Architectural Designs

Would you hire this architect?

I am in the midst of planning to build a custom home for my family and am considering hiring Dominick Tringali Architects as the architect for the home design. Has anyone ever used their service? Check them out at www.dtarchitects.com.

Public Comments

1. My first question to you would be, "what brought you to considering this company"? Are they local? Do they specialize in custom homes? Will the architect be available to you whenever you call or need them to come to the job site? Will this company create a design from scratch or are the just going to sell you a set of canned blueprints and just make some modifications to suite you? How much are they charging you for their service? Have you consulted a design/build firm in your area? Have you seen a product of this company's design and talked to the builder about how reliable the prints were, and not just base your decision on a slick looking web site?
2. Have you considered finding your own house plans and tweeking them to what you would want a bit different? I have just had a custom home built and I found my own plans, and had the blueprints drawn up for just over a thousand dollars (good price). We then changed what we wanted and customized the home in that manner. I am not telling you what to do, but before you decide on this person, I would check out at least two other builders in your area and get a general price estimate from all of them. Then you should find some of their customers and talk to them as to whether they were satisfied with all the subcontractors that were hired by these people, and if they are happy with their home. Don't just jump into this with the first person you find.
3. I would suggest checking out the Better Business Bureau. If you will be using an interior designer also, this may help you: http://www.ehow.com/how_4685979_interior-designer.html