Rafe Maclean Architects

Rafe designed our family home before we knew were expecting. He Has a super strong sense of form and is uncompromising on creating style within the landscape. Rafe worked with our many changing requests professionally and calmly. I still have no idea how we built such a stunning home with the budget we had.

Rafe oversaw our project from conceptual stages, through to the finished build and beyond. With input from multiple family members, Rafe managed peoples' wishes and expectations extremely well. He put these to paper, conveyed them well to the construction team and project managed the build. We would hire him again should the opportunity arise and recommend him highly to others.

Following interviews with a number of leading local architects we initially engaged Rafe Maclean to prepare a concept plan for our new house in Wanaka. We had purchased a premium site with outstanding lake and mountain views and therefore wanted a special house to complement the site. Rafe listened carefully to what we wanted and took note of what was in our brief. We liked his concept plan and therefore engaged him to undertake the full detailed design, oversee the tender process and then supervise construction (as we live mainly in Auckland). Rafe cleverly worked out how to ensure views were maximized from the house, how to have outdoor spaces that would be protected from the prevailing wind, and how to use a combination of local stone and cedar finishes both inside and outside the house to great effect. Rafe was always very attentive to our views, made many innovative suggestions, gave us options to consider, allowed us time to make decisions, and we always felt fully involved in the project. Rafe managed the construction phase very professionally, he put in place a proper contract with the builder and ensured it was adhered to. Rafe's relationship with the builder was also very constructive, Rafe adopted a very pragmatic approach to resolving the inevitable queries and addressed variations promptly and fairly. Overall we are thrilled with our completed home. Our family friends and visitors describe it as spectacular upon arrival when they see how Rafe has captured the view to the lake. We enjoyed the entire process of designing and building this home and Rafe played a large part in this. We always felt that Rafe listened and was committed to helping us realise our dream. In fact we enjoyed the process so much we would like to repeat the exercise and would have no hesitation in engaging Rafe again

Rafe provided architectural design, organised resource and building consents and undertook project management for the building of a double garage and storage area. The resulting structure fits very well with the building that was already in place (earth block). Communication was excellent throughout the whole project and quoting was very accurate. Rafe was very responsive to our wishes for the design and function of the building. The whole process was very simple for us and we have ended up with the building that we asked for and were promised.

Rafe is currently designing our modular build new home. He has developed an exciting building and has been great at working in our wishes as well as supporting us as first-time builders to understand the processes involved.

I have worked with Rafe Maclean Architects on several of his houses doing Resource Consent Plans, Landscape design work and implementation. Rafe is great to work with, is responsive to his clients and designs houses that sit beautifully in the Wanaka landscape using sustainable materials, I would highly recommend his team.

From our first meeting to the finished product of our lovely new home, we found Rafe to be personable and professional in all our dealings with him. He listened well to our priorities and suggestions, with a quiet confidence and optimism that the challenges of a difficult section could be overcome, while maximising the potential of the site. Rafe showed an intuitive understanding of what we wished for in our project beyond our expectations, leading and educating us through the architectural process. He is methodical and transparent with all processes, consents and costs. He responded promptly to all communications and had flexible, innovative solutions to our desire for an environmentally friendly home. His attention to detail has given us a home of which we are very proud, incorporating the latest in technology and comfort. We would have no hesitation in recommending him.

Rafe Maclean Architects has been such a find for us. I had big concerns initially about having to do a design process by distance, but we we are lucky enough to have found such a professional architect in Rafe. It was important for us to have him on site down south being involved in concept design, detail design, the whole consent application process, and as an option to help manage the project. He has always been very clear and concise on all aspects of the process. With great practical knowledge combined with an excellent eye for style, he is able to make the most out of both to fit your budget. I'd be remiss not to acknowledge his progressive mindset, recently becoming one of the few passive house architects in the country, and one to look to the future in redefining how we build in NZ.

We employed Rafe for initial concept, detailed design, procurement of a builder and support through the build. He is passionate about building better homes. He listened to what we wanted in a home and during the design process he was quick to altered the plans according to our feedback. I would not hesitate to recommend Rafe, he is easy to get on with and has a vision for healthy homes that are efficient to live in, and kind to the environment. We are not yet in our home ( its about to get painted inside) but I love the flow and how the light comes in to the house. I love the height he has given to our windows . We are really happy with our design and look forward to living there. Throughout the build Rafe has been quick to respond to any questions from the site manager or us.

Rafe is thorough, exceptionally detailed, pragmatic and responsive. He was exceptionally easy to work with on a particularly difficult and unique Passive House project not only in an architectural capacity but also whilst wearing his contract management hat. We wouldn't hesitate to recommend using Rafe's services again, in fact we already are using him again on our next Passive House project.