Questions about designing your house · CONIKA
Rendering and visualization
What is a 3D rendering?
A digital image showing how a project will look before it is built. It is not an edited photo or a drawing: it is a 3D recreation with its own light, materials and surroundings.
What is 3D visualization?
The craft of showing a project before it exists: renderings, animations and walkthroughs. It is not the decorative part of a project, it is what gets approved, sold or presented.
How much does a 3D rendering cost?
In Colombia, between COP 500,000 and COP 2,500,000 per image; in the United States, published 2026 price guides put the low end at 250 to 500 dollars. Within each market, the difference is not the size of the project: it is how much design judgment goes into the image.
How much does CONIKA charge for a standalone rendering?
USD 125 per image, with a minimum of 6, and it drops as the order grows: 112 from 12, 103 from 20 and 96 from 30. The whole order is billed at the rate of its tier. Add, once, modeling from USD 250 if your project only exists as drawings or a sketch, or a USD 250 scene setup if you already have the model. If the project is already under way with us, the model is already built and one extra image costs USD 100.
How long does a rendering take?
It depends on the scope and the complexity: a single image is not the same as a package or an animation. The schedule is agreed in your proposal, with your project in view. A rushed rendering shows, and it shows in exactly what you were about to present.
What is a rendering for?
So that someone can understand and feel a project before it is built: to sell, to present to a client, to enter a bid, or to settle the design.
What is the difference between a rendering and a physical model?
A model shows form and scale. A rendering shows the light, the materials and how the space would feel lived in. For selling, the rendering says more.
What do I need to have a rendering made?
The drawings or the model of the project, references for the style you are after, and what you will use it for. The clearer you arrive, the better it comes out.
Does a rendering look like reality?
A good one does, but its job is not to copy reality: it is to show the best real version of the project, without inventing what will not be built. Promising something that later does not exist is the fastest way to lose a client.
Why do some renderings cost more than others?
Because what you pay for is decisions: the time of day, the light, the materials and the judgment behind the image. That is what separates a generic image from one that sells.
What is a virtual walkthrough or a 3D animation?
The project in motion: a video showing how the space is walked and lived. It costs more than a still image because it takes more work, and it communicates a great deal more.
Do renderings help sell a real estate project?
Yes, and usually they are the first thing that sells it. The buyer decides in the sales center with the image, months before the project exists.
Can I use a rendering for a bid or tender?
Yes. Whoever evaluates chooses what they can picture; a clear rendering helps them understand your proposal instead of letting it go unnoticed.
What software is used to make renderings?
It depends on the stage: modeling in Archicad and optimization in Rhinoceros. The scene, the materials, the planting and the lighting are built in Blender, which is also where it is rendered. Finishing is done in Photoshop and video is finished in Premiere Pro. Finishing leans on artificial intelligence tools to raise the resolution and the realism of the textures; which ones changes, because we use whichever gives the best result at the time. If your team works in Revit, the native file is delivered separately and quoted. But the software does not make the rendering, the person who knows what they are looking at does.
How do I choose a rendering company?
Judge the portfolio, not the list of services: look at whether the images differ from one another, how many revisions are included and who directs the project. Be wary of anyone promising the cheapest and the fastest at the same time.
Is a rendering of a house the same as a 3D image?
Yes. "Rendering", "3D rendering" and "3D image" are different names for the same thing: a digital recreation of the project, made before building it.
What is the difference between a rendering and a BIM model?
BIM is the model of the project with all its technical information: dimensions, materials, structure. The rendering is the final image drawn out of that model, meant to show, not to build from.
Can I order only the rendering if I already have an architect?
Yes. Visualization is handled independently: you send us your architect's drawings or model, with their authorization, and we make the rendering without touching the design.
Do I need drawings to order a rendering?
Yes, or at least a model or a clear sketch. Without that, any rendering is an invention rather than a representation of your project.
How much does 3D modeling cost if I already have drawings but no model?
From USD 250, once. That minimum covers a single-level building of up to 200 m²; above that it rises with the size and the type. It is the step before rendering when you only have two-dimensional drawings and need the three-dimensional model.
How many images does my project need?
It depends on the use. A house is resolved with few; a project for a sales center needs several. More images is not better; the right ones are.
Are revisions included in a rendering?
They should be, and it is worth asking before you pay. With us, before the final render we show you a preview, and adjustments to it (framing, materials, lighting, time of day) are not charged. Only what the contract lists is quoted separately, with your written acceptance. For the design of your house: more images, or changing the area, the program, the massing or the approved concept. For visualization on its own: more images, changing one already approved, or redoing the modeling if you change the drawings midway through production.
What is the difference between exterior and interior renderings?
The exterior shows the facade and the surroundings of the project. The interior shows the spaces lived in from within. A project meant to sell almost always needs both.
What is a photorealistic rendering?
A rendering made to look like a real photograph, with the light and the materials worked out in detail. Not every rendering aims for that: some are deliberately more schematic.
