09/23/2026
Here is what I mean… There are 5 things that really determine what your house costs:
📍SITE
Slope. Soil. Access. Utilities.
These decisions happen before anyone even draws anything and establish the floor your budget starts at.
🧱STRUCTURE
What holds up the openings you fell in love with.
Every wall of glass, oversized opening, or structural change is standing on something somebody paid for.
💡SYSTEMS
Everything buried behind the walls.
Electrical, plumbing, HVAC, and everything else you won’t see once the walls are closed. Invisible, unglamorous, and often the hardest part to change later.
🪵SURFACES
Stone. Wood. Plaster. Tile.
This is where most of the design conversation happens, but it isn’t necessarily where most of your budget is going.
🚰SELECTIONS
Faucets. Fixtures. Hardware. Appliances.
This is the part everyone wants to start with and thankfully, a lot of it can be changed later.
📋Now look at the order:
Site → Structure → Systems → Surfaces → Selections
Permanent to the reversible.
Most people spend their attention in exactly the opposite direction.
Months choosing faucets.
Minutes thinking about structure.
The goal isn’t to take the fun out of the design process. It’s to spend your time, attention, and budget where the decisions are hardest to undo.
Spend your worry where it can’t be undone. Everything else is shopping.🛍️ 😉🏡
