Reason 10
12 Reasons to Hire an Owner’s Representative
Help with sorting through all of the industry jargon and making sure you understand the drawings.
The plans and specifications can be hundreds of pages, which look like this to most people.
These documents are full of industry related notes, details, and other essential information that can be hard to decipher
You hire an Architect to develop a design and prepare drawings, because that is what they do... right?
Well it does not always go that way…
The architect gives the owner a set of drawings to review at the various design stages. Owners are expected to review the plans and details to make sure that their vision and goals are met and within budget.
Some architects will make minor changes with minimal or zero additional fees, others may not. At some point the owner is expected to “sign off” or accept drawings so they can be used for bidding and construction.
The Owners risk increases if these reviews are not done early or often enough. The Architect becomes more reluctant to make changes without additional time and fees.
Hearing that, "something wasn't shown on the drawings", whether it is an omission, an error, or does not meet your needs, is never good and almost means additional cost.
Architects may fall back on “you signed off on the plans... or you should have told me that...” The point is, you know what you want, but you are not an architect. So now what?
The owner finds themselves in a no win situation. You can pay the architect extra fees for a service you expected to get the first time, or start over with a new architect.
Many people outside of the industry face challenges when attempting to read drawings.
A set of plans contains layers of "Industry Jargon" and references hundreds of codes and standards.
An Owner's Rep can:
Guide the owner through the design and drawing process to make sure they understand what the designer is presenting.
Making sure the owner is understands what is or isn't included prior to “sign off” on the drawings.
By evaluating the drawings and specs to ensure that your project is designed per code and following industry standards and best practices.
Provide the third party review of your project which reduces your overall risk.