Malone - The Architects Guide to Residential Design

The Architects Guide to Residential Design

Michael Malone, AIA

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This book is for my children Meredyth, Max, Riley,
and Carlie, who compete for my attention with my practice and
the houses which are my other, much needier children. The experiences
in this book would be impossible but for Gary and Sandra,
who lit the torch, and Amy, who carries it.

Michael Malone, AIA, is Director of the Michael Malone Studio at WKMC Architects in Dallas, Texas. In his capacity as a design principal for a 40-person architectural firm, he leads and coordinates design for single- and multifamily residences, specialty retail, commercial offices, and corporate marketing centers. Mr. Malones client roster includes EDS, Lockheed Martin, Shell Oil Company, Harrahs Casinos, and the Discovery Channel. He has contributed to several publications and has written articles and columns for professional and industry magazines such as Texas Architect, Metal Architecture, and Exhibit Builder. The Architects Guide to Residential Design is based on a well-received presentation that Mr. Malone first introduced at the 2006 annual convention of the Texas Society of Architects. A graduate of Auburn University and University of Texas at Arlington, he lives in Dallas with his wife Amy and four children Meredyth, Max, Riley, and Carlie.

A casual survey of why people become architects will inevitably lead to an early interest in or passion for the design of houses. It is therefore surprising to many people that not all architects design houses. Single-family residential design is something most architects feel they have the skills and knowledge to do effectively, but the reality is few of us make an ongoing practice of it and even fewer can earn a meaningful living doing it. I knowI try to do it every day and it is tough.

This book had its start as an answer to a question. A good friend of mine, Tim, got the opportunity to do what all of us architects (and a lot of nonarchitects) dream ofdesign and build his own house. Tim enjoys a successful architectural career working almost exclusively on commercial projects. Using this experience and his considerable organizational skills, he designed his house in an orderly manner that reflected everything hed learned about how to lay out and plan an efficient building. Using the careful assumptions any of us would make when planning for economy and efficiency, he arranged the rooms in a compact mass with a minimum of exterior surface area. He utilized standard sizes of lumber and masonry when laying out and organizing his elevations. He avoided curves, expensive finishes, and difficult details. He stacked his plumbing in a logical manner, minimized lighting fixtures, and oriented the house to minimize solar gain while maximizing opportunities for natural lighting. He reviewed his completed drawings carefully with a responsible contractor with a reputation for fair pricing and an acceptable level of quality and provided cut sheets and data for all the materials he thought necessary, so as to leave no questions unanswered and to avoid gray areas that could lead to higher or incomplete pricing. A few weeks later, the contractor called him with news that his bid number was ready and a meeting was arranged to review the pricing.

That night Tim (and his wife), for the first time in his professional career, was on the receiving end of a cost estimate that was significantly over budget. Hed been in the room as a consultant many times when a client reacted with shock when a bid or budget price for a building project came in high, and he was adept at all the things to say to handle damage control. But in this case it was his own house, his own money! He was the client and the partner in this particular business deal was his wife, who immediately brought into question his professional competence. How could he design a house so far over budget and not know it?