Caught in the middle class: can you afford a custom home?

Residential Architect, Nov-Dec, 2002 by S. Claire Conroy

Some readers wonder how I can argue for affordable housing in one of my editor's columns and then admire big beautiful houses in the next. Sometimes I feel cursed because I see and sympathize with so many sides of so many housing debates. I delight in looking at gorgeous high-end custom homes, tailored precisely to the minute needs and desires of the wealthy. I also esteem the high-minded low-income housing that many architects have taken on in the last five years. Still, what I identify with most--for obvious reasons--is the plight of the design-deprived middle class.

residential architect is one of more than a dozen magazines covering residential design and construction, published by Hanley-Wood, LLC. Hence, I have quite a few colleagues who understand and admire well-designed and built homes. Most of us would love to live in an architect-designed custom house; most of us can't afford to. Almost all have settled for existing homes, and, over time, they've remodeled them to fit their needs and some of their desires.

I was recently in the market for house. And I, too, very much wanted a custom home designed by an architect. But with no land, no equity in a previous house, a normal person's savings, and a middle-class income, there wasn't any way to swing it--not in Washington, D.C.'s gold rush market. So I bought an existing house--twice as far away from my office as my previous home. Still, I feel lucky. I found a house that was already remodeled by an architect. It was his house, and he did a lot of the work himself; he probably couldn't have paid his own fees. The subsequent owner was a finish carpenter who tucked beautiful built-in cabinetry into all the eaves. I know none of us could have afforded him!

So I wish custom homes were more accessible to the middle class. At the same time, I want architects to make money. In fact, I want you to make more money than you do--your salaries should be on par with other top professionals. Turn to our "Letters" column this month (page 15), and you'll find an exhortation from an architect who thinks all of you should charge by the hour--exclusively. That makes a lot of sense. As long as your work is tied to the cost of construction, clients will continue to think your money is coming out of their house. To them, your fee means they have to forgo a basement, bathroom, or garage. But if you charge by the hour--as lawyers, doctors, accountants, and plumbers do--then your fee is a professional service. Your time is money.

The "Letters" column also includes two more opinions about plan designer Don Gardner's work. The story on him in our January-February 2002 issue has sparked more debate than any other we've run since I've been editor. Some readers think he's a demonic force for mediocrity, others believe he's an apostle of decent design for the masses. Of course, I can see both sides. Still, when I was looking for a house, I might have been tempted to build from a plan (with the help of a local architect charging an hourly fee)--if I could have found one as pleasing and solidly designed as my updated Bungalow.

Questions or comments? Call me: 202.736.3312; write me: S. Claire Conroy, residential architect, One Thomas Circle, N.W., Suite 600, Washington, D.C. 20005; or e-mail me: cconroy@hanley-wood.com.