CommonQuestions

Design-build means architecture, interior design, engineering and construction all live under one roof and one contract. Instead of hiring an architect, then bidding the drawings out to a separate contractor, you work with a single team from the first sketch to the final walkthrough. One schedule, one point of contact, and no finger-pointing between designer and builder when a decision has to be made on site.

High-end residential work: full home renovations, large-scale kitchen and bath remodels, additions, ADUs, and ground-up custom homes. Our projects are design-driven and detail-heavy, shaped around how a family actually lives. As a rule of thumb our work starts around $75,000, and most projects are considerably larger.

We're based in Walnut Creek and focus on the 680/24 corridor and the surrounding East Bay, Lafayette, Orinda, Moraga, Danville, Alamo, Piedmont and the neighbouring communities. If your property sits just outside that area, reach out anyway; we review every inquiry before deciding.

No. Most clients come to us with little more than a feeling about how they want to live. We start by listening, site visits, conversations, photos of what feels right and what doesn't, and then develop the architecture and interiors together. If you already have drawings, even better: we'll review them and pick up from there.

Every project runs through our K.E.Y.S framework. Know, we listen and survey the site. Envision, architecture, interiors and engineering develop together into renderings that are buildable, on budget and unmistakably yours. Yield, our own craftsmen carry the build end to end, with materials, permits and trades lined up before a tool is lifted. Stay, we hand over the keys and remain available for years.

It depends on scope, but design and engineering typically run eight to sixteen weeks, with construction following from there. Because design and build happen in the same studio, we sequence materials, permits and trades up front, which keeps the build phase predictable and shortens the overall timeline compared with the traditional architect-then-bid route.

Yes. After an initial conversation we give you a transparent ballpark range, and as the design firms up so does the number. We never design something we can't deliver at the figure we quoted, the renderings you sign off on are buildable and on budget, with no surprise line items appearing once construction starts.

We do. Structural engineering, drawings, permitting and inspections are all managed in-house as part of the project. You won't be coordinating between separate offices or chasing paperwork, we carry it from first submittal to final sign-off.

Our real strength is keeping everything in one studio, but we collaborate when it makes sense. If there's a designer or architect you already love, tell us early and we'll find the right way to work alongside them.

We walk you through every system, hand over the keys, and stay available long after. A home should age well, and so should the relationship with the people who built it. That's the Stay phase, and it's the reason a New Key handover is never really goodbye.