Working with an architect step by step means entering a structured sequence where each decision builds on the one before it. The sequence is not arbitrary — it reflects the order in which information becomes reliable enough to act on.
Phase One: Programming — What the Project Actually Is
Before any drawing, an architect defines the program: what spaces the project needs, how they relate, and what the priorities are when budget forces tradeoffs.
This phase starts with listening. In MÉTODO, we ask clients to describe a week in the house they want to live in — not the aesthetic they want to achieve. From that description, a program brief emerges: number and type of spaces, adjacencies, privacy gradients, light preferences, storage realities.
The program brief becomes the reference document for the entire project. When a client later asks "why is the study adjacent to the garden?", the answer lives in the brief.
Programming typically takes two to four weeks and costs nothing extra when included in the full-service fee. Skipping it is the most expensive mistake a residential client makes.
Phase Two: Schematic Design — Where the Big Decisions Happen
Schematic design produces the architectural concept: site placement, building orientation, spatial organization, section profile, and material palette at a coarse level.
This is where the sección como relato — the section as a narrative — becomes visible. A section cut through the building tells you more about how the house works than any floor plan: where natural light enters, how volumes stack, where the ceiling compresses and opens, how the building meets the ground.
The matrix of options is the tool we use to make schematic decisions transparent. Rather than presenting one scheme and defending it, we present two or three options, each with a different spatial logic, and score them against the program brief criteria. The client decides by comparing, not guessing.
This phase produces drawings and a rough construction cost estimate. It is the last moment to make major changes cheaply.
Phase Three: Design Development — Working Out the Details
Design development resolves schematic decisions into buildable systems. Structure, mechanical systems, plumbing routes, window types, stair geometry, and kitchen layouts are all coordinated here.
The architect works with structural and MEP engineers during this phase. Coordination errors found here cost hours to resolve. The same errors found in construction cost weeks and money.
This phase also produces the specification outline: what materials, what products, what installation standards the contractor will be required to meet.
Phase Four: Construction Documents — The Legal Set
Construction documents are the complete set of drawings and specifications that the contractor bids from and builds from. They are also the legal record of what was agreed.
A complete set includes architectural drawings, structural drawings, MEP drawings, specifications, and a schedule of finishes. Incomplete construction documents produce change orders. Change orders produce cost overruns.
In MÉTODO, construction documents go through three internal review cycles before release for bidding. The goal is zero ambiguity on site.
Phase Five: Bidding and Contractor Selection
The architect manages the bid process: distributing documents to qualified contractors, answering questions through formal addenda (not phone calls), and analyzing bids to identify anomalies.
The lowest bid is not always the best bid. A bid that is significantly below others usually means something was missed or will be value-engineered out during construction. The architect helps the client read the bids, not just sort them by price.
Phase Six: Construction Administration — Protecting the Design
Construction administration is the phase most clients underestimate. The architect visits site regularly, reviews contractor submittals, answers requests for information, and documents conditions.
This phase is the difference between a building that matches the drawings and one that diverges progressively from them. Asoleamiento — solar orientation and the quality of light at different hours — is only achieved if the windows are placed as specified. A window moved 30 centimeters to accommodate a structural column changes the quality of light in the room.
Próximos pasos
Understanding the process is the first step to using it well. If you are beginning a residential project in Mexico City or Denver, the most valuable thing you can do before the first meeting is write down how you live — not how you want the house to look.
Conoce el método de MÉTODO to see how we structure each phase and what we ask of clients along the way.