It’s time once again to share answers to questions church leaders asked in one of our free i3 church design webinars. These questions were received during our recent i3 webinar on the principles of a successful church building project.
While a good reason to attend our i3 webinars is the opportunity to ask questions about your particular church building situation, if you missed one, you could always have questions addressed through this link on our website.
Here are our responses to those recent questions.
Question 1: What is the average cost and timeframe for a feasibility study?
A feasibility study is a one-time answer to a specific question. We perform the study, complete the drawing or the report, and that’s all. Typically, such a study centers around a question like, “Should we stay, or should we move?” or “Should we buy property A, or B, or C, or D?”
The timeframe for such a study is anywhere from one month to three months and the cost can vary widely, depending on the amount of work involved. If the feasibility study involves comparing two properties, for example, that’s obviously half the work than if we’re studying four different properties. Therefore, the cost for a feasibility study could range, usually, anywhere from $2,500 for a simple, straightforward study, to up to $10,000, for a more complex feasibility study with full-blown designs on multiple properties.
Question 2: What’s the difference between a church building feasibility study and a full-blown church design?
When you want a full church design that will meet the needs of your church vision, that’s more than a feasibility study. The process includes multiple meetings. We will bring in a design and explain it to you, allow time for comments and feedback, then we go back and revise the church design. We often go through that process three or four times before it’s perfect. So, the full-blown design process is typically more in the range of $10,000 to $20,000, depending on the amount of work. The timeframe for a full-blown church design process is typically three to six months.
Question 3: What is the cost for an initial conversation about a potential church building project?
The answer to this question depends on where you’re located. If you’re situated in the Midwest, or someplace that’s easy for us to get to, it’s possible that we can have our initial conversation at no cost to you. If it’s a more difficult location or too far away from our home base and the expenses are a little higher, we may ask for you to reimburse us for travel expenses only.
The reason we try to minimize costs for that initial conversation is that we want to come talk with you, right up front, and do a walkthrough of your existing church building, or a property that you’re thinking about buying. That one-time visit includes a presentation to your church board or your building committee to help explain typical church building projects, how we work, and how the process might flow. It gives you a chance to get to know us and us a chance to learn about how a new church design or church building remodeling project can support your church vision for ministry.
As you can see, we’re happy to answer questions anytime about our church design and building process. To learn more about church design and church building, sign up here for one of our forthcoming free i3 webinars or contact us directly with your questions.