Hi, we are thinking about purchasing a set of house plans from a home plan website. My first question is are these plans usually accurate and complete?
My second question is, with the changes we made, we were quoted $2,570 for the construction set plus one free blueprint.
Is this a reasonable price for complete plans?
What should we be aware of (this is our first time building)?
Thanks for any help you can give!!
Jackie
Jackie,
The completeness and quality of stock plans vary with the quality of the firm who drew them. Before buying your plans, you should research the designer.
• How long have they been in business?
• How many plans have they produced?
• Is the design you like typical of their work?
• Were the plans drawn recently?
• How many plans for this design have been sold?
• Do they (the plans) conform to building codes in your area?
Most plan designers provide this information on their websites.
I would always recommend buying plans directly from a home designer website instead of a large plan aggregator who may not identify a plan's designer. This prevents you from buying the plans directly, but it also prevents you from researching the designer.
Regarding the price you were quoted, it's hard to say if this is a fair price without knowing what changes were included. Stock plans are generally priced at a fraction of the cost originally expended to draw them because the designer hopes to resell them many times. Custom changes are priced at cost plus profit, so even minor changes will significantly increase the cost of a set of stock plans.
Hope this helps,
David Moore, AIA
Original Home Plans
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