SYNTHESIS ARCHITECTURE

It went great, Alex made me feel very comfortable and was very professional. I hope to use him again for drawing up my actual remodel plans after some brainstorming.

DUE TO A RECENT BAD EXPERIENCE WITH AN ARCHITECT, I WAS LEERY OF WORKING WITH ANOTHER. HOWEVER, ALEX CHRISTOFORIDIS WAS VERY EASY TO WORK WITH. HE WAS ABLE TO REVIEW THE PREVIOUS PLANS AND QUICKLY DEVELOP NEW PLANS, BASED ON OUR DISCUSSIONS OF WHAT I DID AND DID NOT WANT. ALEX LISTENED TO ME AND WAS ABLE TO DEVELOP DESIGNS THAT WORKED WITH MY PERSONAL STYLE. HE WAS OPEN TO INPUT, AND DEVELOPED ALTERNATIVES WHEN MY WISH LIST WAS NOT FEASIBLE. ALEX WORKED WELL WITH MY CONTRACTOR TO WORK OUT ISSUES, AND HAS STAYED INVOLVED AND AVAILABLE THROUGHOUT CONSTRUCTION. ALEX IS CREATIVE AND HAS LOTS OF IDEAS, BUT DOESN'T FORCE HIS IDEAS ON THE CLIENT. I WOULD WORK WITH HIM AGAIN.

THE GOOD: VERY FRIENDLY, EASY TO WORK WITH. THOUGHTFUL DESIGN WORKED AESTHETICALLY AND FUNCTIONALLY. FINAL DESIGN COST WAS ABOUT WHERE OTHER ARCHITECTS WERE BIDDING. THE BAD: APPARENTLY UNWILLING/UNABLE TO DISCUSS BUDGET TRADE-OFFS THROUGHOUT THE DESIGN PROCESS. SHIRKED COST-RELATED QUESTIONS OUT OF FEAR THAT HIS ANSWERS WOULDN'T BE ACCURATE. AS A RESULT, WE HAD NO IDEA OF WHAT COST TO EXPECT UNTIL THE END OF DESIGN. DESIGN FEE QUOTED ONLY AS AN ESTIMATED 7.5% OF BUILD COST, WHICH WE WERE LED TO BELIEVE WOULD PROBABLY TOTAL $1200 TO $2000. THE FINAL DESIGN BILL WAS OVER TWICE AS MUCH, AND THE CONSTRUCTION COST WILL BE AROUND $30,000 (7.5%X$30K = $2250). LIKE BUILDERS, OTHER ARCHITECTS COMMITTED TO A FIRM FIXED PRICE. WE CHOSE SYNTHESIS FOR THEIR LOW COST, AMONG OTHER STRENGTHS, BUT FELT SOMEWHAT MISLED AFTER 2-3X COST GROWTH. IF WE HIRE THEM AGAIN, I WOULD PUSH FOR A MORE DETAILED PROPOSAL WITH A FFP CONTRACT, AND WOULD MAKE IT CLEAR THAT PROJECT COST IS NOT TO BE IGNORED.

THE CUSTOMER SERVICE WAS EXCELLENT. ALSO THE ATTENTION TO DETAIL WAS EXCELLENT AS WELL.

THE GENTLEMAN WAS SO PATIENT AND WONDERFUL TO WORK WITH. ANY QUESTIONS WE HAD, THEY WERE REACHABLE. THEY WENT ABOVE AND BEYOND. IT IS A SMALL COMPANY, SO I DIDN'T HAVE TO GO THROUGH A LOT OF PEOPLE. THEY ARE VERY REASONABLE. WE ARE GOING TO USE THEM AGAIN!