REALTOR® Magazine-Daily News-Architects Doing Double-Duty as Builders

REALTOR® Magazine Online: The real estate professional's business support tool.

OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

Search REALTORMag...

OR FOCUS YOUR SEARCH

NEWS & COMMENTARY

Inside For Brokers

Connect

Social Networking

Follow, fan, or friend us online.

Your Magazine

Magnifying your voice and celebrating your accomplishments

CURRENT ISSUE

PAST ISSUES

Daily Real Estate News | October 14, 2008 | Architects Doing Double-Duty as Builders
Architects that double as general contractors, known in the trade as "design-builders," are finding plenty of business these days, as clients look for ways to keep costs under control and avoid the headaches often associated with custom construction projects.

The American Institute of Architects says membership in its design-build subgroup has tripled in the last five years.

The usual argument against design-build is that it lacks controls, encouraging both the builder and the designer to add extravagant extras. But advocates say that isn’t true.

"The design-build process may be as close to a fixed cost contract that an owner can expect in today's construction world," writes Barry B. LePatner, a prominent construction lawyer, in his "Broken Buildings, Busted Budgets: How to Fix America's Trillion-Dollar Construction Industry."

Source: The Wall Street Journal, Sara Lin (10/10/2008)