Owner-Architect Agreement
Owner-architect questions test basic services, additional services, compensation, reimbursables, termination, standard of care, amendments, and agreement adherence.
How to study for ARE Project Management
Use NCARB's PjM objectives as the map: connect team criteria, resource allocation, work plans, schedule control, communication, contracts, budget, scope change, AHJ approvals, and quality control.
Core concepts
Concept 1
Owner-Architect Agreement questions reward the answer that follows the official source, the professional role, and the stated facts.
Exam cue: Identify the candidate role, client or public risk, source rule, calculation, or process step being tested.
Concept 2
The strongest answer identifies the rule, safety concern, ethical duty, calculation, client factor, or process step before acting.
Exam cue: Check whether the fact pattern is using a national standard, jurisdiction rule, handbook policy, or scenario-specific instruction.
Concept 3
Eliminate answers that ignore requirements, skip documentation, overreach the role, or treat convenience as the standard.
Exam cue: Choose the compliant and professionally scoped answer before the convenient or familiar answer.
Risk pitfalls and guardrails
Treating related standards as interchangeable without checking the source.
Guardrail: Avoid answers that rely only on habit, ignore the stated source, skip safety or compliance steps, or choose convenience over the professional standard.
Skipping screening, documentation, authorization, sanitation, recordkeeping, or other required procedure.
Guardrail: Avoid answers that rely only on habit, ignore the stated source, skip safety or compliance steps, or choose convenience over the professional standard.
Choosing an answer that protects convenience instead of client safety, public protection, or the stated professional duty.
Guardrail: Avoid answers that rely only on habit, ignore the stated source, skip safety or compliance steps, or choose convenience over the professional standard.
Memory anchors
Owner Architect Agreement
The owner-architect agreement defines services, responsibilities, compensation, schedule assumptions, and contract procedures.
Basic Services
Basic services are the agreed services included in the architect's compensation unless changed by the contract.
Additional Services
Additional services are outside basic services and should be authorized with scope, fee, and schedule terms.
Compensation
Compensation terms explain how the architect is paid and how fee changes, billing, and payment timing work.
Reimbursable
Reimbursable expenses should be defined, approved, documented, and billed according to the agreement.
Termination
Termination clauses define notice, cause or convenience, payment rights, suspension, and closeout obligations.
Standard of Care
Standard of care should not be converted into a guarantee, warranty, or absolute promise of perfection.
Contract Amendment
Contract amendments document agreed changes to scope, fee, schedule, responsibility, or terms.
Checkpoint rule
Do the check-up only after you can summarize each concept in one sentence and identify one dangerous pitfall from memory.
Knowledge Check (after reading)
Short check-up to confirm understanding of this module.
Check-up Questions
The standard of care an architect owes is measured against:
An owner proposes agreement language requiring the architect's services to be performed to the highest professional standard. The architect should:
Answer all questions to submit.
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