Timber homes, engineered.

It is free. You do not need a plot or drawings yet. We talk about your wishes, your budget and your plot, and which building system could suit them. Have a plot? Email us its location and any documents you have for it, such as a plot passport (kavelpaspoort).

We design and engineer it. Production and assembly are carried out with partner factories and assembly teams. They work from our drawings, and our engineer coordinates them and is your point of contact. Who carries out the foundations, building services, finishing and handover is agreed with you for each project.

For a new detached, semi-detached or terraced home, the technical building rules are in most cases checked during construction by an independent quality assurer (kwaliteitsborger). This has applied since 1 January 2024, also to people building their own home. The assurer can be engaged by you, by your contractor or by another party involved in the building work. The municipality still checks the plan against its local planning rules, reviews the completion file and can stop the work.

Each home is priced for its own design and plot. The main cost drivers are the floor area and shape, the building system and the level of finish. The plot matters too, for example the foundations and access for delivery and the crane. In the design phase you receive a first cost estimate based on the floor plans and the 3D model.

A checklist from plot to keys. Not every item applies to every project.

• Plot, notary and land registry
• Mortgage advice and, if you borrow, interest during construction
• Soil survey, and foundations to suit the soil
• Design, permit drawings and calculations
• Municipal fees, where a permit is needed
• Independent quality assurer, for most new homes
• The house: structure, building envelope, building services and finishing
• Transport and crane
• Kitchen and bathroom
• Utility connections
• Insurance during construction
• Garden and paving
• A reserve for the unexpected

Ask every supplier you compare, including us, which of these their price covers, and whether it includes VAT.

Placing the factory-made elements on site is usually the short part: design, engineering and permits come first, and building services and finishing follow. In the process above, factory production and the foundations run at the same time.

Where a permit is needed, the decision period under the regular procedure is normally eight weeks; the municipality can extend it once by up to six weeks, and a request for more information pauses it. Where a building notification is required, a complete notification must reach the municipality at least four weeks before construction starts.

No. Leave “Not sure yet” selected in the form. We explain the differences between timber frame, CLT and modular in the first consultation and advise on what suits your plot and design.

Yes. We design and engineer timber frame, CLT and modular homes for small developers as well as for private clients. It helps to involve the timber engineer at the sketch stage, while the grid, spans and wall build-ups are still open. Choose “Several homes” in the form. Then tell us the number of homes, the plot location and the stage of your plans.

A timber home must meet the Dutch building code for fire safety, like any other new home. In the timber-frame wall above, mineral wool fills the frame and plasterboard lines the room side. Solid CLT chars slowly at its surface. This charred layer helps protect the timber behind it. Whether CLT can stay visible inside depends on the fire requirements for that home.

Timber structures are designed to the same European system of design standards (the Eurocodes) as concrete and masonry structures. Keeping the structural timber dry is essential to its durability. Both example walls above have a ventilated air gap behind the cladding. Behind that gap, a membrane stops the wind but lets water vapour out. In the timber-frame wall, a taped airtight layer on the room side limits how much moist indoor air gets into the wall. Thermal and moisture performance is verified for each project.

As on any home, maintenance depends mostly on the outside finish. Uncoated timber cladding weathers to silver-grey; to keep its original colour, it needs a new coat from time to time. The timber structure sits inside the wall, behind the cladding and the membrane.

New homes must meet the sound-insulation requirements of the building code, including for sound from neighbouring homes, whatever they are built from. How well a home performs depends on the complete wall and floor build-ups and their junctions, not on the material alone. Inside one home, light timber floors need a suitable build-up against footstep noise.

A new home must meet minimum insulation values and three energy limits (BENG). There is also a limit on the risk of overheating in summer. These are calculated for each new home. Both example walls above are insulated with mineral wool, inside the frame or outside the CLT panel. A light timber-frame home stores less heat than a brick or concrete one, so sun shading, window sizes and ventilation matter more for summer comfort.

No. The designs above include brick, render and timber cladding; one has factory-made timber frame panels behind a brick facade. Inside, timber-frame walls are lined with plasterboard, ready for finishing like the walls of any other home.