Lizzie and Joe’s Design and Build Therapy - Episode 3:

“Help! How do I find a builder I can trust? How do I get one and what do I need to watch out for?”

Who - Lizzie Fraher & Joe Fraher

Description - Lizzie and Joe are a husband and wife pair of Architects who run Fraher & Findlay - an architecture, build and joinery company in South London, and have been designing and building projects together for the past 15 years. Lizzie is a featured Architect on BBC2’s building show - “Your Home Made Perfect”.

In this third episode, Lizzie and Joe discuss how to find a trustworthy contractor for your building project, the importance of this trusting relationship and what pitfalls to look out for when hiring someone. They also discuss how to design a bright but private room in your house and discuss how to know if a heat pump is right for you.

Homework for finding the right contractor for you:

- Get a personal recommendation from people in your area.

- Look up contractors on Companies House and check out which companies they have been involved with and their trading history.

- Ask for references from previous clients, at all stages of a build. - Try and go to see a project that your contractor has built.

- Look at which accreditation your contractor has, is it one they have paid for or is it one that has higher requirements for entry.

Links:

RIBA guide to working with an Architect: https://www.architecture.com/knowledge-and-resources/resources-landing-page/how-do-i-use-an-architect

Federation of Master Builders: https://www.fmb.org.uk/

Video consultations with Lizzie - https://ffconsultations.myshopify.com

Fraher & Findlay website:www.fraherandfindlay.com

Fraher & Findlay instagram - https://www.instagram.com/fraherandfindlay/?hl=en

Lizzie Fraher instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lizziefraherarchitect/?hl=en

Upcoming in Podcast 4: What do Architects actually do?!