Approach
Fixed fee per phase
Good houses take time to understand. Our process rests on a few fixed habits — listening before drawing, deciding with models and samples, and being on site every week — so that each decision is made once, by the right people, at the right moment.
(01)
Services
Four scales, one drawing set.
Architects call the size of a drawing its scale. We work at all of them, on the same set of drawings, from the first week — which is why the lamp is never in the wrong place and the sofa never fights the window.
1:500
The site
Architecture
We read the site before we draw — sun, wind, views, neighbours and the municipal plan — and design the house that belongs there. We prepare the licence application and every construction drawing.
Feasibility studies
Concept and massing
Licence application
Construction drawings
1:100
The house
Interior architecture
Plans drawn around daily life: where the light falls at breakfast, where the boots go, how sound travels at night. Stairs, kitchens, bathrooms and built-in joinery are drawn with the walls, not after them.
Space planning
Kitchens and bathrooms
Lighting design
Built-in joinery
1:20
The rooms
Interior design
Furniture, lighting, textiles and art, chosen or made for the house. Pieces come from makers we know — and from your own life, because the best rooms hold things that were there before us.
Furniture and lighting
Textiles and curtains
Art and objects
Styling and installation
1:1
The details
Joinery & building
Handles, hinges, stone edges, the last coat of lime. We tender the build with three contractors we trust, visit the site every week and control the cost until the keys change hands.
Tender and contracts
Weekly site visits
Cost control
Handover and aftercare
(02)
Phases
What happens, and when.
Every house moves through the same six phases. Each one ends with a decision that is yours to make, and each one has its own fixed fee, agreed before it begins.
01
First conversation
Whether to continue
02
Listening & brief
The brief and the budget
03
Concept
One direction
04
Design & licensing
Plans, materials, kitchen
05
Detail & tender
The builder and the price
06
Build, furnish, return
Furniture, art, last details
(03)
Fees
Fees agreed phase by phase.
Before each phase begins, we agree a fixed fee for it in writing. You always know what the next step costs, and you can pause between phases without penalty. Construction costs are tracked in a cost plan that we update at the end of every phase.
10–14%
of the construction cost, for architecture and interiors together
6
phases, each with its own fixed fee agreed in advance
±5%
typical difference between the tender price and the final cost
(04)
Commitments
Four things you can count on.
01
A partner on every house
Inês or Jonas leads every project personally, from the first conversation to the handover. That is why we accept only eight houses a year.
02
One set of drawings
Architecture and interiors are drawn together, by the same team, from the first week. Nothing is handed over, so nothing is lost.
03
Honest numbers
A cost plan updated at the end of every phase, and a tender compared line by line — so the budget is never a surprise at the end.
04
We come back
Twelve months after handover we spend a full day at the house, after a whole cycle of seasons, and adjust what the house has taught us.
(05)
Questions
Things people usually ask.
Something else on your mind? Write to us at hello@morada.studio — we answer every message personally.
Where do you work?
Mostly in Portugal — from the Minho to the Algarve — and in Spain, especially the Balearic Islands. We take on a small number of projects elsewhere in Europe when the house and the clients are the right fit.
Do you only take on complete projects?
Almost always. We do architecture and interiors together because that is where our value lies. For complete renovations of 150 m² or more we also accept interior-only projects.
How much does a house cost to build?
It depends on the site, the size and the finishes, but most of our new houses are built for between €2,800 and €4,500 per square metre. We give you a first estimate at the end of the concept phase and update it at every step.
How long will it take?
A new house usually takes 18 to 30 months from the first meeting to moving in, of which licensing alone can take four to eight months. Renovations are typically 9 to 14 months.
Can we work with a builder we already know?
Yes. We will invite them to the tender alongside two contractors we know well, and compare all three prices line by line.
Can you help before we buy land?
Yes — a feasibility study takes three weeks and has a fixed fee. We check what the municipal plan allows, how the sun moves across the site and what the ground is likely to cost you.