Thompson + Pollari
Sketch-A-House

Welcome to Sketch-A-House

Has your lifestyle outgrown your present living space? Not sure if you should plan an upgrade to your existing home, or buy into a new one? Sketch-A-House, our unique layered architectural services program, is designed to help you fully explore your existing home’s potential without an up-front dollar commitment to complete design services or construction. The program gives you access to the creative resources and expert advice of a full service architectural studio, while keeping you in control of cost and timeline.

Renovate or build? Weighing your options.

There are several solid reasons to consider renovation or additions to an existing home. A well designed renovation helps maintain the fabric of an established neighborhood, while contributing to sustainability. And, in today’s housing market, the cost benefits of renovation over new home construction can be significant. An inspired, architect-designed makeover can measurably improve your home’s energy efficiency, enhance the way you live and entertain, and can increase the future resale value of your home well beyond the dollars invested.

 
Thompson Pollari Residence, as purchased

Be inspired.

With Sketch-A-House, we can help you arrive at that inspired renovation, to re-imagine what’s possible in making your house the home of your dreams. Add comfortable new living spaces, boost energy efficiency, incorporate sustainable materials and provide elevations of your home – with a goal of preserving the integrity of the existing envelope and architectural style. At Thompson + Pollari, a great renovation is not just about adding square footage, but about strategically thinking through your improvements to maximize your resources and provide the features and functionality we desire most in a home today.

Sketch-A-House offers you 6 clear steps in a logical sequence of tiered services to support you all the way through the process of planning, designing, budgeting and building a complete renovation. During each Step, real products are developed and approvals to move forward are achieved.  And, if you prefer, we can also provide an all-in-one fee, customized to your project from the onset.
Sktech-A-House in practice: Renovating Our Own Home
We use the example of the home owned by partners Steve Thomspon and Lynette Pollari to illustrate the potential of a modest, everyday home to be transformed through re-imagining.

 
Thompson Pollari Residence, after renovation

Thompson Pollari Residence statistics

1955 Castleberry ranch house in Phoenix Arizona
1/3 acre corner lot with pool 
1738 SF liveable space
Masonry bearing wall construction with standard joist-framed roof
Interior plaster walls

Renovation Statistics

Complete interior renovation of 1,700 sf
New livable of 2,935 SF, with additional porch cover
Ancillary storage buildings with spa Cabana roof (future spa)
Construction loan with interest only payments during construction
Increase through construction in SF value (equity) of livable space from $70/SF to $255/SF
6 month design phase, 3 months of permitting, 12 months of construction

Construction was staged so that Owners could occupy the residence during construction