Fees and pricing
How much does it cost to have my house designed?
It depends on the scope and on how far the project is taken: a house resolved down to the last detail does not cost the same as a general idea. The exact figure for your house goes in writing in your Dossier, after The Conversation, and getting there costs nothing.
How is the price calculated?
It is estimated per project, according to its scope and its complexity. The exact figure goes in your Dossier, after The Conversation.
Why does the price per meter go down on a larger house?
Because the work does not grow at the same rate as the area. Settling the judgment behind a 200 m² house costs nearly the same as a 400 m² one; what grows is the development, not the decision.
Does that price include construction?
No. It is the design fee. The build is paid separately and carried out by the builder you hire.
So how much does it cost to build the house?
As a reference: in Colombia, in 2026, finishing a house runs from COP 2.4 million per m² in a basic build to over COP 4.8 million in a high-end one.
When will I know what it costs?
In your Dossier, in writing, after a forty-five-minute conversation that costs nothing. It is everyone's first question and we do not drag it out. What we will not do is give you a number off a price list that later looks nothing like the one for your house.
Is the price negotiable?
No. The way it is worked out is the same for everyone: what changes the number is scope, not negotiation.
Is there a discount for deciding quickly?
No. A price that drops for deciding fast stops being a price.
Do you charge a percentage of the construction cost?
No. We charge per square meter of design, with a base fee. A percentage of the build rewards a more expensive build, and that does not sit right with us.
How is it paid?
In stages, and it depends on the service. Design: 50% to start, 30% after The Table I and 20% before The Delivery. Visualization: 50% to start and 50% on final delivery. It is all in the contract, and you see the contract in your portal.
Do you ask for an advance?
Yes. The first installment is 50%, on design and on visualization. The project starts once that installment is paid and you have given us the complete information.
Can I pay in installments?
It is already paid in stages: two or three installments depending on the service, and each one is tied to a point in the project, not to a date on the calendar. The first is paid when you sign, and each of the others within five business days of its point.
What currency do you charge in?
In Colombian pesos: the price and each installment are agreed and paid in pesos. If your proposal comes in dollars, that figure is a reference: the peso price is fixed in the contract, at the exchange rate stated there, and after that it does not move with the dollar. To see today's dollar, and any other currency: xe.com/currencyconverter
Does the price include VAT?
No VAT or anything else is added later: the value in your contract is the total price. CONIKA is not currently registered to charge VAT, so it does not charge it, and someone hiring for their own home cannot be charged any tax on top of it after signing.
What happens if the project grows partway through?
If the area or the scope grows, we quote the increase before doing it, and nothing is charged unless you accept it in writing.
Do you charge for the first meeting?
No. It is forty-five minutes on a video call, at no charge, and your Dossier comes out of it, with the figure in writing.
Do you discount for several identical units?
Yes, and it is a strong one: the first unit at 100%, the next four at 40% each, the following five at 30%, the next ten at 20%, the following thirty at 10%, and units 51 to 60 at 7.5%. Sixty identical units cost what ten do; more than sixty are quoted separately.
Is your price expensive or cheap for the market?
The published reference fee for building design in Colombia in 2026 is around COP 23 million, and fees in Bogotá and Medellín tend to run higher. Ours depends on the area and the scope of your house, and it arrives in writing in your Dossier.
Why are you cheaper than a studio in Bogotá?
Because we operate from Pasto and work remotely. The cost structure is different, not the judgment.
If you are cheaper, are you worse?
Thirty houses designed with the same process. What comes down is the cost of operating, not what you get.
What you get
What exactly do I receive?
Your house drawn room by room with measurements, the images of how it will look inside and out, the 3D model to walk through it, and the set of drawings your builder uses together with the geotechnical report, the structure and the plumbing and electrical, which you hire separately from each specialist.
Do I get drawings I can build from, or just pretty pictures?
Design drawings with every measurement, which your builder uses together with the geotechnical report and the engineering: without them they are not fit to build from, and the label on every drawing says so. The images are part of the deliverable, not the deliverable itself.
Does it include engineering?
No. For a house we deliver the design. Plumbing, electrical and structural are developed and signed by the engineer you hire.
Does it include structural engineering?
No. We deliver the design; the structural calculation is done and signed by a structural engineer.
And who signs off the engineering?
Your engineer, who also develops it. We give them the drawings and the model in IFC to work over.
Do you deliver in BIM?
Yes. That is what lets your engineer work over the same model instead of a flat drawing.
What formats do I get?
DWG, PDF and IFC. IFC is the open BIM format: any professional can open and follow the project without depending on us or on a particular program.
How many images does the project include?
Six, within the price of the design. Each extra image costs USD 100, up to 20 in total, and we quote it beforehand.
Can I order just the images, without the design?
Yes. USD 125 per image, with a minimum of 6 and less as the order grows, plus a one-time modeling or scene setup fee from USD 250.
Do you make video walkthroughs?
