Architect Your Home

We didn’t have the best experience with Architect your home. I think the piecemeal way of working is great, but we didn’t feel we were offered much in the way of ideas or creativity for the money we spent on a visit. They have a group of different architects, I think it all depends who you get allocated to your project.

We didn't actually progress with AYH for our project, however I feel compelled to leave a review for Tristan, and the architect Tom, as we really benefitted from their time, as novices to renovation and architecture. They put in the effort to have several calls with us to ensure we were completely clear of what our best options may be, how everything would be costed (and crucially, gave us lots of information of the potential costs and pitfalls that may lie ahead), and were even happy to share details of a list of their suppliers, to help us build a complete picture. Both were very open and friendly throughout, and I'm sure we'd have been in very safe hands.

We're in the midst of a rather large house renovation & have come to appreciate the necessity of skilled, knowledgeable & forward thinking professionals. Following an initial call with Tristan from Architect Your Home we immediately booked a design visit. Overall, we were impressed with the Architect. Nick made some really excellent suggestions based on the property's dimensions, room layout & desired functionality. We now have a concept that has exceeded our expectations & are keen to progress. We've found Architect Your Home's process nicely streamlined. The initial contact process allows one to outline their desired layout, dimensions, spec (standard, above standard, luxurious, etc) & financial outlay. There's also detailed information on the website consisting of case studies. All in all, we're in a state of confidence & optimism at pre build phase (I will update this review post build completion) & would recommend Architect Your Home to anyone considering a project requiring expertise

We have used AYH to support our building projects twice: ten years ago for a side-return extension to our ground floor flat, and most recently a loft and side return extension to our family home, plus internal renovations. The architect we chose for our first project was excellent and we were very happy with how the build went but when we revisited the AYH site to contact him once more, saw he had retired. We browsed the site for a possible replacement and chose to meet with the Camden office to see if we'd hit it off in the same way. We had a good initial meeting with Andris so decided to go ahead and begin planning the work. We then mainly worked with Nick and found him very easy to work with and felt he had a good understanding of our aspirations and constraints. We found the AYH model to be as straightforward as we had the first time around, with the menu of services being explained at each key stage and us choosing which items to commission Nick and his colleagues for. First time around we were more time-rich so did a few elements ourselves (like the planning application) and particularly liked how the structure allowed us to do that. This time around we were ten years older, renovating a whole house instead of a flat and with two young children, we used a fuller range of services but the process still suited us well; we could see what the costs were at each point and progress accordingly. We couldn't afford to move out while the work was done and at the strong suggestion of our builder, Nick provided Project Management for the build which in retrospect was invaluable and meant we managed to live at home throughout the 9 month build in reasonable harmony with the building team! Nick managed the project with a light touch and with an eye on our budget so I felt like we got very good value for money. We are really happy with the finished house, and have subsequently recommended AYH, Nick and and our builder Max to friends who have engaged them and been similarly happy with the results and I think that speaks volumes. We'll be back in touch again if we embark on more building work in another ten years!

Architect Your Home introduced me to an excellent local family architectural practice in Camden, who understood, tendered and successfully managed my planning, consent and building work seamlessly. All billing was managed by Architect Your Home and was their service was always professional and timely. Having architects across London in all boroughs takes the search of trusted architects out the equation for the homeowner. I have recommended Architect Your Home to friends and have only good things to say about this clever and beneficial service. Many thanks to Tristan and all at Architect Your Home.

The initial design meeting (with AYH architect, Andrew C) for a side return renovation project went very well indeed. We were impressed with the depth of Andrew's structural knowledge and his ability to match our aesthetic needs with practical solutions. In particular, he was able to absorb our needs in terms of light, functional layout and local regulations into a design that is in keeping with the rest of the house, meets our budget and, most importantly, cleverly maximises use of space.

We are at the early stages of planning our project and met with Francesca from Architect Your Home. She was immediately friendly and easy to get on with. Francesca included us in the design and sketch process so that it very much felt like she was there to help tease out new ideas, as well as offer her own experience and perspectives. All in all, her visit has left us feeling excited about the next stage and with a greater sense of the opportunities available.

I had tried finding an architect online but had kept hitting a brick wall. One came to my flat and looked at the work but didn't want to get involved as the project would be too small. Another suggested some good ideas and didn't charge me as again it would have been too small a project. My idea then took on a different level and I needed an architect to come knowing that I wasn't 100% committed to going ahead with the project. I needed some advice re planning permission before was willing to really look at what was involved. Architect Your Home seemed to answer my prayers! They work in a modular way - an appointment was made with ease and Ben arrived on the dot at 9.30 for the initial 4 hour consultation. This involved sharing ideas, Ben drawing up half a dozen plans and making sure that I was fully involved and clear during the entire process. Tristan who directs Architect your Home was great on the phone - really professional and clear, as was Ben. For a smallish project when you want to be clear what you're paying for I'd recommend Architect your Home in a nano second!

