[PeteBrown]

The architects that can get away with it charge 15% of gross construction costs, excluding interior decorating but they usually have a big book of business with a very select group of high net worth clients.

Custom high end architects often charge 10% of gross and are very involved in the entire construction process or bidding contractors, overseeing the jobsite and reviewing all billing including change orders. When business is slow they will convert to an hourly rate and sometimes cap the fee not to exceed "x." Note: these are not projects of $125/sf but most likely starting at $250/sf, & up.

Coming from two generations of architects.