAD shootout (even if you can't see us).

[mcqueenhomes]

No, not going this year. I'm starting a new business and don't know how much work/income I'll have. I just can't justify the expense of the trip this year when my house needs so much work and I'm eating my savings. Hopefully I can go next year. I really enjoyed the CAD shootout and the rendering contest.

[alobartn]

You will be sorely missed. Besides, if I enter the "best rendering" contest, you and Christina, who was the 1st place winner and will not be present this year because of her husband's illness, will both be absent.

On second thought, it's probably best that you sit this one out.

[Wayne Walkden]

I actually think that some of you out there are pretty good writers also. It's an art to put into words your thoughts and have them come out sounding as though I were reading a novel. On the other side though - I've learned that it is good practice not to compete with anyone on price. Demand and supply rule the market price to a great extent. A good design, one with creativity and buildability will be worth good money. True architects command expensive designs, but you need to consider the cost of their liability insurance. The best architect in this area told me the other day that his inurance premium will be $48k this year! He also has long term liability for his designs. I don't have that concern, except that Wendy has me feeling like more research on liability ins. would be wise. Most house plans I charge around $2k. Many concepts can be 100% completed in less than 8hrs., followed by the final plans which usually take 5-7hrs. Overhead is 17%. Some weeks I complete more than 3 sets of plans. I do well. Work is very steady. Contractors, lumberyards, etc. all keep me going. Some advertising, but mostly word of mouth. A backlog of aprx 15 jobs. It's somewhat easy to make $1k per day many weeks. I rework many $400 internet plans for clients because they contain many hidden problems that would be disaster for the builders. Hope this helps you a little.

[WendyWelton]

Wayne,

A couple of thoughts -

1 - your liability is proportional to the value of the construction.
2 - just to be contrary, I should also mention the Deep Pockets Temptation. When someone is deciding to sue or not to sue, Deep Pockets is very often a factor - meaning if you have insurance you might get sued when they might otherwise have left you alone.
3 - A contract with the right provisions will stop problems before they begin - by being clear about rights and responsibilities. My attorney tells me most lawsuits come from the small jobs done on a handshake, and where the client says "all I need is...." and is then later disturbed when "all they got was...." It's you guys doing "only what they need for a permit" - on a handshake - that might have the biggest liability.

I'm not sending my entire contract out anymore - but I'm going to send Lew my checklist, formerly called "All I need is...", for posting on the Chief Portal. I've learned to love this checklist. Rather than simply list what they do get, it also makes it clear what drawings and content they've been offered and decided not to purchase. If you do nothing else, having something in writing that clearly states what they are getting is worth tons.

Wendy

[Donald Freix]

Wendy,

Thanks for reiterating my earlier comment of clearly stating what you are providing. Clear, simple communication with your client is often the very best insurance that you can have. Convincing smaller local contractors that they need more than a hand-shake and that my plan services have real value in providing concise (even if simple at times) documents to accompany their contracts has been the hardest part of my sales and marketing. I agree with you that permit plans on a handshake is a dangerous road, but with an accompanying contractural stipulations and clear plan page disclaimers it is an integral part of the market for my services

Wayne,

Thanks for your specific pricing info (I am about to enter into negotians for a newly created position with a home center) and a very nice website, by-the-way. Least amount of hype I've seen anywhere.

I hope no one construed my earlier comment about architects and residential project costs negatively. One firm in particular has largely left residential, for more lucrative resort/condo projects in combination with real estate sales, construction and completed project management to basically parlay their experience and talents into higher returns for time invested. That's where I see job openings for me.

From comments I've made here previously about personal marketing, I'm feeling a bit guilty about prolonging this thread here instead of moving it to the chatroom.

Don

[quickdraw]

Don,
I LOVE this kind of thread and as far as I am concerned it is very On Topic. All of these people are making a living using Chief. We must figure the costs and benefits of using CA in our fees. I can charge more now than I could before (when I was just using acad) because of the things I can do with CA. Specifically, my clients really like the 3D walkthroughs we can do together.

The clients are much more involved in the design process as a result, they are more satisified with the final outcome and are more likely to recommend my services to their friends.

- Rachel

[quickdraw]

Drive an old car!

[Wayne Walkden]

I don't think it matters what the forum. I'd love to help anyone who needs help to make a better income from what they do. I have a good foundation in finance, construction, & now CA, which has helped me to do well. I would definetly advise any draftsman or architects as well to get some experience in the field as well as on the computer. Knowing when to step down the top elevation of a foundation when attaching a new addition with beefier floor joists than the existing house is not rocket science, but if you don't know that from being out in the fileld, imagine a crew of guys having to remove the entire floor deck on a new addition because they didn't match the floor heights. I've seen this personally. Not a pleasant sight. On the other hand, having a resource like Wendy, is unbelievable! I can't believe that in this day & age that a full blown architect would take the time to help us out. Just look at her threads, the time spent researching the ?'s, and the quick & valuable answers. I wish I had entered this forum years ago. THANKS WENDY! and thanks to the rest of you.

[kanon]

Wayne-

I am new to CA and also have a good background in construction, marketing and finance (cpa). I also love to help people learn to do what they do better.

Wendy-

You have a lot of respect around here and it is obvious that you are an incredibly "giving" person. Must be a testament to who you really are as a person.

Greg

[lbuttery]

Wendy's sharing has been very beneficial and is very much appreciated.

Lew

[WendyWelton]

Wow! Thanks guys!

Lew, I've got a revision of my checklist. I tried to upload my checklist on Chief Portal, and it says "file type doc not allowed". Waaaah....

Wendy

[alobartn]

What is Chief Portal? I feel left out.