How much does it cost to have house plans drawn up?

We’re back, answering some of the most common questions we’ve seen floating around on the internet. Today’s is one that frequently pops up…

“How much does it cost to have house plans drawn up?”

This could refer to a couple of things. You’re either a homeowner who lacks existing drawings of their home or you want to convert ideas you’ve drawn up into architectural drawings.

So, how much do these things cost? Our team reveals all…

Costs for existing drawings

If you want to add an extension or convert an existing space, then you’ll need architectural drawings of your home as it stands today. These will need to be in what’s known as a CAD format, in order to be used during the design, planning, and building regulations stages.

If you don’t have CAD drawings of your home, then a measured survey will need to be carried out. This vital step will involve surveyors visiting your property to record the existing measurements of your home. They’ll also take a range of photographs, so your architect can fully visualise your space. Once this has been completed, those measurements are then turned into a set of existing drawings. Depending on the type of development you are carrying out, these can include floor plans, elevations, a section, site plan, and roof plan.

If choosing a local surveyor to carry out the work, prices typically range between £400 - £1200.

These costs will depend on the scope of work required and how accessible your home is - lofts can be tricky. Prices will also be affected by your location in the UK and the quality of the company used. More on this below.

At Resi, measured survey costs start at £250 and can be added to our planning and design service. Our planning and survey package starts from £900 and includes:

A measured survey
Existed drawings
Proposed design drawings
Planning submission and management

Learn more about this architectural package here.

Costs for proposed designs

If you’re looking to get your ideas drawn up professionally, ready for planning, then you’ll need an architectural service. At Resi, we refer to this stage as ‘proposed design’.

Proposed design is one of the most vital steps in your home journey. It’s where you and your designer set out what you want your project to look like. This includes envisioning your future layout, exteriors, and the amount of glazing you wish to include. At Resi, we can even drop in furniture to help you understand how the spaces will function.

These designs are mostly concerned with the aesthetics of your household and are used within the planning stage to get approval from your local authority, should this be required.

You’ll make a lot of key decisions while these drawings are prepared, such as setting out your ideal budget and assessing what is required under planning and the building regulations. You might need to obtain full planning permission, submit a pre-application, or you could benefit from something known as permitted development rights.

It’s worth noting because they lack structural details, and other technical aspects, they shouldn’t be used for construction purposes. Proposed design will be upgraded for construction during the building regulations stage.

On average, getting an architect to draw up your proposed design can cost between £600 - 3000.

At Resi, our packages start from £720 and include planning support. Learn more here.

What affects the price of drawings?

Whether going for existing drawings or proposed design, prices can vary significantly. This can be due to…

Your location in the UK, London is typically more expensive.
The complexity of the project.
The scale of the project.
The size and quality of the company used.

On the whole, local one-man-bands will be cheaper than bigger companies. However, smaller practices have their own drawbacks, so it’s worth being critical of those ‘too good to be true’ prices.

To learn more, see our ‘Is a local architect always best’ article.

To ensure you pick the right service for your home, why not talk to our team? We offer free home advice, no matter where you’re at in your project. We’ll give you guidance on everything from budget, timings, to planning policy. Did we mention it’s free? Book your consultation here.