Choosing a Designer

What Questions Should I Ask My Interior Designer Before Hiring?

4 June 2026 · 6 min read

Hiring an interior designer is a significant commitment — financially and personally. You'll be in a working relationship for three to six months. The wrong hire is expensive in money, time, and stress. See our guide on how to choose the right interior designer in Pune for more context before you start calling anyone. Here are the ten questions I'd ask if I were a client.

1. "Who specifically will be working on my project?"

This is the most important question, and most homeowners never ask it. Large firms and platforms often sell you on a senior designer but assign a junior to your project. You want to know exactly who attends your meetings, who makes the design decisions, who answers your calls. At Aura Foundry, the answer is: Ali Asgar. That's the only answer I can give, and I think that's the right answer.

2. "Can I see a render next to a finished photo of the same project?"

Anyone can show a beautiful 3D render. Browse our work portfolio and interiors portfolio to see render-to-reality comparisons from our own completed projects. What you want to see is whether the execution matches it. Ask for side-by-side comparisons. If the designer can't produce them, or the finished photos look significantly different from the renders, that tells you about their execution accuracy.

3. "What is NOT included in your fee?"

Read that carefully — it's about exclusions, not inclusions. Every designer will tell you what's included. Ask specifically what isn't. Site visits beyond the first? Revision rounds beyond one? Contractor coordination? Material sourcing? If these questions make a designer uncomfortable, that's a red flag.

4. "How do you handle site surprises?"

Construction always produces surprises — a wall that can't be broken, electrical that's not where it should be, a structural beam where you planned a storage unit. A good designer has a clear answer: they document the issue, propose alternatives, get your approval before proceeding, and handle change orders in writing. A vague answer here means chaos later.

5. "Can I speak to a past client?"

Confidence in your own work means you offer this without being asked. If a designer hesitates, pauses, or says they'll "check with the client" and then it never happens — notice that.

6. "What happens if I'm unhappy with the outcome?"

This tests accountability. The answer should reference what was approved at what stage — renders, material samples, shop drawings. A good designer has a clear escalation process. What you don't want to hear is vague reassurance with no process behind it.

7. "What's your payment structure and what triggers each payment?"

Understand exactly when you pay and what you receive at each stage. Front-heavy payment structures (large deposit before any work is delivered) are a risk. Payments should be tied to deliverables.

8. "How many active projects are you handling right now?"

A designer juggling 15 projects simultaneously is not giving yours adequate attention, regardless of what they promise. There's no magic number, but the answer should be honest and the designer should be able to tell you their capacity clearly.

9. "What decisions do I need to make and by when?"

A good designer maps out the decision points for you — when you need to finalise the floor plan, approve renders, select tiles, confirm hardware. If a designer can't walk you through this sequence, the project will run late and you'll be constantly surprised by urgent requests.

10. "What do you need from me to do your best work?"

This question reveals a designer's self-awareness. The good ones have a clear answer: clear brief, prompt feedback, decisive approvals, and realistic expectations about timelines. If a designer says "nothing really, we handle everything" — be cautious. Every good project is a collaboration.

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