Begin with a home brief, not a floor plan
Before discussing room sizes, write down how you expect to use the property. Will it be your main home, a place for extended stays or somewhere for family holidays? How many people will usually be there? Which spaces must work without stairs? These answers make the first design conversation much more useful.
In a Calpe villa brief, include the outdoor spaces as carefully as the rooms. A covered eating area, a sheltered entrance, a place to store pool equipment and access for garden maintenance can all affect the layout. Decide which spaces matter most when the project needs to make trade-offs.
Match the brief to the land
Take a plot reference and any available surveys to your architect. Ask them to assess what can be proposed on that specific site before assuming that a house seen elsewhere will fit. A large plot does not by itself establish the permitted building size or remove constraints.
- Check the recorded boundaries against a measured survey.
- Review vehicle access, construction deliveries and a safe entrance.
- Investigate service connections and where drainage would run.
- Test orientation, privacy and neighbouring development against the intended layout.
- Ask what ground information is needed before structural design.
Our Calpe plot and area guide turns these questions into a viewing checklist.
Design comfort before choosing finishes
Plan the relationship between glazing and shade. Think about how air, daylight and people move through the house, and how rooms feel when doors and windows are closed. Discuss heating, cooling, ventilation, insulation and storage early enough for them to fit naturally into the building.
Choose materials with maintenance in mind. Ask how exposed metalwork, external joinery, terrace surfaces and pool surrounds will be specified for the site. The right choice depends on exposure, use and your willingness to look after it; a photograph cannot answer those questions.
Price the same project with every contractor
A useful comparison starts with the same drawings, scope and finish schedule. If one quote includes the kitchen, external works and service connections while another does not, the totals cannot be compared directly. Record exclusions and provisional items alongside the quoted amount.
Decide how changes will be approved, who will make site decisions and which information the team needs before ordering long-lead items. Visit the construction budget guide before accepting a price.
Prepare for permission, construction and handover
Ask the appointed professionals to confirm the municipal procedure, documents and approvals relevant to the proposal. Once the project is ready for site work, agree the construction sequence and update routine. At completion, schedule a walkthrough, record outstanding items and collect the documents relevant to the finished property.
Send the location, whether you own the plot, a short description of the home and any drawings already prepared. You do not need to have every answer to begin.
Your starting checklist
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