Stella Lorenzo
Recommended architect in UruguayMontevideo
Uruguay architect Stella Lorenzo is our property appraisal, renovations and rebuild go-to professional. We love her professionalism and how she’s saved us time and money over the years.
Buying, building or renovating a property is always risky. More so in a new country–especially when you don’t speak the language. Uruguay architect Stella will accompany you to a prospective property so that you can commit to the purchase feeling confident that there are no serious structural issues. Or hire her to put together, supervise or run a great team to renovate your residence.
This is a really personal tip. I have known architect Stella Lorenzo since my family moved to Uruguay in 2000. We have hired her four times—to advise us during the selection process of our first house, to carry out two major renovations on it and to completely revamp an apartment. We totally love her professionalism and the thoughtful way she works. And she has saved us money and lots of grey hair.
Shortly after we moved here, we were introduced to Stella by a colleague of mine. The colleague had hired Stella to build a beautiful beach house in Maldonado and was delighted with the experience. After my husband and I had narrowed down a few properties we really liked, we had Stella come appraise them for us. She reviewed them for structural issues, especially the ubiquitous problem here in Montevideo of damp. As we were new to Uruguay, she educated us regarding what to look for regarding whether a house was well-built or not. She was knowledgeable of neighbourhood factors that would affect our quality of life and house prices in the future. We felt very supported during our decision to buy.
So it felt natural to hire Stella to bring our recently purchased art-deco house into the twenty-first century. The house had been built in 1931 for and by an Italian gentleman and everything was original—including the electrics and plumbing. As a typical casa chorizo (or sausage house)—or terraced house—it was quite dark inside. As well as updating the systems, we wanted to make the house more habitable for us as a family.
An Uruguay architect
Over a few days, Stella sat in different parts of the house and observed our use of the space. Then she tracked our movements—and where we spent most of our time—on plans which also included the movement of the sun. Her proposals included knocking down walls, creating an outdoor patio and fencing our upstairs terrace as a play area for our son. Thanks to prioritisation of natural light, the renovation left our house lighter and more spacious. Our 1930s kitchen was totally renovated while preserving all of the original fixtures. And the outdoor spaces she created are where almost two decades later we still spend most of our time when the weather permits.
As our son grew, we didn’t want to move but we did want more private space for ourselves, him and a place to receive guests. A second renovation several years later attacked our dark basement. Huge girders that supported the entire house made it impossible to walk from one end of the basement to the next without having to duck down constantly. Stella led engineers in replacing those girders with slimline ones. It was delicate surgery. The whole house could have collapsed! But we knew were were in excellent hands. In this new habitable basement she created a private living area for our then teenage son, a guestroom and a second bathroom. She effectively helped us double our living space.
The most recent time we hired Stella was for the complete gutting of an apartment in the Old City in 2016. The project was completed on schedule, came in under budget and we loved the result as did the new tenants.
What Stella can offer you
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Property appraisal – real estate agents are not impartial and often have little idea of structural problems. Have Stella accompany you to a prospective property so that you can commit to the purchase feeling confident.
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Residential renovations – this is the area in which she excels and absolutely loves to work
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Design of a new residence
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Supervision of the construction of a new property
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Budgets – call on Stella to put together price comparisons for your renovation and manage the budget if you wish
What you should know
Her superpower is putting together and managing a good team Personal recommendation is essential to receiving good service from tradespeople in Uruguay. In fact you may have found a skilled trades-person but whether they will later be reliable or timely is another matter. Working with Stella as project manager means that she selects and manages the team. She is on top of them if work is not done or not done correctly. If you don’t speak Spanish I would say this is an essential investment both in terms of money and stress.
Stella is a great project and budget manager Each time we hired Stella not only as the architect but also as project manager. It was a worthwhile investment. On our apartment renovation, Stella managed the budget and actually saved us money. As she was being paid a percentage, this meant that she was paid less (yes. You read that correctly. She is a wonderful professional).
She is a quality control freak In 2003 her firm received ISO 9001:2000 certification in quality control. She wanted to obtain this as a way of setting up excellent work systems and processes for the organisation. I actually remember when she was going through this process during our first renovation and how stressful it was. It’s a testament to her professionalism.
Stella’s English is rusty I usually try to recommend service providers who speak great English. If fluent English communication is a deal breaker for you, then Stella is currently not going to be your choice. However the quality of her work, her contacts, her warmth and professionalism make her an excellent asset as you find or renovate your property.
Contact
Email Stella Lorenzo & Associates on arqsla@gmail.com to discuss your needs and budget. As emails often go to spam, if you do not receive a response within 24 hours, please write a comment below and we will ensure your message gets read.
If you are reviewing property to buy, contact Stella to accompany you and provide her expert advice at an affordable hourly fee.
Her office address: Av Italia 3148 / 801
Stella’s advice was key in the purchase or our new home. She offered expert advice on a numerous of issues which are invisible to the non trained eye. Her experience certainly made it possible for us to get the best real estate out money could buy.
