(info, mostly good, snipped)
Is an actual Architect required for residential work in your town/county? Some do, some don't. Many areas have residential designers that are more than qualified to design residental remodels and new construction, at a much lower price point. Unless a house is real strange, odds are what you want has been done before, so a previous design or a book on the shelf will provide the engineering numbers needed. You want somebody with the ability to think in 3d, and willing to meet with you enough times to boil down the design elements that work for you and your family. Ask friends and co-workers who have had remodels and new houses, and see who they have used, with preference to those who used local custom builders, not a chain. I guarantee, the same 3-4 names will keep popping up. A long-term master plan like you describe is an excellent idea, and will not be a problem for a good designer.
How do I know all the above? That is the business my father has been in for
50+ years, and he has all the business he can handle, just from word of mouth. Doctors are his specialty- he does one, the others come over for cocktails or whatever, and pretty soon he has done new houses or remodels for half the doctors in town.aem sends.....