The catalog · No. 12

The Twins

Two compact cedar homes sharing one hillside lot. Ownership, halved and doubled. 2 bed and 1 bath (each of two), 980 square feet each. Small, honest, tight.

The Twins design study render
Study No. 12 · design study render

The plan

Every square foot, accounted for.

Program2 bed · 1 bath (each of two)
Floor area980 sq ft per home · 1 storey
StructureTimber frame, dark cedar
RoofMono-pitch, paired
EnvelopeStep Code 5 target · ACH50 ≤ 1.0, blower-door verified
Signaturetwo homes per lot · hillside stilts

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.

BED 1 13'×13' BED 2 15'×13' BATH 8'×6' LNDRY ENTRY mud + coats LIVING 13'×16' DINING 8'×9' KITCHEN 8'×10' DECK on stilts · 21'×4' CARPORT 11'×20' ENTRY 28'-0" 35'-0" STREET SLOPE THIS UNIT SITE KEY · TWO HOMES, ONE LOT 0510 FT N
Two identical 980 square foot units share one hillside lot, each banking its bedrooms uphill so the living end can stand on stilts and open wide to the view.

The honest number

What it should cost to build.

Site prep + servicesexcavation, utilities to lot line hookups$19,500
Foundationslab or crawlspace, insulated$32,000
Structure + framingpost and beam or conventional, roof structure$51,500
Enveloperoofing, windows + doors, cladding, insulation + air sealing to ACH50 ≤ 1.0$77,500
Mechanical / electrical / plumbingheat pump, HRV, full rough-in + fixtures$58,000
Interior finishesfloors, millwork, kitchen, baths, paint$64,500
GC + contingencysupervision, permits admin, 5% contingency$19,500
Hard cost per home$322,000

Band $296,000 to $348,000 · $329/sq ft per home

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 mono-pitch 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.

Life inside

The rooms this plan is for.

Living room under timber frame, a full wall of glass to the outside.
Living room under timber frame, a full wall of glass to the outside.
An honest kitchen: plywood, butcher block, a window on the yard.
An honest kitchen: plywood, butcher block, a window on the yard.
A quiet bedroom that opens to the outdoors.
A quiet bedroom that opens to the outdoors.

The details

What you notice up close.

Two homes per lot, up close.
Two homes per lot, up close.
Hillside stilts.
Hillside stilts.
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 Twins 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.
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