dav_inaw

Display homes are cheap and easy if your site is PREFECT for the one you select. Once you start making changes or have a site that is less the perfect the price starts climbing.

In my experience if you cant get the perfect display home then using an architect to design a house of similar quality should cost about the same. The benefit is you now have a unique home.

I am an architect and work in Sydney and the South Coast – if you need any help send me an email.

David

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Hi Ankit

Hopefully I can shed some light on your development questions and in the interest of full disclosure please note that I am an architect.

This is how I work.

Step 1.
Engage an architect to complete a feasibility. This should be a written document containing the specific regulations for your site and development options. 
You can attempt to complete this study on your own depending on the usefulness of you council. Some councils will have great fact sheets with all your answers in one place, where other councils will have many document spread every and written in legal mumble jumble.
Also a lot of the time the regulations are added to over a period of years resulting in small loop holes appearing. Only an architect of experienced investor will know of these loop holes, council will not offer up this information. These loop holes can result in bigger developments so I believe its worth paying the architect for the study.

If you still need convincing read my case study.

In a particular council area in NSW subdivisions are only permissible for site over 900sqm. Dual occupancy's do not have a minimum site size. Loop hole 1 – once a dual occ has been built it can be subdivided – no minimum requirements. Loop hole 2 – once build definition can mean ground floor slab complete. With the ground floor slab complete the subdivision can be approved and registered. Then, demolish the slabs and apply to build 2 dual occupancy dwellings on each site.
In conclusion, Joe Citizen would have read the regulation and think only 1 dwelling was possible – the architect gets approval for 4 dwellings. The small price for the feasibility was worth its wait in gold.

Step 2

Now you have you feasibility study you will need to decide if developing the site fit your goals.
If so arrange a meeting with the architect to discuss how you wish to develop the site. The architect should provide you with a written fee proposal detailing the architectural services and responsibilities of both parties.

Step 3

Accept the fee proposal and work with the architect to design a solution to your needs. At some stage you will require a surveyor and may require some other consultants – the architect can arrange for all of this to happen. Basically you can be as involved or detached as you wish.

Step 4

Let the architect handle the council applications – they will get it done without the pain and headaches.

Cost

You will have to pay council fees, surveyor's fee, any other consultants and the architect's fees.
Like most things in life you get what you pay for. The architect's fee represents the level of service you are paying for. A low fee is likely to mean you will do a lot of the research and council applications, a higher fee should mean the architect is going to get it all done and just consult you where necessary.

Therefore, find an architect you can work with and trust, your personalities work well together, don't look for the cheapest one, you want the work done properly the first time without headaches and I presume you want to make as much fair profit as you can.

Best wishes
David