How do we go about finding out what we can do with out house?

[BamburyFuriou3]

Does it have to be an architect?
Basically we would like to rip a hedge and garden wall out, and replace with a wall just where the hedge is (which daft person thought the house needed a hedge and a wall I don't know, but we lose about 1m of garden due to it).
Then we want to swap a bathroom and bedroom as the bathroom is stupidly big and the bedroom is just a boxroom.
We also want a kitchen diner extension on the back.
But we need advice on how much is possible, costs, exact boundary so where we put the wall etc.
Do we go to a builder, architect or who?

Thanks!

Following. Similar dilemma here - how small is too small to be worth an architect, and how much would it cost to find out what our options are? I don't mind paying someone for advice but don't want to overspec the whole thing on a limited budget.

Hopeful bump

You could speak to a builder re extension if you’re savvy and know what you want but will need at least an architectural technician and a structural engineer to do the drawings and calcs.

Hedges and garden walls can be done by garden companies but before you get rid of stuff, think of security and acoustic insulation.

Architects are trained to have ‘vision’ about buildings and you might get a better end result.
I’d look for a small practice in your area, they often will do smaller quirky projects and only up to planning permission , if that’s what the client requires.

You might want to try a 'design and build' type of company. These are builders who are interested in the design element and will see a project through from planning to completion. In our case, they had an architect technician they worked with regularly. From bitter experience we found that going with an architect initially gave us an amazing project on paper, great vision, but turned out it was going to be double our budget or more. She had great ideas but no idea how much things cost and specified things that looked great but were complicated to build. You need to find someone who knows how much things cost. Obviously not all architects are like that, but just make sure if you go to an architect that they have good knowledge of construction methods and costs, or go to a building company with design ideas. We paid £1500 in architect fees then had to start from scratch.