Palo Alto residential architects and construction serving: Palo Alto, the Bay Area, Portola Valley, Silicon Valley, the South Bay, the Peninsula, Los Altos Hills, Los Altos, Menlo Park, Redwood City, Belmont, Atherton, Stanford, Woodside, Emerald Hills, San Jose, San Francisco, and the San Francisco Bay Area.
Palo Alto high end residential architects, TOPOS Architects, provide award winning architecture and design build services by Peter B. Baltay and his firm, and have extensive experience in contemporary craftsman architecture, high end design build services and contemporary home architecture.
Palo Alto high end residential architects, TOPOS Architects, provide award winning architecture and design build services by Peter B. Baltay and his firm, and have extensive experience in contemporary craftsman architecture, high end design build services and contemporary home architecture.
Services
TOPOS Architects works to help you realize your goals. Together, we will create beautiful, elegant and practical buildings for your home and family. Our 25 years of residential and commercial design experience will give you a wide variety of unique and graceful possibilities. Consult with the local planning and permitting authorities to verify the exact zoning parameters and entitlement process.
At TOPOS Architects, we believe that every project should be uniquely designed to fit specific site conditions and occupant requirements. We depend on our client's input and participation throughout the design process. Everything we do must be environmentally sustainable. We strive to reveal the 'topos' of every project, beautifully.
Reviews (12)
Andrew Martin
Nov 16, 2019
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Mike C.
Dec 29, 2013
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We have used Peter for 3 projects over the last 10 years including 2 major home remodels. His style is a blend of craftsman and modern that we call transitional craftsman. We really like this style with lots of wood and clean lines. Peter was absolutely the most fair in terms of price because he is an architect, a structural engineer, and because of his hands on experience he can do good construction management (well worth the expense in our opinion). One thing you will find with Peter which worked for me but may not work for you is that he is very firm in his opinions which can lead to constructive
Alex N.
Mar 28, 2013
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Peter designed our total remodel in San Francisco and we embarked on the process with a clear design intent in mind, especially for the interior. The design Development was quite quick and once he understood our requirements we quickly found a solution we all were happy with. Initially we just thought of using him for Design Services but, having not found the right GC for the project Topos stepped in as the GC, calling upon a good set of subs for the various aspects of the project. We did go over budget but not by more than what the original contractors quoted us fixed fee, and that was before
Andy M.
Mar 11, 2013
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I'm happy to strongly endorse Peter Baltay and his crew at Topos Architects as both a design firm and as a project management service.
When my wife I are were contemplating building a home, we approached Topos as we had seen a previous spec project they had done and loved it. Design elements include maximizing space utilization, minimizing hallways, lots of light and windows, beautiful wood accents, high quality trim and attention to detail all appealed to us.
During our first meeting when I complained about not finding any good lots for sale, Peter pointed out a few, including one particular
When my wife I are were contemplating building a home, we approached Topos as we had seen a previous spec project they had done and loved it. Design elements include maximizing space utilization, minimizing hallways, lots of light and windows, beautiful wood accents, high quality trim and attention to detail all appealed to us.
During our first meeting when I complained about not finding any good lots for sale, Peter pointed out a few, including one particular
Mattias B.
Feb 14, 2013
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We selected Peter Baltay for an extensive remodel to our house on the Stanford campus. The original was designed by William Turnbull, a famous west-coast architect. Our design requirements included more space, more light, and above all a more functionality. We also wanted to retain the unique character of our home. Peter's solution was thoughtful and innovative, and more than met our objectives.
Peter served as architect, and also managed the construction. Peter worked with us to solve the changes that always come up during construction, and always graciously found ways to incorporate our
Peter served as architect, and also managed the construction. Peter worked with us to solve the changes that always come up during construction, and always graciously found ways to incorporate our
Tor R.
Feb 01, 2013
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We worked with Peter Baltay on a 2000/2001 remodel (rebuild) of our house. As an architect, he did a superb job developing a creative innovative design that brought out exactly what we wanted but could not see ourselves. We then signed him on a GC and he completed the house on time and on budget. He brought in great subs, dealt with our whims, desires and stresses and was fun to work with throughout. An excellent experience - have and will strongly recommend him.
Marina M.
Jan 31, 2013
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We recently moved into a house in Palo Alto that we designed and built from the ground up with Topos Architects. The process took about 2 1/2 years start to finish including slow Palo Alto permitting, and we love the final product. Peter Baltay's houses are full of light and windows, well thought-out detailing, and high quality materials. We first encountered his work when looking for a built home in Palo Alto several years ago, before we ever considered building for ourselves. One of the few houses we saw that really appealed to us (except the location, which wasn't ideal for our
Meg G.
Jan 30, 2013
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Peter Baltay and Topos Architects transformed my very small fixer-upper into a gem of a house for my family. He was able to design a house that suited the needs of a young teenager, a working parent and a disabled grandmother. His design made the optimum use of light and space. His creativity and sense of design not only made my home livable, but he made it a pure delight. He took a kitchen that was no more than a hallway and turned it into the centerpiece of our home. His attention to detail and functionality was superb. The handmade maple cabinets and the beautiful wraparound granite counter
R. R.
Jan 29, 2013
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My wife and I totally renovated the 1500 sq foot basement of our Palo Alto home and Topos helped us start to finish as both designer and general contractor. They showed both an ability to turn our rough ideas on how to use the space into a great livable design and also great attention to detail in the execution. Their design process was truly collaborative and open and there were no surprises. Importantly in Palo Alto, they also helped us navigate the city permitting process very effectively. They also worked quite effectively with other contractors we retained for other aspects of the
Jon M.
Jan 27, 2013
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TOPOS did a great job on a 2002 renovation we did. Peter Baltay came up with some creative designs that I never would have thought of. We turned a crummy utility room into a 25-seat movie theater and a leaking sun porch into a 5th bedroom. The selection of windows and doors was excellent, and the whole middle of the house went from dark and gloomy to very bright with an entire wall of floor-to-ceiling doors and windows. During construction we had some issues with the contractor, but the architectural design itself was exactly what we wanted, and I would certainly recommend Peter for any residential
Mark K.
Jan 27, 2013
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Peter Baltay, and his firm Topos Architects, is one of the preeminent residential architects on the West Coast. Peter completed two large projects for us -- a brilliantly designed art studio with water feature, and a stunning new modern Craftsman-style home on a challenging but beautiful rural site. Peter is a master designer-builder with fine attention to detail, natural light, sustainability, expert understanding of structural engineering and how you get great designs actually built in the field, including working with neighbors, design review, and getting top-tier results from subcontractors
Anne D.
Jul 10, 2012
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Peter Baltay certainly knows how to design a house (and we love the design of our house) but when things get hard like interior details he isn't terribly helpful. His design services "include" interior work, such as tile, but what we found is that he doesn't do interior work in thorough manner. We needed a 3rd party interior designer so in a sense you're paying double for design help.
He is competent but basically not very hard-working - when the going gets tough for him he gets irritated or passes the ball to one of his employees.
He recommended a contractor to us
He is competent but basically not very hard-working - when the going gets tough for him he gets irritated or passes the ball to one of his employees.
He recommended a contractor to us
