MonroeR

Hello all, Why is my roof building the weird gable extensions where the 2 offset gable meet? I had it building correctly earlier but suddenly it started doing this and I can not figure out what I changed that would cause it. I'm using home designer architectural 2019 so I don't have the option to manually edit roof planes. Note: where the garage and house offset gables meet it is building properly. Thanks in advance! Marc & Brenda (Plan 1).plan

Good idea. I assumed most ChiefTalk users are mostly licensed engineers & architects and pricing would be much different than somebody like me just starting out is why I asked on here. I'll do a search on ChiefTalk and see if in can find some helpful discussions. I done a search on HomeTalk here before starting the thread but couldn't find anything related to client pricing. I will be upgrading to pro soon for sure. I love all the features of the premier but can't justify the price just yet as I am just starting out and may only average 10-20 hours a month. Once I get a more steady client flow, I could see the value in premier. I'll definitely be checking out your YouTube channel. Thank you for your time!

Thank you for they detailed reply! Yes, upgrading to Home Designer Pro is number 1 on the list before my next client and possibly even before I finish the current project. I like your idea of starting from a master plan. So you're saying that if I start a project from the master plan and name it "John Doe 1" for example, then change the defaults it won't also change the defaults on the master plan? I always assumed changing defaults would affect the entire program and any plan in it. Yes I make it a point to let clients know that I'm not an engineer or an architect. Both the local counties I do carpentry in don't even require building permits to build a house. I need to check for state guidelines, I guess. Thank you for the helpful tips. I have been saving each version of the plan as "plan 1" "plan 2" "plan 3"etc.. I have taken a deposit but haven't done anything in writing which I will definitely do for next time. As for pricing, I just made a rough guess as to how many hours I expected to have in the plan and how much I wanted to make hourly. I haven't checked for any other home designers in my area. I feel like I'm pretty close on price but next time I will definitely have to factor in how many major revisions are included in the pricing. I kinda wanted to get a feel for what is industry standard as far as revisions/pricing. Thank you for taking time to answer my questions!

Hello, I am a self employed carpenter (20 years experience) who primarily buys, remodels and sells homes. I have been using chief architect (2019 home designer architectural) for several years now to do “as built” and, most importantly, the 3D renderings of what I want the finished product to look like. I have really enjoyed using the program and am in the process of starting a side gig designing and selling custom home plans. I’ve done a few free ones for friends of mine to get acclimated to working with clients and am now working with my first paying customer. I have a couple of questions. First of all how should I approach pricing? Initially I priced it at 75 cents a square ft for plans and 3D. What I hadn’t factored in is I had plan 1 about 50% done when they decided they wanted a different plan. I had plan 2 about 75% done and they decided they wanted a completely different layout. I have plan 3 almost completed and they love it but now decided they can’t afford it and want a plan for a smaller home. Is it normal to have to do multiple plans before they settle on one? Is there a point in the project where if they want to scratch it and go with a different plan I need to charge extra? Should I just charge by the hour? I’m sure some of it is due to my inexperience in the home designing field. Side note: Part of my plan with doing the home designing is to be able to slow down on the carpentry side of things. My body is starting to let me know I can’t do this forever and I’m wanting to get into something less physically demanding. Would you recommend home designing or should I look elsewhere? Pros? Cons? Long winded, I know. Any info is much appreciated.