You may be asking yourself what does an architect do for me.  Have you been working with that builder’s draftsman now for about 8 months and still haven’t got the house plans you wanted?  Why?  Because, although you can describe your lifestyle and what you want, you do not have the training and experience to put it together and neither does that draftsman.  All he can do is what you tell him to do.

An architect, however, has been trained for a minimum of 6 years at an accredited major University, if they have a Master of Arts in Architecture, like Rand Soellner AIA (who actually has about 8 years of college and graduate school training).   Architects also typically have about another decade of apprenticeship under the scrutiny of senior licensed architects watching their every move.  Architects also are professionals licensed in various states throughout the USA.  Draftsmen usually have no licenses of any sort and are not required to know anything in particular.  Architects have to take CEUs (Continuing Education Requirements) every year, typically at least 12 hours for most state jurisdictions and 18 credit hours for the AIA (American Institute of Architects), which means that architects are up to date on what is going on in the world of design, energy conservation, building codes, and just plain good design. (more…)