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Interior Designer Cost

8 years ago

We are buying an apartment off the plan and want to decor to be as nice as the apartment. We’ve always done this before in our homes and achieved great results but are thinking about getting professional advice this time. No construction just style and advice On furnishings and decor. What would the cost of this generally be? Is it charged by the hour, a total project cost?

We are buying a 3 bedroom apartment with nice sized balcony.

Thanks

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Comments (5)

PRO
Alistair McLean
8 years ago
John, it depends on the interior designer, the services they offer, and sometimes how well known they are. It also depends on the extent of services you require. Commonly off-the-plan apartments have got a limited palette of finishes such as carpets, tiles, paint colours, window furnishings etc that are largely pre-determined by the developer with little scope for change. These existing elements should inform your interior designer, unless you have the budget to redo new building work!

Some interior designers can source furniture at wholesale prices from some suppliers, then organise delivery and installation, but charge you the retail amount, which is where they make their money. High profile interior designers, who are often featured in glossy home magazines, often charge a premium, and a rate determined by the value of the work, as they are in demand. Recent interior design graduates, who have less experience, and fewer resources, are more cost competitive, and will sometimes charge by the hour, or by the visit.

However the most important element in selecting an interior designer, whether they are well-known, or just starting out in the business, is their communications skills, and how well they understand your household's needs, likes, and who can design around accommodating any existing furniture that you own and want to keep. Don't spend big bucks on an interior designer who wants to do their own things to satisfy their own ego as it is your home...

Best of luck,

Dr Retro

of Dr Retro House Calls

BUILD Architecture Award 2018 · More Info
John Hill
Original Author
8 years ago
Thanks very much for taking the time to reply. Really appreciate the input.
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I agree with all and above. Good interior designers can think outside the box. We are trained in many areas and although everyone loves a certain style, interior designers will appreciate and respect all styles and see your passion and love and will follow a brief to make sure the home flows and that functionality is key. As i said earlier, its really important to start with a consultation and then you can decide from there, the 1st consultation is the start of see what you want, like, require and so on as you may only need a designer to guide you and then the rest you may be able to pick up on. The most beneficial advice i can give is do a consultation and through that you will see what you need and a good designer will be honest and will tell you if they feel you only need a small amount of guidance. I will give you an example of a situation where a person should have employed an interior designer, my next door neighbour built a home (im in a brand new area) and he choose the colours, textiles on his own and ended up with a moss green render, burgundy column and grey pathway. his house is horrible and had totally devalued his home just by doing it him self as he had no idea and now its to late, he rents it out and struggles to do it and real estates told him that he will have to lower the rental price due to the look. Good luck with it all, $150 is a small price to start with to give you an idea and all professionals will give you a further quote so that you know what to expect and then its up to you
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Depending Regs, L would have both properties with double garages, parking is gold in Sydney, it would also make both driveways safer with better visuals. Th existing house is like small boxes, certainly doesn't need or have the space for a WIP, better to enlarge the living area this is a 4 bedroom house. The pantries could continue along the kitchen wall and would only need to be 300 - 400 deep for better storage and access without having to install draws for deeper 600 to work efficiently, also allows more floor space for the dining. 4 bedrooms with no Master? but a WIP?, I could live without either. The New build I would chaange so that it flows better, Kitchen and Alfresco together next to pool The Master with balcony, that space could be better used as a study, once again like the glass doors opening to the pool done with done with Juliet style glass across them, still have the feel of a balcony. Forgot to mark internal access from the new builds garage , they both should have that. good luck
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PRO
Paul Di Stefano Design
8 years ago
Typically you can start with a reasonably modest hour or two site consultation/assessment/discussion that shouldn't be more than a few hundred $$ give or take

From that point it will depend upon extent of services required. It's great to see you thinking in this way and understanding how investment in this "finishing" advice is just as important as the physical investment itself.......this is where so many people go wrong and undercook/sell themselves short........depending on the extent of advice and specification/research you are seeking, and the quality/style/size of your apartment, you could be talking anything from several hundred to several thousand in professional fees.......I'd encourage you to speak directly to a few selected local interior professionals and trust your instinct from the conversations you have with them & go from there

Good Luck! PD:)
John Hill thanked Paul Di Stefano Design
John Hill
Original Author
8 years ago
Appreciate the input. We want it to look great not just nice.
PRO
Nathalie Scipioni Architects
8 years ago
Depending on the level of expertise (whether it be a graduate or a senior Interior Designer), many normally charge by the hour. For example, at my firm we have a range of designers charging slightly different hourly rates.

But a good designer will always take into consideration what you want whilst putting their own flair and experience into play!

If you have any other questions in regards to this, please do not hesitate to contact us!

Good luck!

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