One of the most frequent questions homeowners ask is: “What will it cost to get permit drawings?” While it’s tempting to look for a flat “per page” price, architectural fees for a remodel are based on the complexity, size, and level of detail required for your specific project. It’s like asking a travel agent, “How much does a vacation cost?“, as the answer is – it depends – depends on location, duration, preference etc.
To maintain competitive integrity and follow industry standards, designers generally avoid public “price lists.” In the DMV area, professional design fees for major additions and renovations are typically calculated as a percentage of the total construction cost. This ensures the fee scales with the intensity of the design work. However, for smaller or less complex projects—such as a simple deck or a minor internal wall removal—a fixed lump-sum fee may be more appropriate. Below is a breakdown of the design process and the investment involved.
1. The “Invisible” Portion: Research & Discovery
Before the first line is drawn, a significant amount of work happens behind the scenes. This phase (called Programming Analysis or PA) is critical for ensuring your project is legally and technically viable.
- Zoning Analysis: We research local ordinances in your specific jurisdiction—whether it’s Fairfax, DC, or PG county. This includes verifying setbacks, lot coverage limits, and height restrictions. Historic Districts have their own set of requirements to work through.
- Building Code Research: We evaluate the project against the International Residential Code (IRC) and local county or city amendments to ensure the design meets safety standards from the start.
- Technical Research: For complex projects, we may need to research specific material assemblies, moisture management techniques, or energy-efficiency requirements (R-values) specific to our climate zone.
2. The Three Steps to Get Plans – Design Services
When you hire a designer, you are paying for a multi-stage process that ensures the final build is safe, legal, and functional.
- Schematic Design (SD): This is the brainstorming phase. We take field measurements of your existing home and create rough sketches to explore layouts and options, explore designs that blend well with your existing home and meet the aesthetic and functional needs. After all, no one wants to see an eyesore added on to their house.
- Design Development (DD): Once a design is chosen, we refine the “look and feel” and ensure it can be built to last. This is where the technical research begins to merge the aesthetic vision with constructibility. We design the foundation, wall, floor and roof assemblies to meet the various demands on the structure (water, moisture, wind, heat, cold and seismic, if applicable). Other work done here is selection of materials, utilities etc.
- Construction Documents (CD): This is the Permit Set. These are the technical drawings used for bidding, permitting, and construction. They include enough detail a contractor needs to build accurately, while giving contractor enough leeway to build efficiently using their judgement and experience.
3. Beyond The Plans – Construction Related Services
Most people stop interacting with the designer after the plans are received. And while that may be ok for most smaller remodeling projects, the designer can be hired to stay engaged in two distinct phases, beyond just delivering the plans.
- Bidding Phase (Bidding): Once the CDs are generated, you will need to find a contractor to build your project. In most traditional residential projects, this phase involves getting bids from a few contractors and selecting one of them. A designer can be retained during this phase to help decipher the bids and answer any questions from the contractors during this phase. Most people just do this themselves.
- Construction Observation (CO) – During construction, a designer acts as your advocate by observing progress to verify that the work generally aligns with the design intent and approved permit set. While the contractor remains solely responsible for the means, methods, and schedule of the build, they provide a vital layer of quality control by clarifying complex details and addressing unforeseen site conditions as they arise.
3. The Design Team (Consultants)
A complete design often requires input from several specialists. Depending on your project’s scope, you may need a few of these experts, ranging from a structural engineer, MEP (mechanical, electrical, plumbing) consultant, civil engineer etc. We wrote a detailed article on all the “players” needed for a remodeling project.
- Structural Engineer: Essential if you are adding square footage to house, removing load-bearing walls, adding a second story, or changing a roofline.
- MEP (Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing): Required for large projects or new builds, where new systems must be integrated. In my experience, most remodel home projects do not need this service.
- Civil Engineer: Often required for additions that increase “lot coverage” or involve significant site grading and drainage plans.
- Sometimes you may also need to engage an Estimate consultant, A/V consultant, Lighting consultant, Landscape architect, to name a few.
4. Understanding the Fee Structure
For a typical remodel in the DMV, total design and engineering fees often range between 8% to 20% of the total construction budget. This fee is generally distributed among the design team as follows:
- Design Services: About 60% to 80% of the total fee is design fees. This covers zoning/code research, the SD/DD/CD phases, and consultant coordination.
- Structural Engineering: Usually 10% to 15% of the fee. Licensed engineered drawings are a must for any load bearing components of the project.
- Specialty Consultants (MEP/Civil): Another 15-20% of the fee, but is only required in complex residential projects. Most residential remodel do not need this service.
- Construction Related Services: Typically can range from 15% to 25%, as mentioned above.
Just remember, to understand the fees is liking asking a travel agent – “how much does a vacation cost?” – the answer really depends on many factors.
5. Can I save on these fees?
We have seen homeowners explore workarounds to avoid professional design fees, such as drafting their own plans or using “stock” plans found online. While most local jurisdictions allow homeowners to submit their own drawings for home remodeling projects, be sure you know what you are getting into. Without a deep understanding of current building codes and DMV-specific zoning nuances, “DIY” plans could face multiple rejection cycles at the permit office. Similarly, relying solely on a contractor’s sketch without an independent set of Construction Documents leaves you vulnerable to either illegal construction or expensive “change orders” during the build. Ultimately, the money saved upfront is often spent several times over in construction errors and permit revisions.
Investing in the “Front End” saves on the “Back End”. Detailed plans and thorough code research help in several ways:
- Legal construction that meets building and zoning codes
- Speedier permits with less comments and revisions from the county
- Reduced likelihood of “change orders”—costly surprises that occur during construction
