Six phases, told the way they actually go.

The six phases

1. 01

   90 minutes · no fee

   The first meeting

   Ninety minutes at the studio — your brief, your site if you have one, and real numbers in plain English: what homes like yours have actually cost, and how long they actually took.

   • A frank conversation about fit, in both directions
   • Regional cost-per-square-foot ranges, stated out loud
   • A written summary of what we heard, within the week

   The honest part

   We take on eight homes a year. If the fit isn't right — budget, style, timing or chemistry — we'll say so at this table and suggest two or three builders we genuinely trust. About a third of first meetings end exactly that way, on good terms.

2. 02

   4–6 weeks · fixed-fee agreement

   Feasibility & budget alignment

   Before design begins we make sure the project can exist: site walk, zoning and utilities review, and an order-of-magnitude budget built from your brief against our last five years of real cost data.

   • Site and zoning findings, in writing
   • An order-of-magnitude budget — honestly a range, roughly ±15%
   • A schedule skeleton from design start to move-in

   The honest part

   An early number is a range, not a promise, and anyone who gives you a single confident figure before design exists is guessing at your expense. Our range narrows at every checkpoint that follows — that's the point of the process.

3. 03

   4–9 months

   Design & documentation

   Schematic design, design development, construction documents — with our estimator pricing the scheme at 30, 60 and 90% so the design and the budget never drift apart. You'll never fall in love with a house you can't afford.

   • Schematic design you can walk through and argue with
   • Priced estimate checkpoints at 30 / 60 / 90% documents
   • Permit and construction documents

   The honest part

   Design takes longer than anyone expects — and rushing it is the most expensive mistake available to you. A month saved in drawing is routinely paid back tenfold as change orders in the field. We won't rush it, even when asked nicely.

4. 04

   3–5 weeks

   Pricing, allowances & contract

   The full line-item budget, the allowance schedule, and the contract — cost-plus with a fixed fee and open book, or a fixed price from complete documents. Both are explained until your questions run out.

   • A line-item construction budget you can actually read
   • An allowance schedule set from your real selections
   • Contingency stated plainly: 5% new construction, 10–15% renovation

   The honest part

   Allowances are where budgets go to die. A teaser allowance — $40 a square foot for stone that actually costs $90 — is how a low bid stays low until it's too late to leave. Ours are set from selections you've already made with Sofia, which is why our final invoices look like our contracts.

5. 05

   10–20 months

   Construction

   The same superintendent from footings to keys, a Tuesday owner walk every single week, monthly open-book draws, and change orders priced and signed before the work proceeds — not after.

   • Weekly owner walk with schedule and budget, first page, every week
   • Monthly draw with every invoice visible
   • Written, pre-priced change orders — zero verbal approvals

   The honest part

   Permit reviewers, weather and a tile shipment from Italy are outside anyone's control — Solana Point lost six pour windows to a marine winter. What we control is telling you the same week we know, with the recovery plan attached. Bad news early is a service; bad news late is a betrayal.

6. 06

   Move-in + 12 months

   Closeout & the first year

   A zero-item punch list is the goal; a short, dated one is the reality. Then the house and you get a first year together — with us on call and two scheduled visits to catch what settling reveals.

   • Systems walkthrough and a real owner's manual
   • 60-day and 11-month warranty visits, scheduled at closing
   • 2-year systems and 10-year structural warranty, in writing

   The honest part

   A new house moves through its first year — wood shrinks, joints whisper, a door will stick. That's physics, not defect, and pretending otherwise is how builders and owners fall out. The 11-month visit exists precisely because we expect the list, and we bring the caulk.