What to Have Ready Before a Feasibility or Foundation Engagement
The single biggest factor in how useful an early cost position turns out to be is not the design itself — it is what is actually known about the site and the brief.
What actually makes an early cost position useful is not a finished design — it is a handful of specific pieces of information about the site and the brief, most of which exist well before any detailed drawings do.
A contour and feature survey
Site levels, boundaries, easements and existing features are a direct input into cost — slope and site access are two of the biggest drivers of structural and civil cost on a residential project, and neither can be assessed properly from a concept sketch alone.
A soil test or geotechnical report
Site classification determines footing type, and footing type is one of the more expensive line items to get wrong early. A reactive or sloping site can carry a real structural premium — see the Kin Kin case study for what that looked like in practice, where the site’s classification was central to the cost position from the outset.
For renovations: a measure or survey of the existing building
Existing construction type, approximate age, and the extent of any structural intervention all materially change the cost picture on a renovation or extension, in a way they simply do not on a new build. This is often the single most under-prepared piece of information clients bring to an early conversation.
Your concept — however rough
A sketch, a Pinterest board, or a plain description of what you are trying to achieve is enough to start. A stated budget intent matters just as much as the concept itself — without it, there is nothing to test the concept against.
What you do not need yet
A complete architectural drawing set, structural engineering, or a finished specification are not required to start. Pushing to produce these before testing direction is exactly the expensive habit this kind of early conversation exists to avoid — see why rushing the design phase costs you more for what that trade-off actually looks like.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a full set of architectural drawings before engaging Builder Intelligence?
No. A Feasibility – Direction conversation works from a concept alone. Feasibility – Detailed and Foundation need enough detail to quantify properly, which is a lower bar than a complete drawing set.
What if I do not have a soil test yet?
That is fine for an early Feasibility – Direction conversation — site conditions can still be factored qualitatively. A Foundation or Feasibility – Detailed cost position becomes materially more reliable once one exists.
Not sure what you actually need yet?
A Feasibility conversation works from whatever you already have.
No finished drawings required — just a concept and a sense of your budget.