You would never agree to surgery without a proper diagnosis or an assessment of potential risks. Similarly, like any good doctor, we always conduct thorough diagnostics before confirming what can be done on your site. Anything less would set us all up for failure and disappointment, and leave your project vulnerable to painful complications and expenses.

Enter the unsung hero of every successful build: Due Diligence.

In this pre-design research and feasibility study phase, we investigate factors like existing permits, code restrictions, zoning information, and municipal requirements. This helps us understand what alterations have been made to your home or property in the past and what can or cannot be done now. Because no matter how beautiful a design is, if it doesn’t comply with height restrictions, setbacks, maximum allowable square footage, or easements and ordinances, it can’t be built.

But, as with so many other things in life, what your property looks like on paper is never the full story. This is why we augment our in-house findings with various consultants to effectively design and build your home. We want to ensure we’re providing you with accurate insights that may affect your choices and that our designs are tailored to the exact specifications of your home and the land beneath it.

Every site is unique, and no build is ever the same, but certain consultants are standard. Which consultant will be necessary for your Action Plan depends on whether your property is sloped or flat and the nature of your project itself:

You can sometimes postpone surveys during our Action Plan if you have them from a previous build-out. However, they will ultimately be required to get planning and building approval for permitting and are essential to effectively design your home to suit the land. We know these surveys are costly and deferring them can feel sensible. But a delayed survey can later reveal underlying conditions that will balloon your budget or cause major delays in your timeline.

Now, equipped with this in-depth knowledge, we go boots-on-the-ground for a comprehensive walkthrough of your home with your Project Manager and at least one of our Principals. But we aren’t just there to discuss site conditions and constraints.

Your personal vision for your home is just as important. While we were gathering the concrete details, you’ll also have shared the intangible ones—your motivations, needs, functional and aesthetic goals. Then during our time together on site, we’ll dive even deeper into how you want to feel in your home when it’s complete and you’re hosting your first dinner party for loved ones.

Phase Duration:

2-6 Weeks (depending on consultant schedules or if you’re able to provide previously conducted surveys or the original plans of your home)

Typical Fee Range:

$3,500-$5,000 (without consultants)

Considering all that goes into it, you undoubtedly see why we can't begin design work without completing our Due Diligence. And would you trust a firm that does? After all, we need to set the foundation before we start framing, don’t we?

Now that we have the facts, let’s have some fun!

This phase is where we merge our analysis of your site’s code requirements and physical conditions with your personal motivations, wants, and needs into a unique home, made just for you.

We create up to THREE hand-sketched design options for your new home, including floor plans, site plans, and key 3D views, along with inspiration imagery and details such as specific features, square footages, and bedroom and bathroom counts. Depending on your preferences and project scope, these options may also explore different investment levels, development possibilities, or phasing plans.

We will then meet with you to review our initial designs in a clear presentation, specifically crafted to help you visualize what we’re proposing. We’ll walk you through each option, discuss the pros and cons, your likes and dislikes, and any changes you’d like to make. From there, we’ll update the sketches to incorporate your feedback, including combining features you like from different options into one final version.

Phase Duration:

3-4 weeks

Typical Fee Range:

$3,500-6,500

It is now this fully feasible design, which we’ve made sure you love, that we will take into the next phase for pricing.

Transparency is at the heart of our values, so we won’t pretend that building a custom home is inexpensive—it’s the couture of construction. But that doesn’t mean costs should spiral out of control either. So this final phase of our Action Plan is your first price check (there are 2 more in our full 4-Step Process!) and its sole purpose is to give you a realistic understanding of your total project costs.

To do this, we meticulously pull data from our past and current projects, leverage our expert knowledge of industry markets and trends, and reach out to our consultants and subcontractors for honest estimates, all to create a bespoke budget that matches your chosen Conceptual Design.

Unlike some contractors, we don’t offer a vague price-per-square-foot estimate or the lowest bid just to win your project, only to raise costs later. That won’t serve you, your project, or your bottom line. Instead, we provide a detailed itemization of your all-in costs for the full scope of your project. This includes not just the hard costs of construction but also soft costs such as surveys, design development, engineering fees, permitting, and more. We also build in allocations for finishes, fixtures, landscaping, and hardscaping—important details that are often overlooked but are a significant part of your budget and help turn a house into your dream home.

We will never dictate how you should utilize your budget or what you should prioritize. Our only goal is to arm you with all the information you need to make the most informed decisions. Whether you have a firm spending limit or a little wiggle room, we’ll propose areas for savings and price out those nice-to-haves like a pool and a spa or luxury finishes and fixtures.

And, most importantly, we collaborate with you during this process. Once we’ve finalized the initial numbers, we meet with you to review them and then make adjustments to ensure you get what you want, at a price that works for you.

Can you think of a better way to set your project up for success?

Phase Duration:

2 weeks

Typical Fee Range:

$1,500-$2,000