"We'll decide on site" is one of the most expensive sentences you can hear during a renovation. When a decision gets made mid-demolition or mid-tiling, the contractor either stops and waits or improvises — both cost money and time. A design project eliminates exactly this: every decision gets made before work starts, on paper — not on site with a hammer in hand.
What exactly is a design project?
A design project (also called a technical execution plan) isn't the same as a Pinterest board or a moodboard. A usable plan includes a furnished floor plan with exact dimensions, the electrical and lighting layout — the position of every switch and socket — tiling and cladding plans with detail drawings, an itemised material list with specific products and prices, and 3D visualisations of at least the main rooms.
A moodboard shows what style you want. A technical plan tells the contractor exactly where every element goes — to the millimetre.
Why does renovating without a plan cost more?
In our experience, projects that start without a plan see mid-project changes add 10–20% to the final cost on average — not because the contractor overcharges, but because every after-the-fact decision means demolition, extra material orders, and downtime.
| Typical late-stage change | What it means in practice |
|---|---|
| Socket in the wrong place | Breaking plaster, new wiring, re-plastering |
| Tile size changes mid-project | New order, delivery lead time, contractor downtime |
| Shower tray position moves | Relocating the drain, breaking up the floor base |
| Custom furniture doesn't fit | Custom-make surcharge, schedule slip |
Individually these look small — but on a 60 m² apartment they easily add up to HUF 1–1.5 million, plus 2–3 weeks of delay.
What does it cost, and when does it pay off?
At ConSol, a design project starts from 16,000 Ft/m² — around HUF 960,000 for a 60 m² apartment. In most cases, it pays for itself the first time it prevents a late-stage change. On larger, more complex projects — hotels, restaurants, offices — the payoff is even clearer, since daily downtime there carries a real cost too.
Who needs it, and for whom is it just recommended?
It matters most when the client is managing the renovation remotely — without being on site, every decision has to be settled in advance, since there's no chance to stand together and pick the tile colour in person. It's also strongly recommended for Airbnb and rental projects, since the design itself becomes the main selling point of the listing. For a simple, small-scale cosmetic renovation — just painting and flooring — a full plan can often be skipped.
What should a good design project include?
Before signing the contract, check that the plan includes: a furnished floor plan with exact dimensions, the electrical and lighting layout, tiling and cladding plans with detail drawings, an itemised material list with specific products and prices, and 3D visualisations of at least the living room and bathroom. If any of these are missing, the "fixed price" is still, in practice, an open question.
ConSol can prepare the design project ourselves, or we'll work from one the client brings from their own designer — what matters is that every decision is made before construction starts, on paper, not on site.
Frequently asked questions
Not in every case — it can be skipped for small cosmetic jobs. For full renovations, and especially for remote or Airbnb projects, it's strongly recommended, since without it even the "fixed price" is still just an estimate.
For an average 60 m² apartment, typically 2–3 weeks — covering the site survey, agreeing the furniture layout, and finalising the 3D visualisation. For more complex commercial projects it can take longer.
ConSol accepts external plans, as long as they include the required elements: a dimensioned floor plan, electrical layout, detail drawings, and an itemised material list. If anything is missing, we flag it before work starts.