If you intend on hiring a design professional to prepare drawings for your renovation project, you should hire this person as early in the process as possible. Some design professionals will be willing to assist in evaluating potential properties, but others prefer to wait until you have a property under contract before committing their time.

Not all renovation projects require professionally prepared drawings. However, a design professional provides more than just drafting skills. The design professinal’s job is to help you through the daunting and sometimes frustrating decision-making process by suggesting proposed solutions and providing insight into potential problems. This is why the one you select should be experienced in your type of renovation project - ask for references and a portfolio of similar projects. There are issues specific to renovation that an design professional who specializes in commercial construction will not necessarily be familiar with.

Your design professional's work is not done when the drawings are complete. He or she should be available to answer questions from contractors and sub-contractors during construction. You can also retain his or her professional services to assist in finish selection (faucets, paint colors, etc) and construction administration to help ensure that the project is built according to the plans and specifications.

Design services are generally divided into the following phases: pre-design, schematic design, design development, and construction documents. These phases, while somewhat fluid, proceed in a relatively straight line. Larger decisions and issues that affect the project as a whole are dealt with in the initial phases and grow increasingly detailed as it progresses.

For more information on the phases of the design process, visit the following RenovateDSM pages:

• Design process - This section goes into detail about what to expect from each of the phases in the design process.

• Construction documents - This page goes into greater detail about the drawings a design professional produces.
• Design professionals - This page discussion what a design professional does and how to work with one.