All Forum Posts by: Eric Teran

@Drew Hickok I agree with @Craig Jeppesen. If she meets your price that you were expecting when you made your analysis then sell it. Don’t be greedy thinking you will make more. Stick to your numbers.

Two quick stories.

I had the pleasure of meeting a self made billionaire in 2008 when my firm was designing a house for him. I asked how does he know when to sell? He said, that no matter when during the process of development if someone comes in and offers to purchase the property for the amount he calculated before taking the job then he sells it. No thoughts or regrets about it. He moves onto the next one.

I also knew a multi-millionaire who inherited the majority of his money. Around the same time as the billionaire story he had someone offer him over a million dollars for what he was hoping to sell the property for. He was about 50% complete. He said, no way. Imagine how much more I can make when I am completely done. When he was finally done the crash happened and the closest asking price he got was still about 2 million short of what he hoped he would sell it for. He was pissed with himself.

If they meet your price then sell it and move on.

@Robyn Gotvaslee I might be designing a 24 unit modular apartment complex in Washington DC. My client is very excited with this process and is finalizing some paperwork. Hopefully, we start the design process in March or April and construction begins early next year. If we start the process I will be sure to keep BP updated.

@Andrea Delgado are you sure that you can build 3 condos on your land? DC requires a minimum of 900 SF of land for each condo. If they want 3 condos your lot has to be at least 2,700 SF. I found this out when two of my clients with similar size lots were looking to do the same thing last year. We did more investigating and to get a special exception was going be extremely difficult

The good news is that it is up to the developer to figure it out.

If you can do three units why not start to ask the question on how it can be done. You will learn a lot by jumping in with both feet on a complicated project that all future investments will be a snap. If it makes sense you will find an investor.

Let me know what zone you are in and I can take a quick look for you for the condo conversion requirements.

@Karim Z. Contact David Gigliotti of Carbide Construction. He built the modular portion of my house in 2016 and I have referred him to a few of my architecture clients. The forum doesn’t let me post his phone number or email address but you can find him online.

@Karim Z. I know a few in the DMV area. Where exactly is the project and what type craftsmanship do you want?

@Milad Razavi I am an Architect and provide the traditional design-bid-build and provide my service for a design build firm as well. There are pros and cons to each.

Design-bid-build:

1. The Architect (a good one) understands zoning codes and it could be the difference of a 6 unit building or 10 units. They will maximize your square footage. Most but not all design build firms only have draftsman or contract the drawings out of state where they save money..

2. Architect acts on your behalf. Especially during construction. They will let you know if the GC is not following the plans and then you can either accept it as built or have them correct it.

3. An architect designs for you and what you want. They keep the budget in mind but it is not the driving force for every decision.

4. New ideas such as advanced framing (actually really old but rarely practice) or SIPS or modular may be considered. A Design build will only build what they are used to.

5. All big projects are done this way because they usually require competitive GC bids.

Design-build

1. The GC understands what they will be building.

2. The drawings are bare bones, enough for a permit. They don’t need more because they will build a window the same as they always have. Drawing fees will be lowered.

3. Everything is done in house so the process may be a little faster.

When looking for a design build firm look for something similar to the design build firm I provide services to. Their lead designer has been an architect for 40 years and the rest of us who provide services on a per project basis are all architects with at least 15 years of experience. Just make sure they have a knowledgeable Architect doing the plans.

Good luck.

@Neil G. Arcbazar is okay if you are only looking for a design. If you need to take it further and get a permit you need a local architect. Especially for a commercial project.

I am an Architect and my services are offered through HomeAdvisor. I mainly get residential clients but I have had a few commercial jobs as well. I am doing a small art gallery right now and it is a very easy job but I do have a minimum fee no matter how small a project is. If you use HomeAdvisor I believe you don’t pay anything. I and other professionals have to pay a fee for every lead and that is how they make their money. I would try them even if you are commercial. There might be an Architect on their willing to take on your project.

Good luck.

@Nathan Krause it all depends what you want to do.

My old boss got an architecture degree in Ireland but it took him 15 years to finally get licensed in California. During those 15 years he designed million dollar homes. Check out his website, www.mccleandesign.com. I worked for him for 7 years while he was only a designer and he knew a ton of stuff. He just didn’t have his license. He didn’t need it. He finally got his license because he wanted to do bigger jobs and clients who were going pay him a ton of money felt more comfortable if they saw he had a license.

I also worked in a 150 person architecture firm in DC. All 150 had architecture degrees of some form but only about half of them were licensed. Those unlicensed people didn’t care because they were never going sign plans. They were happy in their position in the firm.

So I ask you again, what type of projects do you want to do in the future? If you do a project that requires a license you can always team up with an architect.

I have met many embarrassing architects and many incredible designers. I put my money on experience. Working in the field is extremely more valuable than a license.

Good luck.

@Brian Pulaski the house is around 1,200 SF with a 200 SF detached garage in the back. I have only walked around it and seen the outside. It is in okay shape. It looks like the finishes just have to be updated. However, I do have to check the HVAC, electrical and plumbing. I think I will call him and ask him if I can take a look inside. 

It is not a big house but those are the prices in Northern Virginia as you get closer to DC. The neighborhood is very eclectic where you can find houses that have sold in the last 2 years between $450k - $950k. 4 similar homes in size have sold between $520k - $580K. The most recent about a year ago went for $579k. 

It has been for rent for over a month and he lives in California so I'll stay in front of this and do the dance!

I was only talking about the actual construction. I know all about the city of Alexandria and getting permits approved. 3 months is about average. A few weeks to do the drawings (since I would do them) and then 6-10 weeks for a permit from the city.  I had to go through them for my house and I have two clients right now trying to get approvals. One for an addition and another for a brand new house where they are tearing down the existing home. 

I'll stick to the basics!