¼C Modern ✳

The catalog · No. 07 · Version 2

The Courtyard

A steel-framed ring around a private court. Craftsman neighbours both sides. 2 bed and 1 bath + powder, 1,190 square feet. Small, honest, tight.

Version 2 · Cedar hillside The same courtyard ring in warm honey cedar on a rural hillside lot above the lake. Same plan, same number. See the original →

The Courtyard design study render
Study No. 07 · design study render

The two faces

Modest to the street, open to the garden.

The way in, sheltered under deep eaves, a lit door at dusk.
The way in, sheltered under deep eaves, a lit door at dusk.

The plan

Every square foot, accounted for.

Program2 bed · 1 bath + powder
Floor area1,190 sq ft · 1 storey
StructureLight steel frame, glass court walls
RoofFlat, internal drains
EnvelopeStep Code 5 target · ACH50 ≤ 1.0, blower-door verified
Signaturecentral courtyard · black-framed glazing

Plan drawn to the render. Room dimensions on the drawing; areas sum to the stated floor area. A construction set follows the House No. 1 pipeline.

LIVING DINING + KITCHEN BED 1 BED 2 BATH PWD + LDY STUDY NOOK GALLERY COURT CARPORT POOL ENTRY 16' x 12' 16' x 10' 14' x 12' 14' x 12' 12' x 8' 12' x 6' 12' x 10' 12' x 14' 12' x 20' GARDEN WALL + SLAT SCREEN 40'-0" 34'-0" N 0 5 10 FT
The rooms ring a 12 by 14 foot glazed court so every space borrows its light; you enter on axis through the walled front garden, past the pool, with the carport hung off the east side.

The honest number

What it should cost to build.

Site prep + servicesexcavation, utilities to lot line hookups$25,000
Foundationslab or crawlspace, insulated$41,500
Structure + framingpost and beam or conventional, roof structure$66,000
Enveloperoofing, windows + doors, cladding, insulation + air sealing to ACH50 ≤ 1.0$99,000
Mechanical / electrical / plumbingheat pump, HRV, full rough-in + fixtures$74,500
Interior finishesfloors, millwork, kitchen, baths, paint$82,500
GC + contingencysupervision, permits admin, 5% contingency$25,000
Hard cost$413,000

Band $380,000 to $446,000 · $347/sq ft

Cost model v0.1: Okanagan 2026 hard-cost bands from a $/sq ft basis, stated as an estimate, not a quote. Excludes land, design and permit soft costs, and GST. As the House No. 1 build sheet gathers real supplier and trade receipts, receipts replace estimates here, line by line.

Where the money goes further

Small choices that hold the number down.

01Slab-on-grade, no basement

Slab-on-grade, no basement

One pour is the foundation and the finished floor. No basement to dig or to heat.

02One roof, framed simply

One roof, framed simply

A single flat form with deep overhangs. The cheaper roof to build and to keep dry.

03Stock materials, standard sizes

Stock materials, standard sizes

Cedar and fibre-cement in the sizes they ship in. Almost nothing is cut to waste.

The details

What you notice up close.

Central courtyard, up close.
Central courtyard, up close.
Black-framed glazing.
Black-framed glazing.
Where the roof meets the glass, the light gets in low and long.
Where the roof meets the glass, the light gets in low and long.

Grows when you do

Built small, drawn to expand.

The Courtyard is drawn to grow. A slab pad and a framed opening are set at the start, so another bedroom, a studio, or a suite lands on the side already built for it, with no re-doing what is there.

TodayDay one: a blank end-wall and a slab pad left ready.
Day one: a blank end-wall and a slab pad left ready.
When you need itLater: a matching cedar wing on that pad. Same roof, one more room.
Later: a matching cedar wing on that pad. Same roof, one more room.

Versions

Same plan, different skin.

The Courtyard — original version
V1 Original
The Courtyard — version 2, Cedar hillside
V2 Cedar hillside · you are here
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