Design and permits
Ordered without construction, a house design in Tbilisi costs 60–110 GEL/m² of total area at stroydom.ge for the full set of packages. Priced separately: ground investigation 1500–3500 GEL, topographic survey 600–1500 GEL, architecture 20–40 GEL/m², structure 15–30 GEL/m², services 12–25 GEL/m². Permit support costs 1500–4000 GEL excluding state fees, an audit of an existing design 800–2000 GEL. When we build the house, the design is included in the construction price.
We prepare design documentation for private houses and commercial buildings in Tbilisi and across Georgia: geotechnical investigation, architectural design, structural calculations for seismic loads, services design, and full support through the building permit process. When we build the house, the design is included in the construction price.
Our own project: plan your house in 3D
Available as a separate order from 1,000 GEL
We take this work as a standalone order from 1,000 GEL, or as part of a turnkey house project. Inside a house project one contractor answers for the whole chain of work: one estimate and one warranty.
About the work
How does stroydom.ge deliver design and permits?
Design and permits: from ground investigation to the city hall stamp.
What is included in design and permits?
Investigation
Ground investigation, topographic survey, bearing capacity of the soil.
Architecture
Layouts, elevations, sections, siting of the house against the terrain.
Structure
Foundation, frame and slab design calculated for seismic loads.
Services design
Electrics, water supply, drainage, heating and ventilation.
Permit
Assembling the submission and supporting approval at the city hall.
What is design and permits and why is it needed?
A design is not a folder for the city hall but the tool that sets the construction budget. Without it the estimate is based on analogues, and on site decisions get made on the fly, each one costing money. A proper design fixes structure, services and quantities before work starts, which is what makes a fixed estimate and a real programme possible.
What stages does design and permits consist of?
Each stage runs only after the previous one is accepted — so hidden works are never "closed" before inspection, and a mistake never has to be hunted for through screed and plaster.
- 1
Plot conditions
Requesting planning conditions: storeys, ratios, setbacks, restrictions.
- 2
Investigation
Topographic survey and ground investigation: soils, water table, foundation recommendations.
- 3
Concept
Layouts and massing, siting on the plot, agreed with the client.
- 4
Architectural package
Plans, elevations, sections, schedules of openings and finishes.
- 5
Structural package
Foundation and frame design, reinforcement, connections, seismic loads.
- 6
Services
Electrics, water, drainage, heating and ventilation.
- 7
Permit
Submission assembled, filed and supported through approval.
- 8
Estimate from the design
Quantities from the design become the estimate and the programme.
How does stroydom.ge control quality on site?
How we work on site — materials, equipment, tolerances, documentation and acceptance of hidden works.
Conditions before concept
Designing before the plot conditions are known risks redoing everything after the first comment.
Ground before foundation
Foundation type follows the soil, not the budget: the other way round does not work.
Packages coordinated
Services are overlaid on the structure so openings and chases are allowed for in advance.
Design equals estimate
Quantities come from the design, so a fixed estimate is only possible with one.
Documents to the client
All packages, calculations and approvals are handed to the owner, and the design stays theirs.
What should be accounted for in Tbilisi and Georgia?
What we account for here: seismic intensity 8 (MSK-64), hot summers and damp winters, steep terrain, older stock with timber floors and worn city networks.
Georgian seismicity
Calculating structures for seismic loads is mandatory and drives reinforcement and connection details.
Tbilisi slopes
Sloping plots add retaining walls, drainage and grading as separate packages within the design.
Planning limits
Plot ratio and storey limits depend on the zone: we check them before the concept, not after.
Utilities
Water, drainage and power connection points affect siting and the services budget.
Foreign clients
Documents are issued in the non-resident owner name; we handle approvals under power of attorney without their presence.
How much does it cost and how long does it take?
Indicative price ranges in lari (₾) for standard conditions. The final estimate is fixed after measurements and specification approval.
| Item | What is included and the price |
|---|---|
| Guide prices (Tbilisi, before survey) | The figures below are a working guide for budgeting. The firm estimate follows a site visit and survey: scope, access and substrate condition all move the price. |
| House design | 60–110 GEL/m² of total area for the full set of packages when the design is ordered without construction. |
| Investigations | Ground investigation: 1500–3500 GEL; topographic survey: 600–1500 GEL depending on plot size. |
| Individual packages | Architecture: 20–40 GEL/m²; structure: 15–30 GEL/m²; services: 12–25 GEL/m². |
| Permit | Assembling the submission and supporting approval: 1500–4000 GEL excluding state fees. |
| Audit of an existing design | Checking completeness and structural solutions: 800–2000 GEL with a written report. |
| How we price | By package: investigation, architecture, structure, services and permit support quoted separately. |
| What drives the price | House area and complexity, plot terrain, completeness of packages, whether a standard design needs adapting. |
| Within a build | When we build the house, the design is included in the construction price per m². |
| Calculator reference | The site estimator has no separate design item: design is part of the construction rate. Surveys and the permit are a separate line at 3000–9000 GEL. |
| Terms | Fixed price in the contract, staged payments by package, all materials handed over to the client. |
Updated:
Ready to estimate?
Leave a request — engineer site visit, measurement and a preliminary estimate for "design and permits" are free.
Planning to build a house?
Start with a free consultation about your plot, floor area and budget. If you are still looking for land, tell us about a plot you are considering.
We will call within an hour, 24/7. You do not need drawings for the first conversation.
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Frequently asked questions — Design and permits
Why bother with ground investigation if neighbours built without it?
Ground investigation shows what soil sits under your building footprint and to what depth: bearing capacity, water table, made ground or collapsible layers. It determines the type and cost of the foundation, and the spread is enormous: from strip footings to bored piles, tens of thousands of GEL apart. Building "like the neighbour" can mean cracked walls: in Tbilisi soils change within a single street, especially on slopes.
How long does a permit take in Tbilisi?
It depends on the zone, the floor area and how correctly the submission is assembled. What we control is compliance with the plot conditions: plot ratio, number of storeys, setbacks from boundaries. A mistake here means the documents come back and the cycle repeats, so we request the plot conditions first and design afterwards.
Can you build without a permit?
Legally no, and the consequences surface later: at sale, registration or utility connection. An unregistered building cannot be sold or mortgaged properly, and regularising it afterwards means fines and rework. We do not take on projects that require a permit without obtaining one; that protects both the client and us.
What does the structural package include and why does it matter?
Foundation design for the actual soil, reinforcement of columns, beams and slabs, connection details and calculation for seismic loads. Georgia is a seismic region, so the structural package is not a formality: it determines how the building behaves in an earthquake. Cutting it produces either steel "just in case" or insufficient capacity, and without calculation nobody can tell which.
Is a design needed for a standard house type?
A standard type settles the architecture but not the siting: the foundation is calculated for your soil, the services for your connection points, and the layout for your terrain and setbacks. So a standard design is always adapted. That costs less than a fully bespoke design, but the adaptation cannot be skipped, because it is the part that ties it to reality.
What if a design already exists from another designer?
We work with that too. We audit the design: structural solutions, completeness of the packages and compliance with plot conditions, then either build to it or issue a list of required revisions with reasoning. We will not build to a design with unresolved errors, since the responsibility would land on the contractor anyway.
