Palo Alto Home Design & Remodeling
Bespoke Architecture & Interior Design for New Build Homes, Additions, Remodels and Beyond
Whether your project is a simple cosmetic refresh, a remodel or addition with architectural modifications, or a new build, our goal is the same: provide gorgeous spaces that respond to our clients and their lifestyles.
We provide a full service solution, taking the time to learn about our clients and what they value most to create spaces tailored to them. From the very outset we take a holistic approach to interior design & architecture, considering your materials, furniture selections and colors to create a strong cohesive aesthetic. We believe a good plan leads to seamless execution. Our process takes the guesswork out of project scope & design vision, using detailed permit plans & 3D renders, finalizing everything you need to ensure a smooth Palo Alto permitting process. You'll be introduced to contractors we’ve come to trust over the years, helping you find the right fit for your project.
We pride ourselves on working intimately with our clients from beginning to end, providing as much knowledge, opinion, and coordination as needed. During construction, we advocate for our clients and the design vision, being there to solve any issues as they arise and making sure everything turns out as planned.
Questions? We’d love to hear about your project.
Featured Projects
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“We are so pleased with our home renovation and the new look and feel of our living space. Sam is a great creative partner and very responsive and client-focused - we recommend his services.”
— EMILY W. - CLIENT
FAQ
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Palo Alto building permits tend to be issued faster than their county jurisdiction counterparts. The City aims to complete initial review within 30 days, with each subsequent review up to 14 days, therefore realistically about a 60 day review .
Not all permits are created equal, so depending on the type of project you may wait only a week for a simple over-the-counter permit (or Instant Building Permit), vs additional months for a new-build home that requires more departments to review the project.
Time in permitting is not lost time. We plan our projects so during permitting we produce many details and dial in specifications so that your contractor can hit the ground running once your permit is approved.
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Palo Alto is largely flat and easily accessible and so is relatively easy to develop new-build construction. Despite this, many factors can still affect the economic feasibility of building new versus remodeling. Most notably in our opinion aging properties normally require extensive remodeling, to the extent that it may ultimately be cheaper to reconstruct portions of a home. Often times, the labor involved in working around troublesome found conditions can sometimes be more expensive than the cost in materials to start over.
As this question might require heavy consideration depending on the project, we can determine what the best path for you is through a building feasibility study in the early stages of a working together.
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After a consultation to evaluate the scope of the project, a total design fee will be assessed, this fee is then split between the 5 different phases of the project, giving you financial runway as we work through the project.
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2024 saw the adoption of state-wide regulations that aimed to ease the housing crisis by making the construction and use of Accessory Dwelling Units more flexible. This included expedited timelines for permit review, and relaxed building setback, height and parking requirements. However there are still site-specific constraints that may make an ADU untenable, so before design begins we would advise using a building feasibility study to outline design parameters.
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We certainly do! Before we embark on any project we will always offer a consultation so that we can get to know each other and see if we’ll be a good fit. If so, we’ll be happy to provide design services, including consultation, for projects big or small.
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