So, you’re ready to give your home a new look but don’t know where to start? Don’t worry, there’s an entire job dedicated to such projects. Enter: your home’s new knight in shining armor—A.K.A. an interior designer. But just like any relationship, you’re going to need to find the one that clicks with you in more ways than one. How do you hire that perfect interior designer? Well, you can start by running through a few important questions:

4 Questions to Ask Before You Hire an Interior Designer:

1) What Are Your Rates?

Before you get started working with an interior designer, you’ll have to set realistic expectations. This is largely based on your budget and what your designer can do with it. It’s important to note that this will be different for everyone. If you’d like to give your designer more creative freedom, then be ready to be a bit more flexible with your budget or look into ways to quickly grow your savings. Designer fees can range anywhere between a few hundred dollars to a few thousand, so make sure you’re working with someone who fits both your budget and design aspirations.

2) What Do Your Services Include?

Not every interior designer offers the same package. Their services might include design consultation, site measurement and assessment, design concepts, procurement, and so on. Before hiring a designer, try to get an idea of what you’re paying for. Ultimately, you’ll want to work with a firm that specializes in the services you need for your project and doesn’t try to sell you on a host of other unnecessary services. For example, if you were mostly looking for inspiration regarding what furnishings and decorative pieces give your room a fresh revamp, it might be overkill to hire an interior designer that specializes in larger in-house architecture projects that might involve the building or tearing down of walls.

3) Who Will Work on This Project?

When interviewing an interior designer, it may become apparent that they work without a team. Depending on the scale of your project, this might stick out as a red flag. Most projects involve a lot of moving parts. Because of that, it’s helpful to have a number of professionals with varying areas of expertise working collaboratively to see your project through until the end. Don’t be afraid to ask about qualifications or examples of similar projects they’ve done in the past. Just like how you’d vet a doctor before a big surgery, you should vet your interior designer before agreeing to work with them.

4) What Happens If I Don’t Like the Design?

In most cases, you can avoid that awkward situation where you don’t agree with someone’s design plans by looking at their online portfolio of previous work and determining if their style aligns with yours. Having said that, it’s important to know what can be done in the event that their ideas aren’t exactly what you were looking for. These opinions are best voiced during the conceptual phase when no purchases have been made and the team is showcasing their ideas to you. Be open, but be honest with yourself. It can take time to create an interior that is perfect for you, during which your tastes might change or evolve. Nonetheless, your home is for you and you alone, so the result should be one that reflects your personal style and that you’re happy with.

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