Expert tip Oliver Girharz Building on Mallorca - architect's services and fees

Everyone who has ever built, renovated or modernized a house in Germany has probably already had to deal with the services and the associated fees of the architect.

This is regulated in the scale of fees for architects and engineers (HOAI), which in turn is divided into different service phases. There is also a similar regulation in Spain (Barem orientativo de honorarios del COAB), which is similar in principle to the German one, but has some major differences.

Performance phases

Both fee regulations specifically describe the architect's scope of services, whereby the German HOAI is divided into a total of 9 service phases, while the Spanish HOAI is divided into a total of 6. Service phases 1-3 of the HOAI are often combined and deal with the design (basic evaluation, preliminary planning + cost estimate, design planning + cost calculation) of the project, which is divided into 2 phases (Estudios previos + Anteproyecto) in the Spanish version.

Phase 4 of the German HOAI comprises the approval planning and is equivalent to the Spanish „Proyecto Básico“, the execution planning with the „Proyecto de Ejecución“. In Spain, service phases 6 + 7 (preparation and participation in the awarding of contracts) are included in the „Proyecto de Ejecución“, although unfortunately not as extensive and detailed as you might be familiar with from Germany.

Service phase 8 (construction supervision), on the other hand, corresponds to the Spanish „Dirección de Obra“ (construction management and supervision) and the „Liquidación y Recepción de Obra“ (cost accounting and handover). The German service phase 9, property management (e.g. defect assessment before expiry of limitation periods, management of the property after completion), on the other hand, is almost unknown here!

Fees

In Germany, architects' fees are calculated using the HOAI fee table, whereby the net construction costs are used for the calculation. With net construction costs of approx. 800,000 euros, an architect's fee of approx. 105,000 euros must be expected in Germany. The calculation in Spain according to the local fee regulation refers first and foremost to the size of the property. If, for example, we take a detached house with a size of approx. 400m2, the coefficient to be applied in Spain is 7.9%. With net construction costs of 800,000 euros, this results in a comparatively low architect's fee of 63,200 euros, in contrast to the German variant. However, it should not be forgotten that in Spain a technical architect must also be commissioned, which for a house size of 400m2 adds another 2.41%, in our case an additional approx. 19,200 euros.

However, it should also be noted that the above calculation example does not include any additional services, surcharges or modifications to the plans, which can lead to a considerable increase in fees.

Tip
In principle, both fee regulations are recommendations and neither is binding. It is therefore always advisable to agree the fee for the entire construction project in advance. The fee calculated in advance can quickly get out of hand, especially in the case of technically demanding, highly customized and therefore more expensive projects. Linking the fee to the construction costs is also generally suboptimal, especially when it comes to high-priced properties with expensive materials.The author is the managing director of the engineering and project management company Matrol Servicios y Peritajes SL. Contact details: Tel. 971 10 40 25 – www.matrol.es.