Video is quoted separately. What is included is the navigable 3D model, which you walk through from your portal, with generic furniture: it is for understanding the space, not for showing it.
Do you do interior design?
The project defines spaces, measurements and general finishes. Decor and loose furniture are discussed separately.
Do you do landscaping?
It is discussed project by project. It is not in the base package.
Do you help me choose materials?
Yes. The project defines finishes. What we do not do is buy them or manage the purchase.
Design and construction
Is it worth hiring someone to design my house?
If you are going to build once in your life, yes. It is not an aesthetic expense: it stops you paying for a house that later does not work for you.
How do I choose who designs my house?
Look at whether their work shows a way of thinking or just a set of good-looking projects. Talk to them before hiring. And pick someone who tells you what you need to hear, not only what you want to hear.
Should I buy a house or design one?
Designing gives you a space made for the way you live; buying is faster and more predictable. Neither is "better": it depends on what you are putting first, time or fit with your life.
What mistakes do people make when building a house?
Deciding out of fear, copying the neighbor, choosing finishes by fashion, and leaving visualization for the end. Most mistakes are not technical, they are failures of judgment.
Can I see my house before it is built?
Yes. That is what visualization is for: renderings and walkthroughs that show the project with its light and its materials before a single brick is moved. It is the cheapest way to correct.
What is exposed concrete?
Leaving concrete as the final finish, uncovered. It is not a way to save: doing it well costs more, because every imperfection stays in view. Done well and kept well, it ages well.
What is schematic design?
The first formal version of the design: plans, elevations and volume, before the definitive drawings. It exists so decisions can be made and adjusted before investing in technical detail.
What is the difference between a designer and a civil engineer?
The designer lays out the space and how it works. The civil engineer calculates the structure holding it up. On a serious project, the two work together.
What is a renovation?
Changing an existing building in its layout, its finishes or its structure, without starting from scratch. It requires understanding what is already there before proposing the change.
What makes a house contemporary?
The word names a period, not a quality: a house from today can be as badly resolved as one from fifty years ago. What decides whether it works can be checked: whether the space matches how people actually live there, whether the temperature holds without appliances running all day, and whether the scale is a person's and not a photograph's. A change of level, a crack you enter through: those are not there for taste, they are there because they solve something.
What is the difference between modern and contemporary architecture?
The first is a twentieth-century movement, with names and dates: clean geometry, structure on show, ornament out. The second only means of now, so it describes no style at all: everything built today fits inside it. Which is why neither word tells you whether a house is well made. That is told by the climate of the site, the orientation and how it is lived in.
How is the materiality of a house chosen?
By two criteria, and neither of them is the catalog. The first is that the material be what it says it is: concrete as concrete and timber as timber, no imitations, aging in plain sight with the rain and the sun. The second is thermal: in a cold climate the materials that come in are the ones that capture and hold radiation, such as a well placed translucent panel in the roof; in a hot one what rules is an envelope that insulates and keeps the inside protected.
How does climate affect house design in Colombia?
It decides the orientation, the envelope and where the air comes in, and it changes from one municipality to the next. In hot country the work is defending the house from the sun: main facades north or south, eaves that cast shade, and continuous cross ventilation that takes the heat out without air conditioning. In the Andean cold, in Pasto for instance, it is the reverse: the house faces east to capture the morning sun and the envelope is sealed, so the heat that came in by day is still inside at night.
Do I need a home designer or an interior designer?
The home designer lays out the space and how it is used; the interior designer works on what goes inside a space that is already built. If the project starts from zero, begin with the home designer.
Process, timing and remote work
How long does it take you to design a house?
It depends on the project and how settled the decisions are. Your project's schedule reaches you in writing in your Dossier, before you sign anything.
How long does it take to design a house, in general?
There is no single number: it changes with the size and complexity of each house. What does not change is that your schedule is in writing before you sign, not partway through.
Will I know how long it takes before I hire you?
Yes. The first conversation defines the scope of your project, and with it your schedule, which reaches you in writing in your Dossier before signing.
Can it run longer?
Yes. The dates in your schedule are estimates, and only five things move them: delays in information, in approvals or in payments, a pause you ask for, or force majeure. A delay of ours does not move them, and your portal shows every change of date with its cause.
How many projects do you take on a month?
Two. That is the slot that lets us give each project a real schedule, not a generic one.
What does the process look like, step by step?
A forty-five-minute conversation, which defines the scope of your project. With that we build your Dossier: your figure and your schedule, in writing. Then the agreement is signed, the design runs with two decision points with you, and you receive drawings, images and the 3D model.
How many times can I change the design?
Two decision points: one big one, at the start, and a detail one before delivery. Adjusting costs nothing, as many times as needed. What is quoted separately, and only if you accept it in writing, is changing the area, the program, the massing or the concept already approved. So is ordering more images, more or longer videos, more tour viewpoints, or adding music and voice-over to a video contracted without them.
What if I do not like what you propose?
That is what the two decision points are for. And you will not see the finished house all at once: you watch it take shape, and correct it along the way.
