Get matched with top architects in Kitty Hawk, NC

Structural engineers draw structural plans, which include detailed drawings of the structural components of a home only. Complete house plans will require additional work from an architect or draftsperson, whose drawings will take the structural drawings into account. They’ll also include more details about the finishing materials and layout of a home, including everything from roofing and flooring materials to the position of furniture, light fixtures, switches, and plumbing fixtures.

Greek Revival and Federal architecture are quite similar in that they focus on symmetry and a blend of utilitarianism and opulence, but they differ in a few key areas. First, Federal architecture tends to include a brick facade, whereas Greek Revival homes more often have stucco siding, much like you’d find in Mediterranean houses. Greek Revival homes also tend to be a bit more ornate, with columns as decor, and more decorative and formal porticos.

Typically, architects do not build homes in a hands-on sense of doing the actual framing, roofing, or other building. Architects usually do not have the training and experience to build the homes they design. An architect would need to know how to do the specific trades required to build a house, which is possible but not a common practice. A general contractor or homebuilder typically oversees the actual details of building the house that the architect designs.

You likely need to hire an architect for your new house design and build, unless you have the design skills and experience with building regulations and standards needed to get your plans approved. If you are able to meet the design requirements, you can hire a draftsperson to create the blueprints for the builders to follow.