Stop or pause house construction? Costs too high

We were not asked about the budget and did not bring it up ourselves. The way it came across, he first wanted to understand what we want to build. After a rough draft, we criticized a lot, and with the second draft the right thing came along right away, including a cost estimate.

This approach is basically alright. Understanding what the customer wants is often forgotten. For that, the architect criticized here gets a plus point from me – and a big one at that.

Unfortunately, we have no idea about this. We are both from the IT sector. It’s about a lot of money; I can imagine how often we get ripped off.

Do you have someone with strong people skills and management competence among your friends? Just take them along once or twice. That greatly minimizes the chances of being ripped off.

That it saves stress is new to me; I thought the architect was exactly there to take over the stress.

Yes, that is what the architect is there for, and yet for a goal-oriented project they must be kept by the client within the desired boundaries.

It would be unfair to him to pass on his documents (where he explicitly points out that they may not go to third parties).

I find that extremely fair and the right thing to do.

And the budget belongs, like the plot, inevitably to the fundamental foundations of the planning.

Absolutely right; the budget question should have been clarified after understanding and before agreeing on a draft.

Or was it somehow accidentally conveyed that money did not matter? Maybe that really happened, and a sentence like "we’ll talk about costs later" slipped out.

That can indeed happen – it should be clarified in the conversation. [USER=57878

@Coffee82[/USER] : Please don’t let the forum judgments about your architect influence you and enter the next conversation with the architect open-minded but with a clear goal in mind. Despite all the shock about the construction costs – the worst has certainly not happened yet. A few incomplete notes from me to prepare for the conversation:
[*]Consider: What would be the best outcome from the conversation with the architect? (e.g., we get from him our "normal large dream house" within our budget expectations). Formulate your goal at the start of the conversation (for example, with the goal above: We want to discuss today how we can build our "normal, large dream house" with you within our budget expectations.) (Who recognizes the trick?) [*]You obviously like the draft very much. Use this as an occasion to sincerely tell the architect. It does everyone good and a good atmosphere is a prerequisite for approval (a good result). [*]Give a budget limit figure that is 10-15% below your pain threshold – it will get a bit more expensive anyway. [*]Define sub-goals of the conversation (e.g., the architect sees that he has exceeded the budget limit, the architect takes co-responsibility for the missing budget clarification in advance, the architect thinks with us about how the house can be built more cheaply, we make a binding and transparent fee agreement for the case of further cooperation – or for the case of terminating it...) [*]Prepare concrete questions and formulate them openly and purposefully [LIST] [*]On what basis did you estimate the construction costs? [*]Which aspects of the design for our house are particularly cost-intensive? [*]What alternatives do you see to realize exactly the (cost-intensive aspect named by the architect) more cost-effectively? [*]How can you help us gain certainty for our further decisions – including your fee?
[*]Make written notes that you can share after the conversation with the architect.

Focus on your goal. You actually want to achieve something rather than avoid something, right? Good luck!

"It would be unfair to him to pass on his documents (where he explicitly points out that they must not be shared with third parties)." I find that extremely fair and right.

If you have pictures taken by the wedding photographer, are you then not allowed to show them either?

If you have pictures taken by the wedding photographer, are you then not allowed to show them?

This is regulated contractually. The photographer grants the client the rights to use the images. And an architect naturally also holds the image rights to the design, unless it has been contractually regulated.

This is regulated by contract. The photographer grants the client the usage rights to the images. And an architect naturally also holds the image rights to the design, unless it has been contractually regulated.

How is one supposed to obtain quotes if one is not allowed to show the plans to anyone?

How is one supposed to request quotes if no one is allowed to see the plans?

That is something different from posting pictures online, which is a publication.

How do you want to request quotes if you are not allowed to show the plans to anyone?

You are allowed, once you have the approval. If that is desired, you first have to obtain it for the design. Usually, the architect handles the tendering themselves. I assume the OP has commissioned not only the service phases up to the building application. Then that clause should be omitted. have you already sent the name of the architect to ?