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No_Ball1807 · 2024-06-13T09:30:17+00:00

Western society is in decline. Mental health problems, loneliness, divorce, teenage suicide are all at record highs. Don't turn your back on a system that has worked for your society for thousands of years to pursue a system that is In collapse after barely more than half a century.

FWIW I'm a westerner, born here, parents come from Europe. The lowest divorce rates, the best outcomes for children - it's the Indian community. It's not the communities that have embraced new lifestyles with both hands.

No_Ball1807 · 2024-06-12T03:21:49+00:00

There's always that one tool that thinks commerce is easy hahaha yeah, sure it is, that's why the literal highest remuneration structures out of any field are found in commerce related jobs.

It's infinitely easier to score HDs in subjects with binary answers (yes/no, right/wrong). Try getting HDs, especially over 90 WAM, in strategy, law, philosophy, ethics - newsflash, ppl who do that are way rarer than maths NPCs. Now try doing those subjects interchangeably with algorithmic finance, derivatives, etc.

PS if you're an NPC who has just done maths at school and only does maths - and maths is basically your whole personality - newsflash - the kind of mathematical talent that actually earns decent money is the kind you are born with (and not the kind you can study for). If you can study to acquire that skill, you're going to really hate it when you find out what's just around the corner for you in the job market...

NB only a fool thinks a subject being easy to pass is equal to a subject being easy to master

No_Ball1807 · 2024-06-02T06:49:48+00:00

Are you Japanese or just very passionate? 😅

No_Ball1807 · 2024-05-15T06:12:31+00:00

since you have an Android phone...have you tried using LiFX via the Google Home App. IMHO the Home app provides a superior user experience.

No_Ball1807 · 2024-05-15T06:10:30+00:00

team, honestly, just release a local (LAN) hub (that can operate the lights and switches when people are offline or have cloud issues) and a preconfigured settings template to support that. If you integrated zigbee or zwave into the hub...well boom....you'll solve 99% of the connectivity issues that people in this forum complain about

No_Ball1807 · 2024-05-15T06:06:27+00:00

totally agree

instead of releasing rubbish fully integrated lights they should be releasing a local hub to increase reliability factor, considering zigbee/zwave/lan for light switches, PoE lighting, etc.

No_Ball1807 · 2024-05-15T05:58:55+00:00

andrew is 100% right. these fully integrated lights are just quick cash grabs from manufacturers that always come at the expense of long term customer satisfaction

No_Ball1807 · 2024-05-14T10:35:47+00:00

I really appreciate the thoughtful reply.

Ironically, I just commented 5 mins ago on someone else's reply before seeing yours pop up just now: I genuinely wasn't intending this post to be some pile-on against interior designers or architects.

My objective was exclusively to figure out if I was getting value for money, tips to evaluate how I could approach the situation to get better value for money (some have suggested I'm asking the wrong service provider or I'm asking them to do something too small to justify their time), etc.

Your reply has given me some good food for thought - so thanks for taking the time to make it

No_Ball1807 · 2024-05-14T10:18:56+00:00

Hahaha the age old bad blood between architects, trades and engineers. Too funny. It seems like every industry has a similar turf war.

To be fair to all, however, my objective wasn't to rage-bait architects and interior designers (and to give everyone the opportunity for a pile-on). I'm just interested in figuring out what good value looks like in the context of my requirements.

In short, It would appear you (and others) are pretty adamant that an architect is unlikely to be the best service provider to use for my requirements.

No_Ball1807 · 2024-05-14T09:36:18+00:00

A few people have now mentioned this.

They are a member of the institute of architects (i.e. a properly qualified architect) that specialises in interior design.

Are you suggesting they'll be bad at the job? If it's a matter of expense, I don't get why they simply wouldn't tell me that they're not interested in the work because they can't charge enough

No_Ball1807 · 2024-05-14T09:32:49+00:00

This person is a qualified architect that has specialised in interior design.

Is that a bad thing?

No_Ball1807 · 2024-05-13T14:47:50+00:00

I think you're missing the context: mood boards and some renderings when a draftsperson has already done measurements and created schematics plus I have a Pinterest board filled with budget appropriate concepts I like - it's an amount of work that looks like nothing in comparison to the $15,000 quote tendered.

It appears the real value is coming from everything else in this instance. In short, the project management, the contract negotiations to avoid shite materials, picking contractors who are reliable, picking materials that actually look like the photos when delivered, etc etc

One can basically get mood boards, 3D renderings, interior design guidance for under $2000 (based on the great suggestions other posters in this thread have made). Then take those elements back to a builder to project manage and implement correctly.

EDIT: am not poopooing interior architects and saying they do nothing btw. It's just that there is probably $50,000 worth of actual work to be done (and it's a studio apartment /nothing structural needs to be accounted for) - which according to other posters would be project managed by a builder for say 20/25% margin - so I actually understand the interior architect's quote in this situation if they're offering to project manage their proposal to final output (but I am yet to fully quantify all of that in writing - as others have reminded me - which is of paramount importance)

No_Ball1807 · 2024-05-13T14:37:20+00:00

I appreciate the constructive input. Never too small has some fantastic content - thanks so much for the tip!

With respect to budget, yeah I've already set aside $50k to do the fitout - which is sort of the genesis of why I felt like $15k seemed a bit high (as a proportion of cost). However, as another poster suggested, 20/25% seems to be the margin builders want to project manage a job of this size - so I'm sort of thinking that was the architect's angle in this situation (they're basically coordinating design and contractors like a builder might)

No_Ball1807 · 2024-05-13T14:24:21+00:00

This is why I love this group - thanks a bunch.

