J. E. on 29/10/2010 13:29
Melissa,

you need to improve your budget. It is totally unrealistic and nobody (in their right mind) is going to bid at that price.... says alot for the 9 bids you've already had!

Improve your price and you might get some sensible bids....

B. R. on 29/10/2010 14:06
Melissa, I have to agree with "James" you need to improve your budget.

I often come up against "plan drawers" who do not produce the standard of work necessary, to acheive the results and inherit work that I have quoted for and the clients have realised that councils and builders need more that a rough drawing that is produced by "plan drawers"

C. P. on 29/10/2010 20:40
Hi Melissa!

i'm interested on this job but i need to know the scope of work? is it floor plan, elevations and perspective only or full set architectural drawings and perspective?

I agree with James and Bob your budget is very low.

A. W. on 29/10/2010 21:04
Getting tired of people devaluing our profession, probably why you see so many nightmare builds with clients blaming the trades employed, fact is if you pay peanuts you're gonna get problems; decent set of building regulations drawings for job mentioned should be minimum four times the quoted budget

Unfortunately It's a race to the bottom and as long as people do this work for almost nothing, there's still gonna be a lot of unhappy clients, moaning that their 40 quid extension didn't stand up!!!!!

B. S. on 30/10/2010 00:06
It would be helpful to anyone considering placing a bid, for you to provide a full and proper brief. Please provide the following details: -

Location • where is the property situated? ie if it is in scotland it is too far for me.

Type of building - is it a flat, a terraced house or a detached one?

Relevant facts - Are there any matters that are of interest? ie is it in a listed building or on a steep hill what is the general condition . The more detail you provide the better. We would recommend that the person preparing these drawings see the building to better understand all of the issues relating to the works. If you are not prepare to pay for this service then you must take the risk of unforeseen problems arising

Simple drawings • have you any simple drawings of the building that you can provide? Photographs would be a great help. For us to prepare a working set of drawings we will require site survey dimensions sufficient to prepare accurate plans, elevations and sections as it is built. Are you able to provide such dimensioned drawings? If not then whoever is to prepare them will have to undertake a proper dimension survey.

Brief description of works - Describe the works to be undertaken, and if you think, structural steels are going to be required? If they are have you arranged a structural engineer to calculate them? Again the better the description the more relevant the drawings..

If the works are simple and of small scale then the Planning / Building regulations information will be straight forward. If the works are more substantial then there will be a greater amount of details to be provided for statutory approval
The purpose of the drawings required. -
Design responsibility - Is there an implied design intent • with the bidder becoming a designer? Or will the bidder merely provide drawings to your design and specification?
Planning approval - Do you need to make a planning application? If you do then we would suggest you deal with all planning matters before moving onto any others
Building regulations - We anticipate that you will have to apply for building regulation approval.
Tender issue - Will you require tender drawings or have you already selected a competent builder? If you have then you will probably require a simple set of drawings to clarify the works.

Part Wall Act - Will the works affect any party walls or require a party wall notice under the requirements of the act? If they do then as you issue your building regulation application you serve party wall notices and appoint a party wall surveyor to deal with the awards appropriately. They may well require suitable detailed drawings to be prepared for this.

Proposed drawing schedule • we would anticipate the basic drawings required will be
 A location plan to a scale of 1:1250, with the site boundaries marked in red. Will you supply this?
 A set of as built drawings, showing plans, elevations and a typical section .
 A similar set of drawings showing proposed works as provided by your schedule of works to be provided.
CDM regulation • Are you undertaking these works as a residential owner or as a developer? If the latter then you will be required to appoint a CDM coordinator and comply with the CDM regulations. All Designers & the Principal Contractor will have to advise you of your duties and refuse to proceed without you complying. They will also have to comply with the regulations • which will have a cost impact.

Fee Proposal • based on your detailed reply we will consider submitting a proper fee proposal for a sum that will enable us to carry out the works to a full and professional standard. In doing so we will provide you a more detailed brief enquiry and set out a programme for the design and drawing process and any statutory matters to be managed.

P. J. on 30/10/2010 02:21
Hi Melissa

The comprehensive message from Barry really says it all. He has asked all the relevant questions that most pros would like to ask. Your budget is very low and I would like to meet these people who claim they can supply this service with only a basic brief from yourself and for your budget (16 bids!) Beware these bids as they seem a little ambitious to say the least. What would your estate agent say if you only offered them £300 to sell you previous property that is worth £200,000? And all they do is upload it online and show a few people around- money for old rope in my opinion. As mentioned by Anthony, you should allow at least 2% of the estimated contract value for this work. The thing to also remember is the uplift value of the site and the market value of the property after your renovation/extension project is complete, compared to the original cost. This will probably increase the equity by £1000s, and you only want to pay £250 for this?? If you can spend up to £40K on alterations, you should be able to spend £2-£3K on a decent set of plans. Yes we are in a so called recession but that does not mean everything is cheap. No,not good business I'm afraid, sorry to be brash (maybe watch Grand Designs a few more times) Many thanks.
Regards

Paul J