If your project is a custom home, residential addition, or involves significant modification to interior walls, there is a good chance that your project will involve structural work.  In order to submit drawings to the building department (to obtain a building permit) you will need to retain a structural engineer to produce stamped structural drawings.  Many building departments allow homeowners to produce their own architectural drawings, and work with a structural engineer to produce the structural drawings.  However there are significant benefits to working with a design firm to produce your architectural drawings. 

The cost of residential construction has increased significantly over the last 5 years.  In Colorado, the cost to construct a new custom home is often in the range of $350-$500 per square foot, at the time of writing this FAQ in 2024.  However this is a rule of thumb, and actual costs can vary widely.  This budgetary range includes both hard costs (construction labor, materials, etc.) as well as soft costs (engineering, architecture, permitting, etc.).  Sometimes owners will assume 8% to 10% of the total cost will be soft costs.  Therefore a 3,000 square foot home, slated to start construction in 2025, may have a rough budgetary estimate of $1.2M.  Of this, the total soft costs may be in the range of $110,000.  It is not possible to refine these cost estimates further, without doing at least preliminary or conceptual design work.  Some clients retain JLA design to complete a conceptual design, which can help narrow the construction cost estimate, and allow the owner to make a “go or no-go” decision on the project.

The design fees charged by JLA vary depending on the type of project, size of the build (square footage), complexity of design, and scope entrusted to JLA.  For example, JLA may be retained to design a new custom home and provide architectural and structural drawings.  In this case, the JLA fees may be in the range of 3% to 5% of the estimated construction cost.  However JLA always provides lump sum design estimates based on our anticipated time to complete the design.  Therefore for large projects (e.g. large custom home) the fee may be less than 3%, whereas for very small projects (e.g. small residential addition) the fee may be greater than 5%.  If JLA is retained to provide additional services (such as power and lighting plans, HVAC design, or civil design) the fee would change. 

The rules around obtaining a building permit vary from one jurisdiction to another.  Someone pursuing a project in the Town of Castle Rock is under different rules than someone pursuing a project in unincorporated Douglas County.  Most building departments have a website that includes a checklist of items that must be submitted in support of a building permit application.   Often, the checklist will indicate which items must be produced by a design professional (e.g. Structural Engineer or Architect) and which items may be produced by the Owner, Contractor, or others.   JLA helps our clients to navigate the rules that apply in their particular jurisdiction.  Some clients retain JLA for only one part of the project design (e.g. structural engineering).  Within JLA this is referred to as a la carte design services.  However some clients retain JLA to manage the entire design process, and coordinate with all other necessary consultants to guide the project through the building department.   Within JLA this is referred to as full service design. 

JLA strives to be the fastest and most responsive design firm in Colorado.  To that end, we work to continually improve design schedules.   However the actual design schedule can vary widely depending on the type of project, size of build (square footage), complexity of design, and other factors.  The estimated project schedule is typically provided in our initial project proposal.   After the design process with JLA is complete, the construction documents are submitted to the building department for review and approval.  The building department review process may take an additional 4-12 weeks (or even longer in some jurisdictions).  

For most residential projects, the first steps are the same:

• Land purchase
• Boundary & Improvements Survey
• Geotechnical Investigation
• Conceptual Design Ideas / Sketches 

After these initial steps are complete or in progress, JLA design can assist with all subsequent steps up to the start of construction.   If you need help with surveying or geotechnical work, please reach out so we can connect you with reputable companies in the area. 

Many owners in Colorado choose to utilize Pole Barns (a.k.a. post and beam structures) or pre-engineered metal buildings as storage buildings, garages, workshops, or barns.  Pole barns may or may not require engineering depending on the size (square footage), shape, and sidewall height.  Most metal buildings will be supplied with the structural engineering drawings for the superstructure (the portion of the building that is above the ground).  However most metal buildings will require a local structural engineer to produce stamped drawings for the foundation.  Please refer to our metal buildings page for additional information.

For a typical residential or commercial project, JLA typically assumes the client (owner) will make a certain number of changes based on the size of the project.  For a large, complex project, JLA assumes a fairly large number of changes may be made.  JLA includes time our our budget to handle this number of changes.  The number of assumed changes is communicated in the initial proposal and professional service agreement.  These changes are made at no additional cost to the client.  Before this change budget is exhuasted, JLA will communicate with the client that we are nearing the end of our initially budgeted design time.  The client may then elect to pursue additional design iterations at an additional fee if necessary.   After the design is complete and the client is thrilled with it, the construction documents must be submitted to the building department for review and approval.  Should the building department require any changes to the design, these changes are completed at no additional cost to the client.  

Nope.  Not likely!

Well a man with a heart full of optimism can be a powerful thing, there is no doubt about that.  However we have seen hundreds of clients in Colorado attempt this with pole barn style buildings, pre-engineered metal buildings, modular shipping containers, hay bales, rammed earth, materials they received for free from their uncle, and so on.  The main issue seems to be that building departments have continued to adopt more recent versions of building codes, which have imposed more stringent and detailed requirements.  All of these requirements must be met in order to obtain a building permit, and eventually obtain a certificate of occupancy (C of O) to allow the building to be lawfully occupied.   Zoning regulations also have a significant impact on the ultimate cost of construction in many jurisdictions.  For these reasons we always strongly recommend that you familiarize yourself with the applicable building codes and zoning regulations in your area.  If the house will be less than 400 square feet, then the stated construction budget may be attainable.  But if not, it is likely that we will ‘rediscover’ all of the many reasons why the cost rules of thumb (see above) exist.