The Site Visit

Perhaps you’re thinking about renovating, considering a property to buy, or unsure where to start with the home you already own. A Site Visit gives us time to talk about what you want and look at the property together.

You don’t need to arrive with all the answers. We can talk about what isn’t working and explore whether there may be a simpler or more practical way to achieve what you want.

I check the main planning restrictions before we meet. On the day, we sit down to discuss your questions, then walk through the house and around the site. I look at the existing building, the levels, the neighbours, the trees and the access, alongside what you’re hoping to do.

An architect site visit takes about an hour. You’ll hear my initial assessment of the problems, the risks worth investigating and the next sensible step for your project.

• You’re about to buy, and you want a professional read on the property before contracts are signed.
• You already own it, you’ve got a rough idea of what you want, and you can’t yet put it into words.
• You’ve been told what the site can do, by an agent or a builder, and you’d like that tested by someone with no stake in the answer.
• You want to work with me on your own property before committing to a larger engagement.

We start by sitting down together. You tell me what you’re dealing with, what you want, and what’s been worrying you about it. I ask questions. This part matters more than people expect. Most people arrive with a solution already in mind, usually the first one that occurred to them. Once I understand what you’re actually trying to fix, there are often several ways to get there, and some of them are cheaper or simpler than the one you came in with.

Then we walk the property. I look at levels, orientation, access, boundaries, the condition of what’s already there, and the constraints that come from next door and from the street. We go through the problems together and I tell you which of them actually matter, which will cost you, and which you can stop worrying about.

I’ll share my initial assessment with you during the visit.

I’ll share ideas as we walk around, but those ideas still need to be tested. The visit doesn’t include drawings or a resolved design. It gives me an understanding of you and the property, and gives you my initial assessment before you decide how to proceed.

You’ll receive my initial advice during the visit. There’s no written report included.

• Which of the things worrying you are actual problems, and which aren’t.
• The early risks worth acting on now, while acting on them is still cheap.
• A realistic direction for the project, and an honest answer on whether it’s worth pursuing at all.
• The next sensible step, including whether that step involves me.

$497 + GST, invoiced before we meet. That covers the research beforehand, the hour on your property, and my read on the day.

If you go on to engage me, that $497 comes off your fees. You don’t pay twice for work that becomes part of a larger engagement.

Outside Sydney, travel is quoted before we book.

A Site Visit is right if you want me to see the property and its awkward parts in person, hear the whole problem from you rather than a summary of it, and get a feel for how I work before you commit to anything larger.

The Feasibility Brief is right if what you need is the detail in writing. The setbacks, the heights, what the state and council controls allow on your particular site, and whether a pathway like the Housing Pattern Book or the Low and Mid-Rise Housing Policy applies to you and opens up options you didn’t know were there.

The Decision Session is right if you want to sit down and work through all of it properly. The opportunities and restrictions that affect your plans, and a detailed report to move forward with afterwards.

Still not sure? Book a Clarity Call and I’ll tell you which one fits. No cost, and no obligation to book anything afterwards.