When do I see the first image?
During the design, not at the end. Progress is visible on your portal, according to your Dossier's schedule.
Do I have to visit your office?
No. The whole process is remote.
How many meetings are there?
As many as needed, all by video call. The first one is forty-five minutes.
How do I know where my project stands?
In your portal. That is where you see the phase, the quote, the contract, and you have a chat with us.
Do I have to stay on top of it all the time?
No. You have five business days to approve each delivery; if you take longer, the schedule waits until you answer, with no penalty for anyone.
Can you design my house if I live in another city?
Yes. Designing does not require being on site: it requires the right measurements and talking with you. Both are handled remotely.
How do you survey the lot if you are not there?
With the topographic survey or the property documents, plus photos and video you send following a guide. We do not visit the lot or measure it: the design starts from the information you give us.
What if it is already built and needs to be surveyed?
Measuring it is on you: you get the drawings of what exists from a surveyor or from whoever built it, and send them to us as DWG, IFC or PDF. We model the existing building from them, as a line in your Dossier. We do not measure on site, in any city.
Is it not risky to hire a studio I have never met?
That is why everything is written and visible: the quote, the contract and the project phase are in your portal from day one, not in a lost email.
How do I know you will not leave me hanging?
You see your project's phase whenever you want and you have a direct chat with us right there. You never have to ask where things stand.
Do you sign a contract?
Yes, and you see it in full in the portal before you pay anything.
Can I reach you on WhatsApp?
Not for a first contact. Write to us by email and one of the two of us answers, not a help desk. WhatsApp is for once the project is under way.
What are your hours?
Colombia time, mornings and afternoons, on UTC-5 all year: the same time as New York and Miami in winter, one hour behind them in summer. The calendar shows every available slot in your own time zone.
Licenses, signatures and permits
Do you sign the drawings?
In Colombia, yes, and it is included in the price. Outside the country the signature does not travel: licenses are issued locally (in the US, by each state).
Are the drawings I receive signed by a licensed professional?
It depends on where your project is. In Colombia they are: the final drawings are signed by Sofía Solarte, co-founder and design lead of CONIKA, with a current professional license in Colombia (CPNAA), and that is included in the price. Outside Colombia they are design drawings, without a seal, because a Colombian license has no validity in another country: where local law requires a licensed architect, that architect, engaged from day one, holds responsible control of the project and seals it; if the project is exempt, your engineers complete the drawings for the permit.
Do your drawings work for getting a building permit?
In Colombia, yes: we sign the drawings. The engineering is supplied and signed by the engineer you hire.
Who signs the plumbing and electrical?
Your engineer, who is the one who develops them. We deliver the design they work over.
Do you handle the permit application for me?
No. We deliver the design drawings, signed in Colombia by our design lead. The geotechnical report, the engineering and the filing with the permitting office are on you, with the professionals you hire.
How much does the permit cost?
It is a separate cost, charged by the permitting office or authority, not by us.
What if I am outside Colombia?
It depends on where your project is, and it is set out place by place at conika.co/en/donde-disenamos. Where we design outside Colombia, we do it as design consultants: if local law requires a licensed architect, you engage one before the design begins, and they hold responsible control of the project, seal it and file the permit; if the project is exempt, your engineers complete the drawings for the permit. We say it upfront because it is the part no one else spells out.
Can I build without a permit?
That is not our call to make, and we will not recommend it. Our job is the design drawings the permit needs; your engineers complete the rest of the file.
Do your drawings meet seismic code?
That is settled by the structural design, which is not included: the structural engineer you hire calculates it, signs it and answers for it.
Renovation and remodeling
How much does it cost to have a renovation designed?
Less than a new house of the same size: the design carries 25% off. It is the design fee; your builder still does the build.
Why does a renovation cost less than a new house?
Because the structure, the envelope and the siting already exist. A 25% reduction applies to the design fee.
What is the existing-conditions model and why is it charged separately?
It is building the model of what already exists from the drawings you give us, so the design works over that base. It goes as a line in your Dossier because it is work a new house does not have. It does not include measuring on site: the accuracy of those drawings is on you.
What if I already have drawings?
That is exactly what we work from: we model the existing building from your drawings, without measuring again. You see what that modeling costs in your Dossier before signing.
Can I renovate just one part, like the kitchen?
Yes. A targeted intervention is quoted as such, by its scope and not by the size of the whole house.
Does this work for apartments?
Yes. It is in fact the most common case in Bogotá and Medellín.
Do I need a permit to renovate?
It depends what you touch. If structure or the facade is involved, almost always yes. We tell you before starting.
Can I keep my own builder?
Yes, and it is what we recommend. He knows how to put up a wall; we tell him which one. If the renovation touches the structure or the plumbing and electrical, an engineer handles that, separately.
Am I not taking work away from my builder?
The opposite. You take away the guesswork and leave him the build, which is what he actually knows how to do.
About the lot and the land
I do not have a lot yet, can I start?
