choosing an architect

A few months before we purchased our land we began to interview architects. We narrowed the field down to four. One made it very clear that he did not want to get involved in site visits or picking out fixtures. After the interview he never called or emailed us with a proposal. One, although very pleasant, presented us with a proposal but he wanted to do a pitched roof after we expressly said we wanted a flat roof. He explained that there are problems with leaking but we spoke with the other architects and it became very clear that should not be a concern. The third architect seemed fine, but he showed no passion for the project. Then Sean remembered watching an episode of "What's with that house" on HGTV. It featured a house built in Oakland Park, FL, the architect's own house. With his name we were able to find his address. So we drove by his house to see if it looked just as good in person as it did on TV. To our amazement the architect was at home at the time. We approached and explained in the most nonthreatening way possible that we saw his house on TV and we just wanted to see it in person. We spoke a little and he invited us in for a quick tour. Afterwards we made an appointment to interview him. For the interview he gave us a detailed tour of the house, showing us how he solved various problems. We were sold. The architect in question is Teen Woon from Singer Architects. Next time we will post some photos of his house.