The Fees on Construction Projects in Spain (I)

Professional Fees of Spanish Architects in Building Projects (I)

Urban Conditions and Calculation of Fees

In Spain, we consider “building works”:

• the new construction, unless it has great constructive and technical simplicity, with no residential or public character, and developed on one level
• the extension, modification, reform or rehabilitation that alter the architectural characteristics
• the total intervention works in catalogued buildings, that have some kind of environmental, artistic or historical protection
• the partial intervention works affecting elements or parts to be protected.

Urban Conditions

Typically, applicable urban planning will impose conditions on how the building project can be materialized on each specific site. Between such conditions, the developer will find the maximum height of the building, the allowed building uses and the maximum buildable area. All this information is necessary for the architect to properly estimate the construction cost of the project. It becomes then necessary that the developer is notified in advance of the planning conditions that apply to his particular project, for which there are two main options:

• asking the City Council a “Cédula urbanística” (Urban Report) about his land
• instructing an architect a Study on applicable urban conditions.

The Calculation Method

Before the “Ley de Medidas Liberalizadoras en Materia de Suelo y de Colegios Profesionales” (Law of Liberalization Measures on Land and Professional Associations), the fee scales provided a method for Spanish Architects calculating professional fees corresponding to building projects, which consisted of a first estimate of the probable construction cost and then applying a percentage or fraction weighted by the project's built area and the assignment's complexity. Today, this referred calculation method is no longer mandatory, but it's still understood as reasonable that architect's professional fees are calculated as a weighted fraction of the construction cost.

Spanish Architect's Fee

Professional Fees of the Spanish Architects

The cost of architectural services in Spain

Before April 16, 1997, fees of Architects in Spain were governed by the fee scales established by the Colleges of Architects. However, after the entry of the “Ley de Medidas Liberalizadoras en Materia de Suelo y de Colegios Profesionales” (Law of Liberalization Measures on Land and Professional Associations), the rates established by professional associations became only for guidance. Since then, Spanish Architects have complete freedom when it's to determine the amount of professional fees that correspond to their services.

Items Comprising the Fees

Like any other professional, Spanish Architects are entitled to receive the payment for the professional fees earned by providing services and to recover the costs which were needed to complete their work. The amount of the Architect's professional fees must include at least the following items:

• a compensation for the time spent on the professional assignment
• a compensation for the expenses he had to incur: travel, materials, obtaining documents, etc.
• an adequate remuneration for the duties performed.

In addition, the calculation should take into account the degree of complexity of the assignment and the possible need for specialized knowledge.

The Reporting Obligation

Spanish Architects have a legal obligation to inform their clients about the amount of their professional fees. The current “Ley sobre el libre acceso a las actividades de servicios y su ejercicio” (Law on Free Access to Services Activities and its Exercise) provides two methods for this:

• the Architect previously set a price for a particular type of service, in which case he must provide, in an easily accessible way for clients, the full price, including taxes
• the Architect doesn't set the price beforehand, in which case, at the client's request, he shall provide the service price, or a method to calculate it, or a sufficiently detailed fee proposal.

Daniel Trujillano, Spanish Architect
http://www.arquitectotrujillano.com/home.html
Professional Architectural Services for Building Projects in Spain