How to design a home on the Costa del Sol to enjoy all year round
Key ideas for designing homes in Málaga and the Costa del Sol for summer and winter alike: orientation, shade, ventilation, insulation and outdoor spaces.
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Articles on architecture, construction and design on the Costa del Sol. Reflections from the studio and from the building site.
Key ideas for designing homes in Málaga and the Costa del Sol for summer and winter alike: orientation, shade, ventilation, insulation and outdoor spaces.
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Lightweight, translucent and with a unique nocturnal quality. Why ETFE has become the reference material for indoor pools, water parks and large recreational buildings.
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Ten months of work on a hillside: excavations, rock trenching, ecological gabion walls and stepped platforms. The earthmoving phase at Villa Hope is complete.
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Passive and active strategies to reduce energy consumption without compromising design: orientation, thermal mass, aerothermal systems and energy certification.
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Cost ranges per m², fees, licences, taxes and items many clients forget to budget for. A practical guide with real figures.
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Solar path in Málaga, room-by-room orientation, overhangs and cross-ventilation. The first and most irreversible decision in any project.
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Salt air, humidity, UV and maintenance: which materials hold up in a marine environment and which deteriorate quickly. Facades, joinery and exteriors.
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From concept design to the final certificate: every phase of the architectural process explained for first-time clients.
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Structure, damp, outdated services, CTE regulations and real improvement potential. What to diagnose before committing a budget.
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Hidden structure, planning violations, obsolete services and poorly framed budgets. What to verify before signing.
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The courtyard as a strategy for light, privacy and natural ventilation. Why this age-old solution is still the smartest answer to the Mediterranean climate.
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Which permit each type of work requires and what happens if you get it wrong. A practical guide to understanding the process before you start.
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Local plan, urban planning certificate, land registry, rustic land with existing buildings. What to verify before signing a plot purchase.
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Comparing costs, timescales, flexibility and risk. The decision framework to choose well depending on the plot, planning rules and family needs.
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Topography, vegetation, views and local materials. How to design a house that belongs to the landscape rather than imposing itself on it.
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What makes a house genuinely Mediterranean beyond the clichés: the reinterpreted courtyard, shade as a design element, materials that age well.
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Works without a permit, undetected incompatibilities, incomplete documentation and miscalculated timescales. How to avoid the most common mistakes.
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Why a sloping plot is an opportunity rather than a problem: making the most of changes in level in areas like Benahavís, El Madroñal or the Axarquía.
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Flexible layouts, accessibility from the outset, adaptable rooms, home offices and readiness for future technologies. Architecture that does not age.
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Title deed, land registry note, cadastral data, topographic and geotechnical surveys, and brief. The complete list of what to have before the first meeting.
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Whitewash, arches, bungalows, communal pools and golf clubs. The style invented in Marbella and Torremolinos that still defines the imagery of the Spanish Mediterranean.
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Natural light, layout, indoor-outdoor connection, energy certification and finishes. The interventions with the best return in the Málaga and Costa del Sol market.
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From the first hotels of the 1960s to today's contemporary luxury villas: the history of how tourism transformed the built landscape of Málaga.
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One of the most frequent questions from clients. General criteria and municipal variations to understand how much built area actually "counts".
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The history of the studio since José María Santos Rein founded it in Málaga in 1958, when the Costa del Sol was still a promise.
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Reflections on contemporary intervention in historic buildings and the choice of materials that engage in dialogue with what was already there.
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The real return on investing in quality architecture: natural light, efficient layout, indoor-outdoor connection and energy certification.
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Wellness at home has become a priority for luxury residential buyers on the Costa del Sol. We analyse the trend.
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In 1964, José María Santos Rein designed a school, a caretaker's house and eleven teachers' homes in Alfarnate. A singular rationalist intervention in the hills of Málaga province.
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Bioclimatic design strategies we apply in our projects to reduce energy consumption without sacrificing comfort.
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