Armacan Insights
Build smarter — read first.
Guides, real numbers and honest frameworks from the Armacan team — the reading we wish every client had before their first consultation.
Costs & BudgetingWhat a Custom Home Really CostsCost per square foot by finish level, where the money actually goes, and the five drivers that move your number most.
Permits & ZoningPermit Timelines, City by CityHow long approvals really take in six municipalities — and the preparation that reliably shortens them.
Laneway HomesThe Laneway Home PlaybookWhether your lot qualifies, what it costs, and the rental math that makes laneways quietly excellent.
Permits & ZoningMultiplex Zoning, ExplainedMost single-family lots can now hold three to six homes. What qualifies, and how the numbers work.
Energy & PerformanceBC Step Code for HomeownersThe five efficiency steps in plain language — and why a better envelope pays you back every month.
RenovationsRenovate or Rebuild?When a renovation is smart money and when a rebuild wins — the six factors that decide it.
RenovationsWhich Renovations Pay BackKitchens, suites, envelopes, additions — ranked by the share of cost you typically get back.
Guides12 Questions for Any BuilderA due-diligence checklist that protects you — licensing, pricing, change orders, warranty, references.
ProcessLot to Keys: the TimelineA realistic 24-month map of a custom build — and the two places schedules actually slip.
ContractsFixed Price vs Cost-PlusWhere each contract puts the risk, what change orders should look like, and how draws protect you.Costs & BudgetingFinancing a Custom BuildHow construction mortgages, milestone draws and the builders lien holdback actually work — in plain language.GuidesBuying a Lot: 9 Checks FirstZoning, slope, soils, trees, services, easements — and what each surprise costs when it's missed.
RenovationsLegal Basement SuitesWhat makes a suite legal, what it costs to get there, and the rent that pays it back.Permits & ZoningDuplex EconomicsA duplex costs more to build than one house — and is usually worth far more finished. The math.Energy & PerformanceRain-City Building Science1,200 mm of rain a year. The wall assembly, layer by layer, that keeps a Vancouver home dry for decades.Energy & PerformanceHeat Pumps, HonestlyWhy new Vancouver homes are electric, what heat pumps cost to run, and the details that make them great.
GuidesMultigenerational by DesignSuites, laneways and barrier-free design — and the cost math versus assisted living that surprises everyone.Costs & BudgetingFinishes: Spend vs SaveSelections can swing a build by $200k. Where spending shows every day — and where saving is invisible.RenovationsCharacter Home RenovationsKeep the character house, earn the density: how retention incentives, costs and craft actually work.
ProcessCommercial Fit-Out PlaybookOffice, retail, restaurant, clinic — realistic fit-out costs per square foot and a week-by-week timeline.Rather talk it through?
Everything in these guides is on the table at a free consultation — with your lot's numbers instead of averages.