Thanks Miroslav for the wealth of info and Andrew for the feedback.
Miroslave, I agree about not cheapening-out, but a firm believe in being fair and reasonable.
I thought what a guy quoting me; essentially to customize an existing theme/template he ostensibly already had was a bit ‘heavy’. Both him and I are local: Toronto, Canada.
There is a lot of skill in the WordPress community, but it’s the balance of skill and aesthetic sensibility that is hard to find.
I’ll check with a few other designers to prove positive what is fair and reasonable. Save, for that, I may have to roll-up my sleeves and customize some of themes available out there allowing for maximum customization, with the coup de grace of not having to manipulate code.