You can book the conversation while you are still looking: that is where we tell you what to check in a lot before you buy it. Designing, on the other hand, requires a lot that is already settled.
Do you help me choose the lot?
On the call we tell you what to check in the lots you are considering. It is the conversation that saves the most money, and it happens before you have spent any.
What documents do you need for the lot?
The deed or certificate of tradition, and the topographic survey if it exists. If it does not, we tell you how to get one.
My lot slopes, is that a problem?
No. It is almost always the reverse: a well-resolved slope is what gives the house its view and takes the neighbor out of it.
Do you design country houses?
Yes. It is a good share of what we design.
Construction and the build
Do you build?
No. The build is carried out and managed by whoever you hire, who is the one answerable for it. We hand over the finished design, and you coordinate it with your builder.
Why don't you build with your own crew?
Because doing both forces a choice between the design and the margin on the build. We would rather hold a single interest: that the project turns out right.
Can you recommend a builder?
We can tell you what to look for in a construction quote. Who carries it out is your call, always.
Do you do construction oversight or supervision?
No. Construction supervision and technical inspection are separate roles, with their own legal liability, and the client hires them. The build is carried out and managed by whoever you hire, and the technical side belongs to your builder and your engineers.
What if the builder does not understand the drawings?
The drawings carry every measurement and the specified materials, so the design is complete; the structure and the plumbing and electrical are in your engineers' drawings. And if a mistake of ours turns up, at your choice we fix it at no cost or refund what you paid for that piece. The legal warranty runs three months from The Delivery, or from when you discover the mistake if it could not be seen on receipt.
What if the build blows past budget?
That is why design comes first: with the dimensioned drawings and your engineers' drawings, your builder can quote the entire build before you buy the first bag of cement. What sends a build over budget is starting it without knowing how much is needed.
CONIKA
What does CONIKA do?
We design houses for clients who are going to build them, and we do 3D rendering and visualization (images, video and 360 tours), which can also be ordered on its own.
Is CONIKA a marketplace?
No. We do not list professionals and we do not broker between parties. We do every project ourselves, from beginning to end, as a studio and not as a platform.
Does CONIKA only work in Pasto?
No. The studio is based in Pasto and works remotely: we design across Colombia and, outside it, in the places listed at conika.co/en/donde-disenamos, with the same process.
Does CONIKA have a studio in Pasto, Nariño?
Yes. The studio was born and operates in Pasto, Nariño, and works remotely on projects across Colombia and beyond it.
How many projects have you done?
Thirty houses designed.
Why don't you show photos of finished construction?
Because the studio is young and the build is carried out by each client's own builder, on their own timeline. We prefer to say it plainly: what we show you is the project as delivered, not a photograph we did not take.
Are the images made with artificial intelligence?
No. Your project is modeled in three dimensions from your own drawings and rendered from there: what you see is your house, with your measurements. Artificial intelligence comes in at the end, on the finished render, with a single purpose: to improve the resolution and the realism of the textures. It does not generate the image and it decides nothing that appears in it; the geometry, the materials, the light and the framing come from the model and from whoever built it.
Who are you?
A design and 3D visualization studio in Pasto. The names and the professional license are published, and on the first call you speak directly with the person who will draw your house.
Are you professionally licensed?
In Colombia, yes: Sofía holds a professional license there (CPNAA), which is why we sign the drawings in Colombia. We are not licensed in the United States.
What does the process look like once I hire CONIKA?
A conversation to understand the project, the signing of The Commitment, which sets the scope, the estimated schedule and the payment terms, and from there the project moves in phases, with notice at each one.
Can I follow the progress of my project?
Yes. Every project has a private portal where you see the phase, the documents and the dossier as it grows, and where you can walk through your house in 3D before it exists. There is no need to ask for status reports: the status is always in view.
Does CONIKA sign a contract? What guarantees are there?
Yes. Before starting, The Commitment is signed: an agreement setting out the scope, the timing, the figure and the payment terms. It binds both sides equally. And the statutory warranty runs over what is delivered: a defect that is ours, a badly dimensioned drawing, an inconsistency between pieces, an incomplete file, is at your choice corrected at no cost or refunded for that piece, within the three months following delivery, or from when you discover it if it could not be seen on receipt. And without using up any of your decision points.
Who owns the drawings and the renderings, me or CONIKA?
You receive a license to build it once, with no expiration date, which comes into effect when you finish paying the price. The files are in your hands: you can pass them to your builder, your engineers and, outside Colombia, the licensed architect who holds responsible control of the project there, or the engineers who complete them for the permit. Authorship of the design belongs to its designer, Sofía Solarte, and the copyright stays with CONIKA: that is why the license covers a single project. The images carry a separate, broader license, which comes into effect with that same payment: you can use, publish and distribute them for any purpose, advertising included, with no time limit. The copyright in the images stays with us. We keep the project in our archive and show it in our portfolio, always without your name or the location of the property. If you would rather it were not shown even anonymously, just tell us, before or after, and it comes off our channels within fifteen business days, at no cost.
