The fee tariff which is published by The South African Council for the Architectural Profession (SACAP) is a general guideline which most architects will refer to when composing fee proposals. The tariff is published in the Government Gazette and is updated annually.
TABLE 1: PROJECT COST BASED FEES
Should the client have a construction budget of R1 000 000. The architectural fee would be calculated as follows:
Base Fee + % of Project cost = Fee
14 250 + 100 000 (10% of R1 000 000) = R114 250
The fee for work that includes alterations is based on the total project cost as per TABLE 1 and increased for that portion of the work comprising alterations by 30%. The main reason for this is that the complexity of alteration work is far greater than any new-build and therefore more time consuming. Secondly, an architect will spend a significant amount of time documenting the existing structure before starting any work, and thirdly, demolition of any existing structure will always reveal hidden complications which in most cases leads to a partial if not a complete re-design.
The example below is an illustration of how this fee would be calculated
Base Fee + % of Project cost = Fee + 30% = Fee
14 250 + 100 000 (10% of R1 000 000) = R114 250 + 342750 = 148 525
The total fee is broken down to correspond to the work stages which the architects appointment is divided into. An architect may be appointed for individual stages only should a client choose. The apportionment of these fees are illustrated in the table below and may be adjusted by agreement.
TABLE 2: APPORTIONMENT OF FEES
TABLE 2: APPORTIONMENT OF FEES
In certain scenarios an hourly rate would be a more appropriate way of approaching fees. Examples of this would include but not be limited to situations where an architect is appointed for design consultation, preparation of feasibility studies, subdivision applications, heritage applications, joinery documentation and presentation or marketing material etc.
The Table below illustrates the hourly rates which may be charged by architects. Again, this is only and indication and you may very well find architects charging differently.
TABLE 3: RECOMMENDED TIME BASED FEE
