Scope of work
Load-bearing walls, headers and point loads change the price and the schedule more than any finish does. Read the scope explainer before you budget.
Structural or cosmeticPlanning and money
We publish the arithmetic: what an allowance covers, what it does not, and exactly how a change order is priced when selections move.
See the worked exampleThe practice
The people who draw your plans stay on the job through framing, inspections and punch list. Nothing is handed off to a stranger at permit.
How the studio worksWhere we work
Bellevue, Kirkland and Redmond each run their own review desk and inspection queue. We keep a current read on all three.
Permit sequence by city
Design-build · Bellevue WA
Additions, basements, main-floor reworks, floors, paint and the two rooms everyone else specialises in. One contract, one superintendent.
A design firm draws a plan, hands it over and moves on. A general contractor prices whatever arrives and builds it. The gap between them is where renovations go wrong: a wall that turns out to be bearing, a duct that cannot be rerouted, a window schedule that does not match the framed openings.
We closed the gap by doing both. The architect who draws your plan sits in the same room as the superintendent who has to build it, and both of them are on site for the framing inspection.
About the studio
Tell us about the house and what you want changed. A rough scope and a few photos are plenty to start.
Nine scopes under one contract. Kitchens and bathrooms are two of them, and on most of our jobs they arrive as part of a larger renovation.
We publish the arithmetic: what an allowance covers, what it does not, and exactly how a change order is priced when selections move.
Full-size samples in real light, with the structure sitting on the same table as the tile. Come and handle them before anything is ordered.
Flooring libraryWide plank, herringbone, stone at the threshold
Millwork profilesCasing, base, crown and stair
Structure tableBeams, hangers and hold-downsCaptioned by neighbourhood and scope. Every case study carries the structure, the budget band and how long it actually took.
Whole-home renovation
Single-storey addition
Main-floor reworkSecond-storey addition
Basement finishing with guest suite
Whole-home renovation with foundation workPick the work you are planning. The permits, the review window and every inspection appear in the sequence an inspector will actually want them.
n/a
Nobody from the city visits. Quality control is entirely ours: a defined drywall finish level, a documented sheen schedule and a punch walk with you at the end.
After the first coat
We put a work light flat against each wall before the second coat. Anything that shows gets patched, sanded and re-primed before we carry on.
Walls open, before insulation
Drain, waste and vent under test, water lines pressurised, correct slope on the drain, vent sizing and the trap arm length for each fixture.
Walls open, before insulation
Box fill, cable support, small-appliance circuits, dedicated circuits, AFCI and GFCI coverage and the grounding electrode conductor if the panel was touched.
Walls open, before insulation
Duct sizing and routing for the hood and bath fan, termination to the outside, and the make-up air path if the hood exceeds the threshold.
Before tile, bathrooms only
A flood-tested pan held for 24 hours. We photograph the test and the reading goes in the project record.
Fixtures installed
Everything operating, labelled, and the fan actually moving air measured at the grille.
Before the pour is covered
Depth, bearing soil, dimensions and rebar for any new pad footing under a post. Once concrete covers it, nobody can verify it, so this inspection is never skipped.
Beam and posts in, before anything closes
Beam size and species against the stamped drawings, hardware model numbers, fastener schedule, post continuity and the full load path down to the footing.
Sheathing on, before siding or drywall
Where a wall is re-sheathed to replace lost shear capacity, the nail pattern, edge distance and hold-down hardware are checked panel by panel.
After framing passes
Every service that used to live inside the removed wall, in its new route.
Before drywall
Only where the work touched an exterior wall or an unconditioned ceiling.
Board up, before taping
Screw pattern and spacing on shear walls and fire-rated assemblies.
Trim and finishes complete
Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, guards, egress, and a walk of the completed work against the approved set.
After the wall is cut, before framing closes it
Net clear opening area, minimum width and height, sill height above the finished floor, and the well dimensions plus its ladder or steps.
Trench open, before the slab is repoured
Only where a bathroom below the sewer invert needs an ejector pit. Pipe slope, bedding and the pit itself are checked before concrete.
Walls and soffits up
Fire blocking, headers over openings, and clearances around the furnace or water heater.
Before insulation
Circuits, smoke and carbon monoxide alarm locations, bath exhaust and the heat source serving the new space.
Before drywall
Foam against the foundation wall, with the assembly matching the approved energy path. This is where a batts-on-concrete detail gets rejected.
Complete
Alarms, egress operation without a key or tool, handrails and guards on the stair, and ceiling height verified in the field.
Before excavation
Silt fence, construction entrance, and stakes proving the new footprint sits where the approved site plan says it does.
Forms and rebar in, before the pour
Depth below grade, bearing, dimensions, rebar size and lap, and anchor bolt layout.
Before backfill
Wall reinforcement, anchor bolts, damp-proofing and the footing drain with its rock and filter fabric.
Before the slab or subfloor closes
Plumbing groundwork, vapour barrier and any insulation under the slab.
Sheathed and dried in
Nailing pattern, hold-downs, straps, beam and header sizes, and the connection where new framing meets old.
Before insulation
All three, usually on the same day, plus a gas pressure test where gas is extended.
Before drywall
Envelope insulation values, air sealing details and the energy-code credits the permit claimed.
Board up, before tape
Screw spacing on shear walls and at any fire-rated separation.
Complete
Life safety, egress, guards, ventilation rates, and the approved-set walk-through.
Holes dug, before the pour
Depth, diameter, bearing and the post base hardware that will be set into the concrete.
Structure up, before decking
Ledger fastener type and spacing, flashing, the condition of the rim joist behind it, beam and joist sizes, and lateral load connectors back into the house.
Before covering
Wet-rated boxes, GFCI protection and cable routing.
Complete
Guard height, baluster spacing, graspable handrail, riser consistency and the roof tie-in flashing.
Sample figures for this demo site.
4.9 average from 128 reviews across Google, Houzz and Angi. Sample reviews written for this demo site.
Three bids, three totals, and none of them describe the same job. A line-by-line guide to what an estimate is actually telling you.
Read on: How to read a renovation estimate without being lied toSixteen weeks is not the city being slow. It is a queue, a correction cycle and a resubmittal, and only one of those three is under anyone's control.
Read on: Why permit review takes so long, and what actually moves itContainment, one live bathroom, a real temporary kitchen and a schedule the household can read. The four things that make an occupied job bearable.
Read on: Living in the house during a renovation: what actually worksWe value your privacy
We use cookies to run this site, remember your preferences and understand how it is used.Cookie policy