Is CONIKA's design conceptual only, or can it be built from?
It is not just conceptual: we deliver the complete design, with plans, sections, elevations, details and specifications. To build, it is completed with the geotechnical report and the structural, plumbing and electrical designs: you hire each one from its specialist, and the permit is yours to file.
What happens if I do not like the final result?
The process is built so that it does not happen: you follow progress in your portal phase by phase and decide at two decision points, The Table I and The Table II. Adjusting what was agreed costs nothing; changing the area, the rooms, the massing or the concept already approved is quoted, and only if you accept it. And if you would still rather stop, you can, paying only for the phases completed.
How do I start a project with CONIKA?
Schedule a conversation. Forty-five minutes on a video call, at no charge, and it is where the scope, the timing and the figure come from.
Do you do renderings only, for architects?
Yes. USD 125 per image, with a minimum of 6 and less as the order grows, plus a one-time modeling or scene setup fee from USD 250. The details are on the Visualization page.
Payments
How are payments made?
From your own portal, through the payment gateway built into it. Credit and debit cards, bank transfer (PSE) and Nequi for clients in Colombia, in the installments The Commitment sets.
Can clients outside Colombia pay?
Yes, by card, including foreign cards. The charge is processed in Colombian pesos; your bank handles the conversion to your currency, at its own rate and with its own fees.
Is it safe to enter my card details?
The details go straight to the payment gateway and never pass through CONIKA's servers.
When is payment due?
Each installment is tied to a point in the project set in The Commitment, and it becomes due five business days after that point is recorded in The Log; the first, when you sign. No charge appears without your having seen it first.
Countries and cities
Do you design houses in Pasto?
Yes. It is our home base: Pasto, Nariño. This is where we sign the drawings, and we work just as closely whether near or far.
Do you design in Medellín?
Yes, remotely. We sign the drawings in Colombia with a CPNAA license; the engineering is supplied by your own engineer.
Do you design in Rionegro, Envigado, Sabaneta, El Retiro or the Oriente Antioqueño?
Yes. It is one of the country-house regions where a project built to the lot and the slope pays off the most.
Do you design in Bogotá?
Yes, remotely, and across the savanna too: Chía, Cajicá, La Calera, Sopó, Tabio, Tenjo.
Do you design in Cali?
Yes, including Pance, Jamundí and Dapa.
Do you design in Barranquilla, Cartagena or Santa Marta?
Yes. The climate changes the design (cross ventilation, shade, humidity), not the way we work.
Do you design in Bucaramanga, Pereira, Manizales, Armenia, Ibagué, Neiva, Villavicencio, Popayán or Cúcuta?
Yes. Across Colombia we work the same way: remotely, and we sign the drawings.
Do you design houses in the United States?
Each state decides. For now we only design what the law exempts from licensing. Place by place, at conika.co/en/donde-disenamos.
Which US states do you design houses in?
In 42: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming. Some have city exceptions, such as Miami-Dade. State by state, at conika.co/en/donde-disenamos#us.
Do you design houses in Canada?
Each province decides. In five we design your house; anything larger goes with a local architect. Place by place, at conika.co/en/donde-disenamos.
Do you design houses in Mexico?
We do not design in Mexico for now: we are reviewing it with a Mexican lawyer. Images and tours, we do. More at conika.co/en/donde-disenamos.
Do you design houses in Spain?
In Spain every building is signed by a registered architect you engage, and we design under their direction. Interiors without structural work, directly. More at conika.co/en/donde-disenamos.
Do you design houses in Portugal?
In Portugal the project is signed by an Ordem architect you engage, and we design under their direction. Interiors without structural work, directly. More at conika.co/en/donde-disenamos.
Do you design houses in the United Kingdom?
In the United Kingdom we design your home or building and the planning drawings; a UK professional reviews the technical part. Up to 18 metres tall. More at conika.co/en/donde-disenamos.
Do you design houses in Switzerland?
Each canton decides: Zurich, open; Geneva and Vaud, with a local architect; Ticino, no. The rest, not yet. Place by place, at conika.co/en/donde-disenamos.
Do you design houses in Dubai or Abu Dhabi?
We do not design in the Emirates; images and tours, we do. Place by place, at conika.co/en/donde-disenamos.
Do you design houses in Panama?
In Panama a licensed Panamanian architect or engineer leads and signs the project, and we design as their collaborators. More at conika.co/en/donde-disenamos.
Do you design houses in Costa Rica?
In Costa Rica a CFIA-registered professional takes on the project, and we design as their consultants. More at conika.co/en/donde-disenamos.
Do you design houses in the Dominican Republic?
In the Dominican Republic a CODIA member leads and signs the project, and we design as their consultants. More at conika.co/en/donde-disenamos.
Do you design houses in Puerto Rico?
In Puerto Rico, for now, we do not design: the law requires a Puerto Rico-licensed architect or engineer even for a house. More at conika.co/en/donde-disenamos.
