The traditional model
In the traditional path, you hire an architect to design the home, then take the finished drawings to general contractors for bids. It can produce beautiful work, it is the right fit for some projects, and we work inside it ourselves through our design-and-plans contracts. Its structural weakness is the gap in the middle: the person who drew the home is not responsible for building it, and the person building it had no voice in the drawing. Budgets are often tested for the first time when bids arrive, months into the process, and when problems surface on site, accountability can turn into finger-pointing between two separate contracts.
The design-build model
Design-build closes that gap by making one firm responsible for both. At Gross Design + Build, the designer and the general contractor are partners who have worked together for 13 years, so every line drawn is pressure-tested against structure, cost, and code before it reaches the city. You sign one contract, work with one point of contact, and budgets are grounded in construction reality from the first sketch.
The practical differences show up everywhere: faster movement from design into permits, no bid-day budget shock, no gap in accountability, and a finished home where the vision and the reality are one and the same.
Two ways to work with us
Design-build is our signature model, and it is the path most of our clients choose. But it is not the only way to work with us. We also contract for the design and plans alone: you receive permit-ready construction documents and photorealistic 3D renderings, and you are free to take the completed set out to bid with any contractor you choose, including us.
There is a quiet advantage in that path too. Because we designed the project, we understand it more deeply than any contractor reading the plans for the first time, and we already know how we intend to build what we drew. Whether you continue with us seamlessly or invite us to bid alongside others, the design arrives builder-tested, and our construction number comes from the team that shaped every line.
Related: Our process, Custom home design and construction.
Common questions
Is design-build more expensive than hiring separately?
The models price differently rather than one being inherently more expensive. Design-build removes the separate design fee cycle, the bidding period, and the change orders that come from plans a builder never reviewed, which is where traditional projects often lose their budgets.
Do we give up design quality with design-build?
Not with a firm whose design lead is an accomplished building designer. Our clients refine their homes through concept sketches and 3D renderings, and nothing moves forward until it feels exactly right.
Can we bring our own architect's plans to you?
We are glad to have that conversation. We review outside plans for constructability and cost honestly, and we will tell you plainly what it will take to build them well.
Can we hire you for just the design and bid the construction separately?
Yes. Design and plans only is a standard way we work. You receive permit-ready documents and 3D renderings, and you are free to bid the project to any contractor, including us. If you do invite us to bid, we arrive already fluent in the design, because we drew it and already know how we intend to build it.