1999 architects' fees survey | Features

Change in fees from 1998 to 1999
New-build schemes
Traditional contracts
Contract value (£m)	Fees in 1999 (%)	Fees in 1998 (%)
2	5.2	5.3
4	4.7	4.8
6	4.4	4.4
8	4.2	4.2
10	4.0	4.0
12	3.9	3.9
14	3.8	3.8
16	3.7	3.7
18	3.6	3.6
20	3.5	3.5
Design-and-build contracts
Contract value (£m)	Fees in 1999 (%)	Fees in 1998 (%)
2	3.7	3.4
4	3.6	3.3
6	3.5	3.2
8	3.4	3.2
10	3.3	3.1
12	3.3	3.1
14	3.3	3.1
16	3.2	3.1
18	3.2	3.1
20	3.2	3.1

Refurbishment schemes
Traditional contracts
Contract value (£m)	Fees in 1999 (%)	Fees in 1998 (%)
1	7.5	6.8
2	6.8	6.2
3	6.4	5.8
4	6.3	5.6
5	6.0	5.4
Design-and-build contracts
Contract value (£m)	Fees in 1999 (%)	Fees in 1998 (%)
1	4.6	3.9
2	4.2	3.3
3	4.0	3.0
4	3.9	2.8
5	3.8	2.5
There is barely any change in practices’ fees for traditional contract new-build work, but architects working on design-and-build contracts for new-build projects fare better, with average fees up from 3.4% to 3.9% of the total construction cost. The refurbishment sector offers better prospects, with traditional contract work up from 9.2% to 9.5% of the cost of each project. Design-and-build fees in this sector have also risen from 4.5% to 5.3%.

Fees for a £1m project in various sectors
	Fee in 1999	% change on 1998
Leisure	5.9	+15
Office	6.4	+36
Industrial	4.7	+24
Public housing	6.2	no change
Practices working in the leisure, office and industrial sectors experienced particularly big fee rises. The fee for a £1m office job was 36% up on last year, according to research. Leisure work fees are up 15% and industrial work fees up 24%. In contrast, fees for public housing have stayed the same. John Wright, president of the Association of Consultant Architects, says this is because public sector housing work is thin on the ground. The opposite is true in the office, leisure and industrial sectors. However, Wright says the big increases shown are most likely to be the result of firms undercharging in previous years.