Do you design houses in Australia?
Each state decides: in New South Wales, your house; in Queensland and Victoria, with a local professional. Place by place, at conika.co/en/donde-disenamos.
Do you design houses in Ecuador?
Not yet: we have not researched the law in Ecuador, so we do not take design work there yet. Images and tours, we do. If your project is there, write to us and we will look into it.
Do you design houses in Peru?
Not yet: we have not researched the law in Peru, so we do not take design work there yet. Images and tours, we do. If your project is there, write to us and we will look into it.
Do you design houses in Chile?
Not yet: we have not researched the law in Chile, so we do not take design work there yet. Images and tours, we do. If your project is there, write to us and we will look into it.
Do you design houses in Argentina?
Not yet: we have not researched the law in Argentina, so we do not take design work there yet. Images and tours, we do. If your project is there, write to us and we will look into it.
Do you design houses in Uruguay?
Not yet: we have not researched the law in Uruguay, so we do not take design work there yet. Images and tours, we do. If your project is there, write to us and we will look into it.
Do you design houses in Paraguay?
Not yet: we have not researched the law in Paraguay, so we do not take design work there yet. Images and tours, we do. If your project is there, write to us and we will look into it.
Do you design houses in Bolivia?
Not yet: we have not researched the law in Bolivia, so we do not take design work there yet. Images and tours, we do. If your project is there, write to us and we will look into it.
Do you design houses in Guatemala?
Not yet: we have not researched the law in Guatemala, so we do not take design work there yet. Images and tours, we do. If your project is there, write to us and we will look into it.
Do you design houses in El Salvador?
Not yet: we have not researched the law in El Salvador, so we do not take design work there yet. Images and tours, we do. If your project is there, write to us and we will look into it.
Do you design houses in Honduras?
Not yet: we have not researched the law in Honduras, so we do not take design work there yet. Images and tours, we do. If your project is there, write to us and we will look into it.
Do you design houses in Nicaragua?
Not yet: we have not researched the law in Nicaragua, so we do not take design work there yet. Images and tours, we do. If your project is there, write to us and we will look into it.
I live in the United States and want to build in Colombia. Can you help?
Yes, and it is the case where working remotely pays off the most: we sign the drawings in Colombia and you follow the project from wherever you are, without traveling.
Can I pay you from abroad?
Yes. The price is fixed in Colombian pesos in your contract and each installment is charged in pesos. By card, including foreign cards, your bank handles the conversion at its own rate and with its own fees, which are on your side.
Do you work with clients in any country?
Clients, yes, except those in countries under international sanctions. What matters is where the project is: visualization, in any country; design, across Colombia and in the places we have researched, listed with who signs in each one at conika.co/en/donde-disenamos. You hire the engineering in every country.
Do you charge more to design outside Colombia?
No. The fee is the same per square meter. What it does not include is the local signature where one is needed. And if your country or your bank withholds anything on payments abroad, tell us before we prepare your Dossier: that way the price takes it into account; otherwise the withholding is on your side.
Do you find the professional who signs in my country?
In Colombia, yes, for the drawings. Outside Colombia, that is on you, before the design begins, and we work with them from day one. We deliver the project in IFC, DWG and PDF, which any professional can open.
Does the design change by country?
Yes, and that is why it comes up from the first call: climate, orientation, setback and height rules. The project is made for the place it will be built, not the place it is drawn.
What language do you work in?
Spanish and English: the conversation, the portal and the design contract exist in both languages, and if the two versions of the contract differ, the Spanish one prevails. If your country's filing needs the drawings labeled in English, it is agreed beforehand, in your Dossier.
Before you hire
Can I see built projects, not just renderings?
It is the right thing to ask for, and the answer here is direct: none is finished yet. The studio is young and the build is carried out by each client's own builder, on their own timeline. What we can show you is the complete project exactly as it is delivered, which is what you are hiring: the drawings, the model and the images the house gets built from. We would rather tell you that than show you someone else's work.
If you don't execute the build, how do I know your design can actually be built?
Because the project is resolved on a model and not on loose drawings: dimensions, levels and junctions are checked there, so an inconsistency shows up on screen and not on site. And if a mistake of ours in the drawings still turns up, at your choice we fix it at no cost or refund what you paid for that piece. The legal warranty runs three months from The Delivery, or from when you discover the mistake if it could not be seen on receipt.
Can I talk to your past clients?
You can ask on the call. We do not share a client's details without their permission, so it depends on them agreeing.
What is NOT included in the price?
Construction, always: the builder carries it out and charges for it. The engineering: plumbing, electrical and structural are developed and sealed by your own engineer, and we neither provide nor quote engineering calculations or seals, in Colombia or anywhere else. Fees and paperwork for the permitting office or local authority. The geotechnical report and the topographic survey, if they do not already exist. Nor the construction budget or the quantity schedule, although the drawings are dimensioned; nor the editable files of the software, on-site measurement or construction oversight.
