Jungle Homes By Michael H. Cranford
Architectural Services in Southern Costa Rica

So you wanna live in paradise! You’ve got a great pc. of property in Costa Rica, great view, but don’t know how to go about designing your home or project.   Hopefully my ideas and experience will help you on your journey towards tropical living. Most importantly while your designing –have fun!  Building from the ground up is a great way to express your creativity, and bring out the child side in you. Construction should be fun and not stressful.

Your design should include the basic floor square footage you and your family and quests will need to live comfortably. You should consider your current lifestyle ,  comforts and privacy features that you want to include in the design of your new home.  Your tropical home design should capture cool morning breezes, however blocking hot afternoon sun and heat. Your eves and overhangs should keep rain and water out of your home, however allow natural light into each room.

    


Don’t be afraid to think outside the box a little. Most of us living here in Costa Rica, and especially here on the Osa Peninsula near Matapalo and Drake Bay, have built unusual homes with unique features. I have designed over 30-40 homes, cabinas  and several hotels, and I can tell you with confidence, construction material costs  are on the rise and getting a story home built for under $150-200K is a challenge these days, especially when  our hardwood trees are protected on The Osa Peninsula , as they should be.

It makes sense to design and build your home sustainably, trying to only use local materials and labor as in the example of our Lapa’s Nest Tree house.

It is built 100% from sustainable materials ( Egyptian linens excluded ). 100% of the wood naturally felled, and milled right on site.

Our support system was constructed using car axles,  tires and recycled steel rebar-  

Our septic system was built with bird cages and BBQ grills. The entire 1100 sq ft tree house was built for ½ the cost of a standard 2 level concrete home with the same square footage.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2344MMGshpg.

Building smart, inexpensive and local is the preferred way to go about designing and building your home.

For more information and photos about how our Lapas Nest Tree house was built – It was a 3 year journey that  passed 3-4 good sized earthquakes tests as well ( 6.2 & 7.1 ) If the tree house is a rockin, don’t come a knockin - View Gallery 
 
Buying Local  -
Buying local may not always be the cheapest alternative, however, in many cases it’s the only way to build inexpensively. Either way your homes footprint should blend on your land with the least amount of negative impact as possible. Try adopting certifiable methods of building, and reduce your footprint. Learn about the benefits of solar, hydro, geothermal cooling, cistern tank development ideas and who to buy from within your local community.  Living space, homes and cabinas should be built from local & renewable resources such as teak, Melina, bamboo, stone and recycled products. In order to truly have a sustainable project, you should consider hiring local contractors and create local jobs for local Ticos and gringo artisans and craftsmen. 

Jobs are the key to  sustainable living. This effort strengthens and supports local community. Your project should support local education initiatives and should not contribute to the deforestation of precious hardwood trees found here on The Osa Peninsula or anywhere for that matter.  Buy local , build sustainable and soon you will be enjoying your new home.



    

Outdoor living spaces are one of the great benefits of living in the tropics. You will see in most of my designs that I bring nature into the design and bring the design into nature, removing borders and walls with a design that encourages  you to feel like you are a part of nature, and nature is a part of you, My home designs accomplish this. 
  

Fun Floor Plans & Outdoor Living Areas -
Before we begin, we get a few dozen questions about your lifestyle out of the way. Generally a site vist is next where we determine the best view, sunrise, sunset, shade and privacy concerns, and which way the breeze comes from. The rest is easy.  My rates are affordable and on some occasions you can have some nice concept drawings your hand for under $ - 1500 -2500. Most 2500-3000 sq. ft. homes cost approx $ 2500-6000 to complete. I charge $50 per hour and work steady toward completion, and keep you informed via e-mails and scans as we go along. In just a few short days or weeks, you’re home design  could be on its way to being  permitted and built.

3-D drawings can show you what areas look like in your home  easily and quickly. All of my clients have saved $, time, energy and especially  frustration by hiring me to get started.

I have studied Feng Shui  and believe in living in harmony and balance and within nature.

Great ideas to minimize the use of hardwoods and re-use all of your scrape wood to make panels, walls and have nice details and accents throughout your home.  

Below is a list of satisfied clients here in Costa Rica and abroad, please contact me if you would like to contact any of them personally.

So in summary, think about Open Living Concepts that take advantage of morning and afternoon breezes,  stay out of the hot afternoon heat and rain, maximize available light throughout your entire home and invite the warm light of both the sunrise and sunset when possible. The use of sustainable materials, recycled products, practices, recommendations and most importantly use local labor when possible. If you would like my help and consultation, please e-mail me at osamike@gmail.com . I would be happy to provide you a quote or work hourly on your project. Thanks for spending  your time surfing through my site and I look forward to hearing from  you ! 
Pura Vida
Michael H. Cranford
www.treehouseincostarica.com
(US) 508-714-0622
(CR) 8372-3529