Steps to follow for building an eco-friendly home

One of the most common questions our clients have when they make the decision to build an eco-friendly home is what steps are involved in building an eco-friendly home.

We usually summarize this during the initial consultation, but there are actually so many factors to consider that we felt it would be practical to have it in writing and be able to share it.

Building an eco-friendly home is a project that can last between a year and a half and two years, during which we will go through many different processes:

Step 0: Contracting

Approximate timeframe: Indefinite

This is the initial contact; we typically hold one or two meetings to explain our workflow and understand your needs and project requirements so that we can send you a fee proposal for our services.

At this stage, we also aim to address all your architectural, legal, urban planning, or financing questions.

Once we send the fee proposal, we usually meet with you again at our office to discuss any questions regarding the budget or the contract.

Step 1: Preliminary design

Approximate timeframe: 3 months

We’re getting started!

This step is the most creative and complex in terms of defining what your home will be like, and it requires significant involvement on your part.

Before starting, our team will visit your plot to study in detail the sun’s impact, water runoff, the type of subsoil (through a geotechnical study), the slope, etc. This allows us to assess the project’s possibilities while making the most of natural resources and site conditions.

Following an initial meeting with you to define all your home’s requirements, we will prepare an initial proposal. We will work on this in subsequent meetings, adapting and modifying the design based on your ideas, needs, and budget.

Throughout this process, we will work with models, hand drawings, and detailed floor plans of the home, as well as 3D images where we can decide on and modify materials and finishes.

By the end of this phase, we will have detailed plans for the entire home, having defined the layout (interior and exterior), construction system, energy system, materials, and finishes.

Step 2: Basic and executive project

Once the preliminary design is finalized, it is time to begin defining the technical project required to build the house rigorously, with great attention to every detail, and also necessary to obtain the relevant licenses and permits.

The technical construction project is divided into two parts: the basic project and the executive project. This is merely a convention that allows us to streamline the legal procedures for obtaining the building permit by submitting the basic project to the city council while the studio completes the executive project, which includes all the details and documentation necessary to start construction.

Step 3: Bill of quantities

Although the bill of quantities is part of the executive project, it is worth mentioning separately as it is a key document for avoiding budget deviations during construction.

It is a spreadsheet-style document that includes every construction item for your home (materials and construction systems).

This document will be presented to three different builders so they can provide a construction bid. This is known as the tender process.

Step 4: Tender process

We send the bill of quantities to trusted builders—we have several we can recommend—but we also include builders you trust or who have been recommended to you.

The advantage of having prepared a detailed bill of quantities is that the builders will return it completed, indicating the prices for each of the home’s construction items. This will allow us to compare and assess price differences so we can later negotiate the final price of the house with the builder that interests us most.

For example, if one builder asks for 50% more than another for the excavation of the land, we know that this is an item where the price can be adjusted.

We will accompany and advise you throughout the comparison and selection process. Once we award the project to one of them, we will advise you on the drafting and signing of the contract between you and the builder, establishing conditions and penalties for omissions, errors, or delays.

Step 5: Legal procedures

Before construction begins, the project must be approved by the Association of Architects and the City Council to obtain the building permit.

This process can take between one and three months and can be expedited by starting the procedures with the basic project.

Step 6: Construction of the home

Once the contract with the builder is signed and the building permit is obtained, it is time to start building the house.

We, as architects, will handle all the site supervision and management in collaboration with our technical architect, who is responsible for quality and cost control.

Generally, our technical architect visits the site several times a week and we visit once or twice, although at key moments, a daily visit may be necessary to ensure that all work is being executed perfectly.

As architects, we commit to visiting the site as often as necessary, with a minimum of one visit per week, and to maintaining continuous communication with the construction team to avoid errors or cost overruns.

As clients, you can rest assured that the project is in good hands; we will be happy to welcome you and keep you informed of progress whenever you wish.

During this phase, we also oversee cost control and budget management in coordination with the bank.

Step 7: Project completion

This is a final necessary procedure where we also provide support, involving the generation of all documentation required to legalize your home and close the construction process.

Furthermore, before you move in, we will help you understand how the home works and how to use passive architecture elements to save energy and live in a healthy indoor environment.

Small gestures, such as ventilating at the right time and for the correct duration or properly using sun protection elements, can help us achieve a cool house in summer and a warm one in winter, significantly reducing heating and cooling costs.