Design finalized..

its been more than 2 months since this was last updated.
Alhamdulillah, the design has now been finalized. I never thought the design stage would take this long - 8 months to be exact. The engagement with RAM Architects only started in March, so to be fair, the whole design process took more or less 5 months.

So, next - we need to get the design approved by the authority (MBPJ). But before submitting to MBPJ, it needs to go thru town planning process - this to make sure the design adhered the township requirements etc etc. Apparently, other authorities MBSA, DBKL don't have this sort of requirements. The town planner fee alone is 5K!
And while waiting for that, the loan application can be submitted for conditional approval.
There still chances that the loan might get rejected, and worst case - this Projek Buat Banglo needs to be scrapped off.

But, i always look at things positively. I can still sell off the land.
The land value here has appreciated quite handsomely in the past 2 years. The purchase price was RM50psf back then, and now the asking price is no less than RM90psf - which will give me at least 400K of profit.

So either way - it will still be alrite :)

Finalized Layout - Not!

I had a meeting with the architect last Friday - my comments on the layout:

• need a 2nd staircase at the back - easier for family members to access the kitchen from upstairs. No need to cross over the dining area & avoid the crowd during a function/usrah.
• separate toilet for each bedroom
• re-positioning of prayer room
• expand the dry kitchen.

On Wednesday, they sent me the proposed layout. Not one, not two - but three! Efficient sungguh!!

Option 1
2 staircase with bigger built-up (4460 sf)
Pros - All bedrooms except for master will have more width (3.6m instead of the originally 3.3m). Spacious.

Cons - Bigger built-up = higher cost









Option 2
Only 1 staircase but at the back (4075 sf)
Pros - The house is not that huge, ideally a single staircase should suit us fine. Bedrooms are still 3.6m in width. Upstair family area can overlook the living area downstair. Dining & Living area will be spacious enough to accommodate usrah and solat jemaah.

Cons - Smaller master bathroom (4m width instead of 4.5m). Dining & living area will be too close to each other (might need a divider).



Option 3


2 staircase (4160 sf)
Pros - Looks nice. Not too big, not too small.

Cons - Bedrooms are smaller (w - 3.3m instead of 3.6m).








So, after discussing with wifekins, we both agreed to go with Option 3. At 3pm today, the architect called & i told him to proceed with perspective design for Option 3. At last, we have finalized the layout after nearly 2 months of brainstorming. Yeay!

We usually have a family gathering every Thursday night. So just now, I eagerly showed the layout to my parents. Normally, they would just look at it & say "hmm ok la.. ni ape ni? oOo hmm ok la". But not this time. hehe

Bapak "Kenapa nak ada 2 tangga?"
Me "Sbb senang nanti kalo ade usrah or kenduri, orang atas boleh turun naik tangga belakang & vice versa"
Bapak "Nak senang buat 1 tangga je kat belakang.. umah bapak ni kalo boleh, bapak nak tangga terus ke belakang.. tangga ni utk family naik turun je.. kalo kat depan makan space jee"

betul jugak haha
i've actually thought abt that.. but doesn't it seem weird to have the main staircase at the back? Then, i started belek2 my old magazine 'ID', 'live', 'Impiana'..
And yes - most of the terrace & semi-d houses have staircase sandwiched between the dining and the living area. But for bungalow - there isn't a standard design. Each is unique. You can have more than 2 staircase if you really want. Or none. Do you know the cost for a 2-level personal lift is roughly about RM150k? ;)

So, tomorrow i need to call the architect.. again.. for another re-adjustment hehe
the fun part is - back to the drawing board!

Meet the Architects

The first step to own a bungalow, is to design one.
The architect needs to gather your requirement, put it into a plan & submit to authority. Easy enough, rite? Hmm not quite.

My initial plan was to have a nice small bungalow. The built up should be more or less around 3000sf. And for phase 2, maybe in 5-10 years time expand it to 5000sf or more, konon2 time tu dah banyak duit haha. I tried to simplify the design process by choosing a sample from the internet. I came across Neuhomes website, it hosted a number of bungalow designs. And the Villa Impian design suits my requirement.












