For property developers · London & Essex

Your margin is a design decision.

DZP Studio is a RIBA Chartered Practice that designs multi-unit schemes to sell high and build lean, and shows you the numbers before you commit to the site.

Send an enquiry Run your numbers ↓

Illustrative masterplan, 14 units across 11 homes, one small planet · drag to orbit

Design visual, option A: two new floors in pale brick on the existing red brick building, the top floor wrapped in an open brick lattice — A · Pale brick lattice

Design visual, option B: two new floors in blue-black glazed brick with projecting brick fins, and a slim glazed top floor — B · Glazed brick fins

Design visual, option C: two new floors in dark zinc, with a mansard roof on top — C · Zinc mansard

Design visual, option D: two new floors in red brick a shade lighter than the original, over a stone band — D · Red brick

Featured project

Nine new homes on top of a building we kept.

Two new floors on an existing commercial building in the London Borough of Waltham Forest: nine self-contained flats above the commercial units. We drew it four ways, so our client could compare the designs side by side, and each new floor steps back, so from the pavement the building still reads as three storeys.

new homes: 9
new floors: 2
facade designs: 4

Feasibility study

See the four designs →

What the site allows, and what it's worth.

Planning viability and financial viability usually get answered by two different people, months apart. We answer both, wherever you are with the site.

I'm looking at a site

No commitment yet

Start with the plotwise report by DZP. Constraints, designations, planning history, what neighbours have been approved and refused for, comparable sales and local ceiling values, enough to decide whether the site is worth a serious look, for the cost of an hour of professional time. It comes with a free 30-minute call with a chartered architect, and if you go on to hire us for the project, the report fee is deducted from our fee. Check your address →

I've made an offer on a site

Need to know before I commit

The point where the answer matters most and time is shortest. We test the development assumption behind your offer: does the density you have priced actually fit, will the council wear it, and does the precedent support it. If the answer is no, better to know now.

I have a site

Ready to start

Feasibility and options appraisal, planning strategy, pre-application where it is worth it, then full design and delivery. Where a previous scheme has been refused, we will tell you whether to appeal, redesign or rethink. Case study: nine flats on top of an existing building →

Planning advice, fast

Over the years we've built up a network of trusted planning consultants who were senior planning officers at different councils. They can give you expert advice on your site, much faster than a formal pre-application through the council, and their view on whether the project is feasible.

Interactive appraisal

Run your numbers.

Drag the sliders. The crimson is what design efficiency reclaims for your margin.

The efficiency dial is our cost-engineering target range; every scheme differs. On a real appraisal we evidence it line by line.

Units12

Average unit size70 m²

Sale price£5,500/m²

Base build cost£2,600/m²

DZP design efficiency−9%

12 units · 3 semi-detached + 6 detached · 840 m² GIA

Gross development value: £4.62m
Build cost (DZP): £1.99m; vs £2.18m conventional
Reclaimed for margin: £197k; +4.3 pp of GDV

Conventional

With DZP

Build cost Gross margin Reclaimed by design

Illustrative only. Excludes land, finance, professional fees and s106/CIL. A real appraisal is scheme-specific; that's what the consultation is for.

Where design makes the difference.

Buildability and cost, from the start

We think about structural grids, spans and repeatable components from the concept stage. During the detailed construction design stage, we source cost-effective specifications and work closely with the structural engineer, so every build-up not only meets the Building Regulations but is also designed to make real savings on site.

Planning read like an investor

Constraints, policy and precedent are analysed before design begins, using the same research behind the plotwise report by DZP, so the scheme is designed around what the council is likely to accept.

Clear drawings, a cleaner tender

Coordinated, detailed drawings leave builders less to guess. Better drawings mean fewer variations on site, more control of cost and a quicker build.

Projects completed: 0+
Years' experience: 0+
Practice no. 20072398
Reg. no. 081311G

From site to sold.

One practice can take your scheme from start to finish, so nothing gets lost along the way.

Feasibility

Capacity, constraints and an appraisal view, before you commit.

Concept

Massing, unit mix and the cost strategy, resolved together.

Planning

Application, negotiation and committee, managed for you.

Technical

Building Regs drawings and a detailed tender package, so builders price the real job.

Delivery

Site queries answered and changes managed through to completion.

Full or partial service

RIBA Stages 0 to 7, or just the stages you need.

The full service covers everything above, plus construction information, tender and contract administration, site inspections, and Principal Designer duties under CDM 2015. Or appoint us for the stages you need.

Fees are staged, so you commit one phase at a time.

Start with a site

Bring us your site.

Send us an enquiry about your site, and we'll arrange a free video call with a chartered architect: the constraints, the planning context and what the site could hold, before you commit to anything.

Send an enquiry

No obligation: a conversation, not a commitment.

Emailinfo@dzpstudio.co.uk
Phone07508 382877
StudioLondon & Essex
HoursMon–Fri 09:00–17:00
Sat 09:00–12:00