Who we are, what we do, and how to choose an interior designer you can trust

If you are about to renovate, you will probably talk to three or four interior design firms before you sign with one. This first post is for that stage. It explains who we are and how we work, and it ends with the questions we think every homeowner should ask, whoever they end up choosing.

Who The Masterplan Studio is

We are an interior design and renovation studio in Singapore, run by its founders. Between us we bring more than 40 years of combined renovation and interior design experience, which means we have watched trends come and go and have a clear sense of what still works in a home ten years after handover.

The studio is deliberately small. The people who design your home are the people who quote it, supervise the site and hand it back to you. There is no handover from a salesperson to a project team you have never met. Clients tell us this is the reason several of them came back to us for their second home.

Our showroom is at 511 Guillemard Road, #01-50, Grandlink Square, and visits are by appointment so that you have our full attention. Our registration number is 53492134E.

His quotations are always transparent and detailed, so we never had to worry about hidden costs or unexpected surprises.Desi Arisandi, second-time client, Google review

What we do for homeowners

Most of our work is residential: HDB BTO and resale flats, condominiums and landed homes, with the occasional commercial studio or office. Within that, the services fall into a few groups.

• Whole-home design and renovation. Space planning, layout changes, carpentry, wet works, electrical and plumbing, painting and flooring, managed from first sketch to handover.
• Kitchens and bathrooms. The two rooms that work hardest in any home. Cabinet carpentry, stone worktops, tiling and overlay, sanitary installation and bathroom doors.
• Custom carpentry. Feature walls, wardrobes, study nooks, TV consoles and storage built to your floor plan.
• Fixed-price packages. For homeowners who want a clear scope at a clear price. Right now these are the Kitchen Makeover at $3,888, the BTO Package from $7,788, and the Kitchen & 2 Bathrooms Overlay at $17,888 for HDB resale flats. Every line item is listed on the promotions page.

You can see finished homes in Woodlands, Yishun, Pasir Ris and Ang Mo Kio on our projects page. They are photographed after handover, not rendered, so what you see is the workmanship you would get.

How a project runs with us

1. Consultation. You share your floor plan, priorities and budget. We meet at the showroom or at your home and talk through what is realistic.
2. Design and quotation. You receive a layout proposal, a material direction and an itemised quotation. Nothing starts until every line is clear and agreed.
3. Build and handover. Our team carries out the works, you get updates at each stage, and we hand over a home that matches the plan.

Nine things to check before you sign with any interior designer

These apply whether you choose us or someone else. We would rather you asked them of everyone, because the answers tell you a great deal about how the next three months will go.

1. Ask for an itemised quotation, not a lump sum.Every line should name the work, the quantity and the material. Ours list, for example, exactly how many square feet of tiles are overlaid and which paint is used. A single total with the word "renovation" next to it tells you nothing about what you are paying for, and it makes variation orders impossible to check later.
2. Check that the quotation and the brochure say the same thing.A flyer can promise more than the contract delivers. Read the quotation for what is included, what is supplied by you (sanitary wares and taps are often owner-supplied, which is normal) and what is marked as subject to confirmation.
3. Understand the payment schedule before you pay a deposit.A staged schedule tied to milestones protects both sides. We work on 10 percent on confirmation, 40 percent when work starts, 45 percent when carpentry is measured and 5 percent on handover. Be cautious of anyone who asks for most of the money upfront, and avoid cash payments that leave no trail.
4. Find out who will actually manage your site.The person who sells you the design is not always the person who shows up when the tiler has a question. Ask who your point of contact is, how often you will get updates and whether the designer visits the site. In our case the founders do, and clients mention it in their reviews.
5. Look at completed homes, not just renders.3D drawings show intent. Photographs after handover show workmanship. Ask to see finished projects in the same property type as yours, and if you can, visit the showroom to touch the laminates, stone tops and hinges you are being quoted.
6. Read recent reviews for patterns, not stars.Five stars are easy to collect. What you want is the same qualities appearing again and again: responsiveness, transparent costs, updates during the works, and whether clients came back for a second home. Those are the things you will live with for three months.
7. Ask what happens when something changes.Something always changes. Make sure variation orders are quoted in writing before the work is done, and that the original price is fixed once confirmed. Our quotations state that the price does not change after confirmation, apart from additions you request.
8. Confirm the HDB side is handled.Hacking and certain works in HDB flats need a permit, and the owner usually pays the permit fee. A good designer will tell you which parts of your scope need approval before you sign, not after the hacking has started.
9. Ask about after-sales and warranty.Carpentry settles, hinges loosen, a tap drips. Ask what the firm will come back for, and for how long. Clients mention our after-sales service in their reviews because it was part of the deal, not an afterthought.

One last thought

The cheapest quotation is rarely the cheapest renovation. What costs homeowners money is the scope that was never written down, the variation that was agreed verbally, and the designer who stopped replying once the deposit cleared. Ask the questions above, keep everything in writing, and you will be fine with any reputable firm.

If you would like to put those questions to us, we are a WhatsApp message away. Bring your floor plan.