New houses in London and villas on the Costa Blanca. Two very different briefs: one shaped by neighbours and daylight, the other by sun, shade and outdoor living.
Yes, in both markets. In London that usually means an infill plot, a backland site or a replacement dwelling. In Spain it is more often a villa on an open plot near Xàbia, Calpe or Benissa, where the brief is shaped by sun, shade and outdoor living rather than by neighbours.
A feasibility study answers it before you spend anything substantial. We look at the planning history, local policy, access, trees, daylight to neighbours and what has been approved nearby. For Spanish plots we check the municipal plan and whether the land is classified as buildable.
In England, full planning permission; outline permission first if you are testing the principle before committing to a design. In Valencia it is a licencia de obra mayor, and on a protected site a prior authorisation from the Conselleria as well.
Longer than clients expect. Feasibility and design, three to four months. Determination, eight to thirteen weeks in England; months rather than weeks for obra mayor in Spain. Construction, twelve to eighteen months for a house. Two to three years from first conversation to moving in is normal.
In Spain, yes. The N-series — N90, N120, N200, N700 — are villa typologies that can be adapted to a plot and a budget, which shortens the design stage considerably. In London every site is different enough that we start from scratch.
Yes, and on a new build it is far cheaper to do than retrofitting it later. The decisions that matter most — orientation, form, glazing ratio, airtightness — are taken in the first few weeks and cost nothing extra at that stage. Equipment is the smaller half of the problem.
Send us the address and a sentence about what you want to change. We reply within one working day.