Insights

Notes from the sites

Notes from the sites: what decides a budget, what goes wrong, and what we do about it.

1 November 2026

Energy retrofit: what actually works in old buildings

Insulating an old building like a new one is the most expensive way to create damp. The physics has to come before the product.

3 min read →
1 November 2026

Choosing a carpenter in the Alps: the questions that matter

The difference between a good joiner and a catalogue is not the wood. It is what happens at the junctions.

3 min read →
1 November 2026

A new kitchen: the 3D plan, the lead times, the traps

Most kitchen disappointments come from a plan drawn on a catalogue rather than on the actual walls.

3 min read →
1 November 2026

Snow clearing: what falls to the owner, what falls to the council

The boundary is not the gate. It is the limit of the property — and on that boundary, an uncleared path becomes the owner’s liability.

3 min read →
1 November 2026

Clearance after a death: what the notary expects

The clearance is the last task in a succession and the one families postpone. Done in the right order, it takes two days instead of two months.

3 min read →
1 November 2026

Works in a co-ownership: approvals, hours and common areas

A flat renovation in a building is never private. Here is what is asked, what must be voted on, and how a site stays acceptable for the neighbours.

3 min read →
1 November 2026

Renovating a 1970s chalet: where to start

Most chalets from that decade share the same defects. The order in which you fix them decides whether the renovation works or traps moisture in the frame.

3 min read →
1 November 2026

What drives the cost of an apartment renovation in Sallanches

A price per square metre answers a question nobody asked. Here is what actually moves the budget — and how to compare two quotes honestly.

3 min read →

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