Architect #1 KCYS (Feb - Mar 2009)
The bungalow land transaction was completed when my family & I were still in UK. I think it was around Jan or Feb 2009. My thinking was as we would be back in KL in Sept - by that time, I hoped to have the plan approved & the house ready for construction. The Villa Impian design seemed simple enough, though wifekins thought it was very 'plain' & looked like a terrace than a bungalow. But because we were budget-constraint, I wanted to try anything possible to reduce the architect fees & of course, the cost of construction.

Mr Wong is a family friend & a trustworthy contractor. I told him about my bungalow project & that I needed an architect. He recommended a friend of him, Leong from KCYS. From the corporate website, I got to know that the firm focus mostly on commercial & condominium projects. We communicated thru emails & I showed her the Villa Impian design. After discussing with Mr Wong, she reverted back that it IS possible to construct that kind of a house for a budget of 300K. But, its exclusive of the architect fees & only using standard basic finishing. Fair enough. A week later, she sent me her quotation. The total fees alone was 68K.

68K?? That's more than 20% of the house cost! I told her frankly that I expected the fees to be much lower than that. And bear in mind, we were gonna use a design template from Neuhomes. Not designing from scratch. I don't blame her nor the firm. They have their standards. As for me, I need to scout for an architect. An affordable one.
And I've decided not to use the Villa Impian design. It doesn't make any difference cost-wise.


Architect #2 PAC (Oct 09 - Feb 10)
Is there an award for Architect from Hell?

He's a freelance architect. The first encounter was a pleasant one and the second, when he showed us the proposed layout - i was really impressed. And he only charged 30K for the fees. After agreeing the terms, we paid the 10%. Thats when the problem starts.

He didn't show up for the next meeting. I waited n waited. He didn't reply my sms or answer my calls. After a week or so, he called me up & told me he got knocked down on that particular day & during the accident, his hp got stolen. Ok, whatever. We set for another appointment.
He came with a 3D design & it looked awful. I told him I wanted to see improvements on the next meeting. Next meeting was canceled the very last minute, reason - makcik sakit kene balik Penang. And then he cancelled again, reason - maid problem, family problem bla bla. He promised to email the updated design the following week, but noneeee. He didn't answer my calls and after a month - i sent him an sms "Please send me the design by tonite. Else, I have no choice but to terminate you". And no - i didn't get the design that night.

I got his email the next morning with a screwed up design. And few minutes later, got his sms "I dah email smalam. Cuba check.".
I replied him back "Please stop with the lying. I know u just emailed me the design. It wasn't last nite. I'm an IT consultant, I'm not stupid. And the design is all wrong, even the orientation is terbalik. I made a mistake by appointing u."

Never heard of him since.


Architect #3 RAM Architects (Mar 10 - Present)
The PAM website contains a large database of architect firms in Malaysia. It lists down the firms contact person & details. Majority have their own websites where you can view the portfolios. I studied the companies & contacted those who are specialized in bungalow projects. I have also increased my budget from 300K to 400K, to allow more flexibility in the design.

I contacted (mostly by email) more than 20 firms. I got less than 5 replies.
The first 3 told me that its quite impossible to do a bungalow with that kind of budget.
The fourth, was actually the Architect of Neuhomes. I was invited by one of the associates, Ken to his office in Mont Kiara. Coincidentally, he proposed the 'Villa Impiana' design, which according to him, the only design that suits my budget.

The fifth, was Jasmadi, a senior associate from RAM Architects. He invited me over for a meeting at his place in Shah Alam. He took time to explain the process, the options, materials used & what can be achieved with the said budget. As for the fees, they only charge 10% out of total housing cost. And 8% if I appoint them as contractor.

The first week was fruitful. Few days after our first meeting, they went over to the site for survey. The following week, they presented some options on layout which were impressive. After more than a month, the layout is nearing the final stage.
Alhamdulillah :)