I needed a consultation regarding a potential Dorma/Loft Extension. The Architect Andrew who came was excellent; knowledgable of the regulations, practical in his approach, creative in his suggestions.

Judge this company by the representation of the service they purport to provide on their website and their response to customers when things don’t add up. Before you pay for a consultation and feel you’re committed ask to check out their price list, the last item is very ambiguous. First ask yourself why there are no approximate hours to be expended - h2 - Tender then question why - ‘help with specification if required’, is part of this item when it’s irrelevant to the tender. Builders do not require this detail on the plans. You do not need this information in duplicate. You can go to tender before knowing the type and style of every fixture, fitting and finish of each room. It's a huge cost for little return. When I attempted to start listing fixtures, fittings and finishes I found it very frustrating. It was too time consuming and restrictive attempting to make all the choices before having a feel for the space. I rang the architect and said that I did not want to do it, I just wanted to go to tender. I was told I had to do fixtures, fittings and finishes for a budget price. Not going to tender, budget price, led me to believe I would be paying one budget cost. ‘If required’ seemed to translate a compulsory item. Specification - identifying something precisely. Not going to tender for three months while I gather all the information and the architects attention to detail further confirms our belief in a budget cost, then your architect mentions an audit of the lists you provide. umpteen emails with returned questions several times to make corrections over a few months. I am assured that by having this information builders will not be able to charge for extras. Yet there was our architect clocking up hours we were not made aware of until we receive a call saying he would cap the fee to 21 hours. An email follows to give me a ‘quick heads up regarding the fees’ reviewing my latest package of information (another list he wanted specifics on) he had further queries and would not be able to complete the work in the 21 hours. He wanted to ensure he was keeping me fully appraised and that there were no surprises later on. The first invoice in January for 21 hours £2,394. A month later a second invoice arrived for 14 hours £1,596. I can tell you it wasn’t a surprise it was a shock. We couldn't imagine what constituted these hours. We calmed ourselves believing it was going to pay off by getting a budget cost. There was no data base for builders in Milton Keynes I had to source builders which was tricky. When quotes were finally returned in April we discovered builders don’t tend to work with a pricing schedule let alone a budget cost. We searched for an explanation in the tender package and found the sentence ‘client supply item’. 35 hours when I could of just conversed with a building contractor about fixtures, fittings and finishes and managed what I had to purchase while waiting for a start date. Going to tender delayed by three months for items added to plans that served no purpose. No budget price, no fixed fee, no explanation of cost and time implications for h2 . I emailed Nick Stenton of Stenton OBHI Architects Ltd requesting details of an ADR scheme and their complaints procedure. I did not receive a response. I took a call from Tristan of AYH to tell me they didn’t know what I was talking about. My email clearly stated Consumer Protection From Unfair Trading Regulations 2008. Trading Standards have written to Nick Stenton to advise of his company's 'compliance with statutory obligations'. Recently The Architects Regulation Board have asked him to advise me of his complaints procedure. He has advised me of AYH complaints procedure, it is very unsatisfactory. To fix this betrayal of trust is time consuming, stressful and upsetting. We are no further forward with our project, the refurb. estimate the architect gave us was greatly underestimated. We have spent £9,000 with him and surveys. We have to start again as most of the design and 2 surveys are of no consequence. So I emailed Houzz, they encouraged me to write this review as I’ve become distrustful of ratings and awards and websites that look too good to be true. I won't be taken in again by the sort claims made below by Architect Your Home. “Let us help you” “Pay as you go” “For a fixed fee” “Budget, explanation of cost and time implications” “Most trusted and popular way to engage an architect in the UK”

I recently enlisted the help of AYH to plan a two-storey extension for my cottage. I was delighted with the level of client service from the start and was even happier when James, our architect, turned up for a 4 hour meeting and produced some utterly mind-blowing 3D drawings towards the end. He helped us look at the project from a completely different perspective and introduced us to a multitude of layouts that we had not imagined possible! It was the first time I got really excited about the extension, I look forward to working through this project together with AYH.

We just had our first meeting at our house with Andris and Nick from architect your home. They came prepared, full of ideas and spent a large amount of time going through everything with us. This meeting was then followed up the next day with drawings to show what was discussed. I already can’t wait for the next meeting!!!