[This comment was added to Guru’Guay’s old site on 29/07/2018]
Cuando Estella nos entrego el proyecto sentimos que habia comprendido nuestras ideas, aportando y sugiriendo a estas otras que le dieron mayor funcionalidad a lo que habiamos sonado. Estella logró captar la dinamica de nuestra casa, su cotidianeidad, y así logro proyectar nuevos espacios para nuestra familia, respetando nuestro estilo, aquello que hace que una casa sea un ¨hogar¨. El proyecto resulto realizable y real, acorde a nuestras necesidades y posibilidades.
[This comment was added to Guru’Guay’s old site on 29/07/2018]
I bought my first apartment with Stella’s advice in 2007 and then she helped me again to find apartment when I moved in 2015. Stella is a great help when you are looking for a place to live, you can be sure that she helps you to take into account every aspect required to make a good decision (price, location, light, legal issues, potential future improvements, future evolution of the value of the property, etc.). She is a very good company when you are visiting a house, she always do the correct questions in order to know the exact situation of the property. If you are looking for a place where to live, I totally recommend asking for Stella’s advice; she will help you to take the best decision.
[This comment was added to Guru’Guay’s old site on 30/07/2018]
Todos los proyecto realizados con el Estudio de la Arquitecta Stella fueron excelentes. Es muy responsable, ejecutiva, comprometida con el trabajo, los que reúnen practicidad, funcionalidad y muy buen gusto en elección de diseños. Accesible y con un equipo técnico serio y comprometido.
Contratamos a Stella para reformar una casa muy anitgua, y con muy poca luz natural. Stella nos desarrolló un proyecto hermoso, que generó un patio interior donde no lo había, además de luz natural en varios ambientes. Stella es muy atenta a los detalles, tiene muy buen gusto, siempre buscando el menor costo para el propietario, sin dejar de priorizar la calidad . Tiene una enorme dedicación, siempre disponible para atender consultas, sugerencias etc. Su trabajo es impecable desde todo punto de vista, súper recomendable!
[This comment was added to Guru’Guay’s old site on 30/07/2018]
Llegamos a Stella a través de un compañero de trabajo de mi esposo Eduardo y de verdad que fue “una luz en el camino para nosotros” porque más allá de su creatividad y su capacidad de trabajo como profesional, estuvo en todos los detalles “domésticos” por decirlo de alguna manera, ya que se preocupó de que mientras se hacía la reforma de nuestro living, pequeño y con poca visión hacia el exterior , existiera el menor trastorno posible en nuestro diario vivir…realmente casi no me enteré de la obra… excelente en el manejo del personal a su cargo y atenta al manejo de nuestro dinero para lograr la mejor relación “costo -calidad” en todo aquello que fuera necesario para transformar ese lugar de nuestra casa en un disfrute permanente . Ahora tengo una cuadro enorme desde donde puedo disfrutar de mi jardín y una magnífica terraza en nuestro dormitorio ..
Stella se ha transformado realmente en nuestro “gurú” ya sea tanto para consultarla sobre reformas o incluso asesoramiento de compra de algún inmueble.y muchos etcéteras más.
Gracias Stella por tu profesionalismo y calidez humana !!!
[This comment was added to Guru’Guay’s old site on 30/07/2018]
Cuando mi marido y yo decidimos empezar una vida juntos, nos enfrentamos al gran desafío de reformar una casa que había sido de una pareja de personas mayores, en una vivienda para dos adultos y cuatro adolescentes (dos hijos de cada uno). Considero que la clave del éxito de todo el proceso fue el asesoramiento de la Arg. Stella Lorenzo, que supo incorporarle a la vivienda, elementos creativos que se ajustaban a las necesidades familiares.
Por otro lado, destaco la planificación y dirección de la obra. Se cumplieron los plazos y presupuestos previstos, lo cual, en una obra de 6 meses de duración, es un factor crítico de calidad. La recomiendo.
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When my husband and I decided to start a life together, we faced the great challenge of reforming a house that had been used by a couple of seniors, in a house for two adults and four teenagers (two children of each). I believe that the key of success of the entire process was the advice of Arg. Stella Lorenzo, who knew how to incorporate creative elements that fit the family needs.
On the other hand, the planning and direction of the work was perfect. The achievement of deadlines and budgets were met, which, in a work of 6 months, is a critical factor of quality. I definitely recommend her.
[This comment was added to Guru’Guay’s old site on 31/07/2018]
Stella me asesoró y acompañó con la reforma de mi departamento en el 2012.
Hizo el presupuesto y el diseño de la reforma atendiendo todos mis intereses y requerimientos. Realizó la dirección de obra y la administración de la misma.
Se realizó toda la reforma en los plazos estipulados y con los costos proyectados.
Muy buen asesoramiento,
[This comment was added to Guru’Guay’s old site on 21/08/2018]
My wife and I hired Stella for advice when planning our life together in a new home. It was one of the best choices we have ever made. Not only she helped us in finding the best house, being a priceless company in making a very difficult decission, but also she perfectly understood what we wanted when making house improvements. We loved her work, and we strongly recommend her. She is very professional, but at the same time, for a few months, she became part of our family.
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