Consults & sketches: for ideas Landscape design consultations are meant to give ideas only. They are not intended to be built from without further development and verification of feasibility from a qualified professional. These prices apply to residential design work only. Areas outside of approximately 70 miles from Sacramento may be billed at higher rates (unless we happen to be in your area anyway). Verbal Consults: $100 for up to 90 minutes. These consults take place on the site where you wish to get ideas. After listening to your thoughts, we ask questions to better define possible design approaches, look at the existing conditions, and give a series of ideas on what can be done. We tend to give a range of ideas at this point, so virtually all of the possibilities that conform to your needs can be quickly discussed. Sketch Consults: thumbnail sketches of the possibilities. The process is the same as for verbal consults, except that we sketch out our ideas as rough concepts, add color and notes in our office and mail them back to you on 11" x 17" or larger paper. With sketch consults, you don't have to remember all the ideas, and you'll have some quick drawings for a better idea of what we discussed. The plans are not to scale, so they can't be used for quantity estimating - but they are close enough so that you can choose a concept for further development. Under 1 acre: $450.00 Up to 90 minute consult, with sketches. We mail you a copy of the sketches after the consult.
1 - 2 acres: $1,000 Two hour consult, with sketches. We mail you a copy of the sketches after the consult.
2 - 5 acres: $1,500 Three hour consult, with sketches. We mail you a copy of the sketches after the consult.
Acres refers to acres to be developed, not total site acreage. Please contact us for fees for sites over 5 acres of developed land. | Scaled plans: for construction Since each project is unique, we can only give starting prices here. Once we've had a consult, we can prepare a proposal with a price and a specific scope of services offered for your project. These prices are for new construction, typical small production residential back yards on basically flat sites. Larger lots, hilly sites or more complicated designs will be priced higher, according to size and complexity of the work involved. Once we've seen the site, we will send a proposal indicating our fees and scope of service. Our fees are lump sum figures, reflecting the amount of work needed to complete the designs as stated in our proposal. We don't base our fees on project budget (or cost), so we don't have any "built-in" incentive to drive the cost upward. Fees are broken down by project phase, typically into four payments: a retainer fee at the start, a payment when the design is presented, a payment when we meet to determine the final design, and a meeting at the completion of drawings. These prices are indicative only - the price for your project will be clearly indicated on a design proposal prior to start of work. Plan Set A: Illustrated conceptual drawings: $1,500.00 and up Plan set B: Concept + Construction drawings: $2,000 and up Plan set C: Illustrated concept + construction drawings: $3,200 and up. Estates: Plans & services for large custom homes: $20,000 and up |
About Design... A landscape design should be a custom creation, tailored to fit your lifestyle and taste. It should "flow", its elements linked together harmoniously into something that works. Landscapes should never be collections of "things": a pool here, a patio there, a fountain somewhere else. Sacramento's climate allows many styles of landscape. Nearby regions such as Napa allow even more varieties of plants. The Lake Tahoe area is a great place for native plants and perennials that require winter cold. Let Luciole Design be your guide to creating the environment that's right for you. | About construction Probably the biggest influence on construction cost is whether you're going to do the work yourself or hire a contractor. Hiring a contractor is by far the simplest way to accomplish a project. Doing the work yourself may save you money, but cost you more aggravation than it's worth unless you've done landscape construction before. Most production landscapes with common features such as concrete patios, shade structures, perhaps a built-in gas grill, drainage, irrigation and planting cost upwards of $40,000.00 if the work is done by a skilled landscape contractor. Adding options such as seat walls, stone paving, custom water features, outdoor fireplaces, specimen trees and lighting can easily drive the price upwards to $60,000.00 or more. Add a swimming pool and the project cost can hit $90,000 or much more, depending on options, and there are a lot of them. Hilly sites and extensive demolition can add even more costs. These prices are only shown here as guidance, and should not be considered contractual - only the contractor bidding your project can give you solid pricing information. If you're contemplating a new landscape, it makes a lot of sense to hire a landscape architect. We can guide you through the design, and help you choose between options, provide plans that allow you to get comparative bids from different contractors, and give you advice about style. All this generally for less than the price of a new big screen hi definition entertainment system - and often less than the difference in bids between contractors. |