Do I need a geotechnical report?
Yes, to build: our drawings are labeled as not fit for construction without a geotechnical report. We do not do it ourselves: a laboratory or a geotechnical engineer you hire does.
Do I need a topographic survey of the lot?
If the lot slopes or has an irregular shape, yes. If you already have one, we use it as it stands; if not, we tell you how to get one.
How much can a poorly planned project drive up construction cost?
Industry references put it at 10% to 25% in overruns. On a COP 400 million build, that is COP 40 to 100 million, several times what the full design costs.
How do you control construction cost from the design stage?
Through the design decisions, which are the ones that govern it: spans, heights, materials and how much earth has to be moved. What sends a build over budget is not the price of cement: it is redoing what was already done.
Should I get quotes from two or three studios?
Yes, and that is why the Dossier is yours to keep: it comes out of a conversation at no charge, with the figure and the schedule in writing, and with it you can compare for real.
What if I already started with someone else and want to switch?
It can be done. Bring what you have, with its author's authorization, and we tell you what holds up and what needs redoing, with the price before we start.
Do you work with energy efficiency, solar orientation and ventilation?
Yes, and not as an add-on: orientation, shade and cross ventilation are design decisions that are paid for every month afterward, on the utility bill.
What if you disappear halfway through the project?
You hold the signed contract and a portal where you see the project phase, with the chat in the same place. None of it lives in an email that can be lost.
Can I use the project to apply for a loan?
Banks usually ask for the drawings and a construction budget. We give you the drawings; the construction budget is not included: your builder puts it together. The application itself is yours to file.
Is it worth paying for a design, or is a builder enough?
Your builder puts up whatever you tell them. What they cannot do is decide what fits your lot and how it will turn out. That is what is being bought here. The structure and the plumbing and electrical are not settled by the builder or by us: an engineer settles them.
Isn't it cheaper to buy ready-made drawings?
It is cheaper right up until the drawing does not fit the lot, does not get the light right, or has to be redone on site. The expensive part is not the design: it is tearing down a wall twice.
What if I change my mind halfway through the design?
That is what the two decision points are for, and adjusting within what was agreed costs nothing. If you decide not to go on, you can end it whenever you want, with one email, and pay only for the phases completed; and while execution has not started, you can withdraw and we return everything.
How much should my house cost in total?
As a reference, finishing a house in Colombia runs from COP 2.4 to over COP 4.8 million per m², depending on the level of finish. Against that, design is a small part of the bill, and the exact figure for yours arrives in your Dossier.
Why should I pay for design if the real money is in the build?
Exactly because of that. Design is the smallest part of the bill and it is what decides how the rest gets spent.
Are you a real studio, or two people with a laptop?
A small studio in Pasto, with thirty houses designed, a professional license and a portal where you follow your project. We are few on purpose: that is why we take on two projects a month, not ten.
Why should I trust you with my house if I don't know you?
Because we are not asking you to trust us. The price is in writing before you sign, the contract before we charge, and the project phase in view every day. What this trade usually asks for on faith is written down here.
The images of your project
Does the design of my house include images?
Yes. Six hyperrealistic images of the finished project are included in the price of the design. They are not an extra quoted separately or an add-on that appears at the end: they are part of what is delivered, and they exist so you can see your house before it is built.
Can I see the house from the inside before it exists?
Yes. Beyond the six images, you receive the three-dimensional model to walk through from your portal. It shows things a drawing cannot: how you move from one room to the next, how high a ceiling actually feels.
Does that model look the same as the renders?
No, and the difference is deliberate. The model is there to understand the space, not to present it: it carries generic furniture, which is enough to read the size of a room, but it does not have the lighting, the worked materials or the finish of a hyperrealistic image. That is what the six images are for, and those are made to be looked at and shown.
I want more than six images. Is that possible?
Yes, and they cost less than a standalone image, because the model of your house is already built: what you pay for is the new shot, not the work of raising the project again. Up to twenty in total can be added. If you need more than that, it becomes a commission for our visualization line.
Can I ask for a video or a walkthrough of my house?
Yes. Video and the 360 tour can be added to any design project and are quoted according to what you want to show and why. They are pieces from our visualization line, so there is no need to find another supplier or explain the project again: it is already modeled. You can see them in detail on the Visualization page.
What is the difference between the model you deliver and an interactive walkthrough?
The included model is a tool for you to understand your house while it is being designed. An interactive walkthrough would be a finished piece for showing the house to someone else: a buyer, a bank, a partner, the family. One is made to decide with; the other, to convince with, and that is what the images, the video and the 360 tour are for. The interactive walkthrough is not available to order yet. If you would like us to let you know when it is, write to contact@conika.co.
I already have a design from my architect and only want the images. Is that possible?
Yes. That comes through our visualization line, which exists precisely for it: we do not alter anyone's design; we depict it exactly as it comes to us, with its author's authorization. You can order images, video or a 360 tour, depending on what you need to show.