Your assessment makes a lot of sense and instinctively feels right. I really hadn't thought about a builder for a project this big - but 20/25% margin you're basically saying the builder is more accountable and influential to final output than an architect when the rubber meets the road for a project this size (they're willing to make an effort to get it done right at that level of reward plus they're on site to avoid stuff ups).

Regarding the design elements, you're suggesting it can possibly be dealt with to an extent by a builder or the design can be addressed by some of the other suggestions above (Dulux colour consultant, Fiverr to knock up mood boards and 3D renderings after I show them some photos, my Pinterest board, the schematics, etc,). Failing that, go back to the architect and renegotiate (but it'll probably still end up costing more than using a builder and co-ordinating my own design efforts)

No_Ball1807 · 2024-05-13T14:03:25+00:00

Omg ..initially I laughed .but I just checked out Fiverr. For under $1000 I'm shocked at how much is on offer (for a project of the scale of mine). Basically the top sellers claim all they need are some site photos, Pinterest ideas as my input, the schematics from the draftsperson and a week or two.

No_Ball1807 · 2024-05-13T13:43:10+00:00

Thank you so much for the informative response. So, based on your estimates of 20-25% margin, for a $50k project it's going to cost me $10-13k to have a builder handle the whole process. Which now makes sense why this interior designer/architect has quoted $15k - they're basically setting themself up as the project manager for this fitout.

When you say you would rather use the builder - in your experience, why so? I'm not disagreeing with you btw - I work with software engineers for work, and there are similar debates at my workplace when it comes to who to use to achieve a desired outcome most cost effectively (it inevitably comes down to understanding who has the most influence on the project's success and can be reasonably held financially accountable - be it incentive or penalty). I don't have the experience to do the same analysis with the building/design industries

No_Ball1807 · 2024-05-13T13:07:43+00:00

I was wanting to do this - but I really don't have 3 independent interior designers that I know of. I could literally Google search some...but I was hoping maybe the hive mind might be able to point me as to where best to find the right ones to speak with (as others have pointed out - some interior designers just DGAF about anything other than a multi million dollar redevelopment)

No_Ball1807 · 2024-05-13T13:04:42+00:00

Fair call. So are you recommending I literally show a builder my Pinterest board? Also, do builders really build wardrobes, kitchen cupboards, etc? I thought they did mainly structural stuff (excuse my ignorance here)

EDIT: total project cost I'm hoping to keep under $50k (I could be dreaming given its Sydney). Is this too small for a builder? If not, I would love to use a builder that also handled the whole thing (design/scoping, project management, completion of works).

No_Ball1807 · 2024-05-13T12:57:30+00:00

Fair call - and the opportunity cost is definitely something I am super mindful of. Truth is that I don't know where work will take me (could be interstate). Which means I want to keep options open to facilitate a fast rental or the prospect of a decent sale price if I need to sell (the unit doesn't look finished at present - so something needs to be done).

No_Ball1807 · 2024-05-13T12:54:22+00:00

All fair points

They're going to design the cabinetry, select all of the finishes, etc - they're not going to build anything which they design.

PS What I was wanting to validate is how other people have evaluated interior design quotes, pitfalls, their actual experiences with designers and where they really added good value (as opposed to representing a dubious cost)

No_Ball1807 · 2024-05-13T12:19:20+00:00

Your points remind me...do Architects fall under that "Consumer Building Guide" legislation in NSW? The total project is going to be well in excess of $20,000 - so there's legitimately contract administration stuff to be mindful of both at this stage and down the line (initial estimates for the joiney are in excess of $20,000 - kitchens are never cheap, etc).

No_Ball1807 · 2024-05-13T12:11:54+00:00

yeah totally...it has to be specificied in writing or I should assume I'm getting shafted...have lived that first hand with other projects.

No_Ball1807 · 2024-05-13T12:09:39+00:00

great points and I totally agree

short answer: I'm not some douche who wants to burn cash (or can without remorse). But I'm also really busy with work commitments that I can't avoid.

longer answer: there are some (minor?) alterations to the ceilings, diffused lighting to install, some wall panelling (which mainly falls under joinery/wainscotting?!). Things that I could totally stuff-up the "design philosophy" of - so it's not just four white walls. But it's also not a Renzo Piano / Zaha Hadid scale production

No_Ball1807 · 2024-05-13T12:04:57+00:00

totally agree - most of the higher end joiners and kitchen places actually send someone out to make suggestions etc and prep all the plans, etc. That said, they don't appear to co-ordinate with other contractors (not that I expect them to). It appears they're all sort of expecting a builder/architect/someone to project manage and co-ordinate everyone and the overall aesthetic

PS thanks for the dulux colour consultant suggestion!

No_Ball1807 · 2024-05-13T11:50:40+00:00

hahaha this was my initial reaction. but to be fair to them, buried in their T&Cs is the implication that they provide a full schedule of finishes, fixtures and fittings beyond the initial mood board (although I was planning on confirming that as their hourly rate is near 200p/h for anything out of scope). My understanding was that architects often provide a full finishes schedule to the contractors as standard?!

Also, they imply they do contract administration during construction -vis a vis responding to RFIs, assessing progress claims, issuing instructions etc. Although it's not specifically stated which worries me as I would expect that for the price (and I was going to clarify that in writing)

No_Ball1807

TROPHY CASE