Why Use An Interior Designer? How Much Do Interior Designers Charge?

Interior Designers pull it all together
 
While it may be true that years ago an interior designer could make a substantial living marking up goods to sell to their clients, today's interior designer's main focus is to give value to their clients by sharing their expertise and professional experience, rather than depending on selling and marking up goods.

How do we share expertise and provide professional service?
  • We provide professional service to our clients when we visit with our clients to discuss the project at hand and listen and note everything needed to create the best solutions for home or office.
  • We collect information at design centers, research new concepts, visit trade shows and showrooms for noteworthy products that may be used to design a home or office.
  • We design floorplans, concept boards and elevations of rooms, so that our clients can see what their spaces will look like before the project is installed.
For instance, a recent project I worked on was based on a design fee for creating the design of the room. The only markup was a small percentage for administrative handling of the items purchased. I copy all receipts and present my hours and the cost of the items to my client for payment. There are no hidden charges, no over-the-top fees or surprises.

Of course, not all designers want to work this way and some projects may be based on a different fee structure to keep record keeping easier for both client and designer.

But in this day and age with the Internet, clients already know how much some items cost. Keep in mind though that there are many aspects to creating a room beyond picking furniture. You won't have a custom looking room by purchasing items off the shelf.

The rooms you see in Houzz or Pinterest were mostly done by designers who spent hours working on everything including floorplans, window treatments, flooring, furniture, lighting, accessories, artwork.

In essence, our value to our clients as interior designers is in our expertise, our creativity, our experience, professionalism and willingness to create the most beautiful space for our clients.

For more information on what's new in design for the home, check this Blog innovative ideas for new construction, renovation and remodeling.

Mary Alice Smith of M. A. Smith, Ltd. - an interior designer serving New Jersey, Ocean and Monmouth County, the Jersey Shore and metropolitan New York areas.
To schedule an appointment call: 732 690-2030 or email me at masmith729@comcast.net.

M. A. Smith, Ltd.
Interior Design
732 690-2030
masmith@masmithinteriordesign.com
Allied Member ASID
http://masmithinteriordesign.com
Blog: HouseZenGarden and Best Design Coach
Serving New Jersey and Metropolitan New York