Clinch

Free template · 16 questions

Architect client questionnaire

A pre-design brief for residential and small commercial projects: site, programme, budget and planning constraints before the first sketch.

When to send it: Before the feasibility study.

Site

  1. 1.Site address, and do you own it?
  2. 2.Existing surveys, title plans, or drawings of the current building.
  3. 3.Known constraints: listed building, conservation area, easements, flood zone?

Programme

  1. 4.New build, extension or renovation?
  2. 5.Rooms and spaces you need, with any must-have sizes.
  3. 6.How you want the building to feel, and buildings you admire.
  4. 7.Sustainability goals: insulation standard, heat pump, solar, materials?

Budget and process

  1. 8.Total construction budget, and is there contingency?
  2. 9.Which RIBA stages (or equivalent) do you want me to cover?
  3. 10.Do you already have a builder, structural engineer or planning consultant?
  4. 11.Target dates for planning submission and completion.

Budget, timing and decisions

  1. 12.What budget range have you set aside for this?
  2. 13.Is there a hard deadline, and what happens if it moves?
  3. 14.Who else needs to approve the work or the contract?
  4. 15.How would you prefer we communicate (email, calls, messaging), and how often?
  5. 16.How did you hear about me?

Send it, and get the answers back

Stop copying answers out of email threads. With Clinch the questionnaire goes out with your proposal or contract, your client fills it in from their phone, and the deposit is paid when they sign.

Send this questionnaire free

Questions about client questionnaires

When should a architect send a client questionnaire?

Before the feasibility study.

Can I edit these questions?

Yes. Copy them, remove what does not apply and add your own. Shorter questionnaires get answered faster: keep only the questions whose answers change your price, your plan or your contract.

Should the questionnaire come before or after the contract?

Questions that affect price and scope belong before the proposal; the detailed ones (names, timelines, access) work best right after signing, when the client is committed and expects them.

How do I send it with Clinch?

Create a free Clinch account, paste the questions, and send them with your proposal or contract. Your client answers from their phone without an account, and the answers are saved on the client's record.