It's pretty common for people to think that they need far more living space than they actually do. It's also pretty common for an Architect to be asked to design a house that's simply too large for the given piece of land.

In parts of Asia, when people market their property, they simply list the location, land size and build size. In Indonesia, the latter two will often be abbreviated to LT:XXX, LB:XXX (Luas Tanah and Luas Bangunan respectively). It's very common in fact to see the LB (Build Size) being significantly larger than the LT (Land Size). The very fact that the properties are marketed in this manner suggests that in parts of the region, those two factors are potentially the only concern to buyers. Be it cultural adversity to gardens or simply a desire for a larger cooling bill, these inclinations make most Architects cringe.

Sure, in some cases due to economic circumstance, people can't afford a large piece of land, but they have a large family to shelter - this particular demographic is not the subject of this post - not to mention that this demographic is less likely to be employing the services of an Architect.

Throughout many parts of Indonesia, Architects are more than often asked to design houses for relatively small families (four to five family members) that have an excessive number of bedrooms and a wildly excessive amount of indoor space. Most don't seem to appreciate that beautiful, spanning gardens greatly enhance indoor living.

Architecture's evolution in Bali has lent great support to the importance of outdoor and indoor spaces being balanced, harmonious and very much integrated. Fortunately for Architects, most clients here in Bali know the importance of outdoor spaces, but needless to say, on occasion an Architect will be asked to push the limits, to draw a medieval castle on a 400m2 piece of land.

Architects aren't Real Estate Agents (though many Real Estate Agents consider themselves to be Architects) - but it doesn't take a genius to realize that when residents and potential buyers feel comfort in a space, they're much more likely to enjoy it, and in the case of the latter group (potential buyers) - in a market such as Bali where the purchase of a property is much more of an emotional decision than it is of fundamental calculations - greater comfort means greater value. Generous outdoor spaces - generous sized gardens create an amazing sense of comfort and grandeur both consciously and subconsciously. This often means, that you can enhance the value of your property by reducing the amount you spend on the build.

So when your Architect tells you that your targeted build size is too big, disproportionate and won't allow for nice outdoor spaces, give them a chance to explain themselves..


All the best..

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