DEAR TIM: My husband and I engaged the services of an architect for our project. At the beginning of the process we told him how much money we had to spend on the project. The bids for the job are all coming in about 40 percent over our budget. What went wrong? What can be done, if anything, to salvage the project? Can this agony be avoided? C.R.

DEAR C. R.: I am sorry to hear of your misfortune. On more than one occasion, I had to deliver cost estimates to homeowners that exceeded their budgets. I know the anger and frustration you are feeling. The sad thing is, in almost all cases, it can be avoided. In my opinion, you may have a legitimate beef with your architect.

Frequently, problems such as yours happen in the earliest stages of planning. Homeowners communicate their project wish list to the architect. Often, dramatic preliminary drawings of the project are produced. You can become entranced and intoxicated by these sketches. The emotional attachment to the project intensifies. It is difficult, if not impossible, to turn back at this point. Architects who permit this to happen are guilty of a major infraction: failure to maintain an assured, clear distance.

Your cost overruns are severe. There is little you can do to maintain the integrity of the project. Cost cutting measures that maintain project integrity usually only produce savings in the 5 - 7 percent range. To achieve further cost savings, major product substitutions have to be initiated and/ or the size of the project has to be reduced. These are painful procedures.

Architects can avoid problems like this. However, it requires some work on their part. Fortunately, with computer advancements it is not that hard to do. A simple system of tracking job costs, detailed cost breakdowns, project size and style, and difficulty rating is all that is needed.

An architect can quickly calculate the square foot area of recent projects. They know what these jobs cost. From this, they can calculate finished square foot costs. Because they drew the plans, they can assign a difficulty factor.

Imagine what could have happened in your case. Immediately after hearing what you and your husband wanted, the architect could have stopped the conversation. He could have taken your budget number and divided it by the current cost per square foot for similar projects. Within a matter of minutes, he could have told you the maximum square footage of your planned project. Given this number, you and the architect could quickly determine if the size would fit your needs.

This exercise can often take place in as little as 1 hour. You need a disciplined architect who is armed with accurate and up to date square foot cost figures. Ask for the availability of this data when choosing your architect. If you get a puzzled look, continue to interview prospective candidates.