Architect Contract

As a freelance architect, it’s important to have an architect contract in place. While most freelancers rely on emails and verbal agreements, it’s safer to work with a contract. Working without a contract that clearly states the terms and conditions of work can be costly. You may have to deal with unpaid projects and expensive lawsuits. Therefore, as a freelancer working on building designs, it’s important to work with an architect contract.

For the newbies in the freelancing world, designing a contract may be a challenging task. However, with many templates online, one can’t get stuck. Moreover, with a few tips, you should be able to come up with an unbeatable architect contract.

Let’s have a look below.

1. Be specific about your services

It’s important to state both the services you’ll provide and the ones you won’t provide. Usually, this protects you from the client’s extra demands that aren’t included in the freelance architect contract. Once you’re clear about what you don’t offer and the client agrees to that, they’ll be contented with what they get at the end of the project. Again, you’ll only perform the agreed tasks for the price paid, and, therefore, this protects you from offering services that aren’t paid for. Also, ensure you include a nondisclosure agreement to assure your client that you won’t disclose any of their confidential information.

2. Choose your payment rates

As a freelancer, you need to be clear about what you charge for the services you provide. Based on your own specific needs, decide on a payment rate that you’re comfortable with but still keeping your client in mind. There are two main ways to bill a client; you can either set a fixed price or charge based on time and materials. For the fixed price, you simply set the project fee based on the variables that work for you. Usually, you approximate the total amount of time you think the project will take and then set the price. However, this mode of billing may cause you to lose money in case the project takes more hours than estimated. The other option is to charge hourly, but even with this, you need to provide an anticipated parameter for your client.

3. The extras

Sometimes the client can add work to your project without reassessing the amount they need to pay. Therefore, apart from stating the services you’ll provide and those you won’t provide, it’s important to include some additional work that your client may not be aware they need to pay extra for. Include the additional work alongside the payment so that the client is prepared to pay extra for them. You may have a separate rate sheet for other services, or state it clearly that any service outside the scope will be charged at a given rate.

4. Timeline

If you’re a freelancer, you know that it’s a must to work with a timescale. You need to let your clients know how long it will take you to complete the project. However, when setting a timeline, ensure it’s achievable. The client relies so much on what you tell them, and failing to meet the set deadline might ruin the relationship. It’s necessary to know your limits and your speed. Can you beat yourself to meet a tight deadline? Or do you need an extra week to set a few things in order? That’s up to you to decide. As a freelancer, you should always deliver on time. So, be sure to fulfill your word to the client.

If you’re a freelancer working on building designs, ensure you have an architect contract in place to be on the safe side. It will protect you from unpaid for services and doing much for less money. Remember, in freelancing time is money. So, get paid for the work you do.