FAQ: Working with Offsite, and Building in Upstate NY
Everything you might want to know about working with us, and about getting a cabin permitted and built in Upstate New York. If your question isn't here, get in touch - we're easy to reach.
Working with us
What does Offsite actually do?
We design buildings and we stay on them while they get built. On a typical project that means feasibility first - what the zoning allows, what will physically fit, what the whole thing costs - then design, then the permit submission, then bidding and construction administration. We work as designer and owner's rep on the same job, which mostly means one person answers for the drawings and for the number.
Are you architects?
No, and it matters enough to say plainly: Offsite is not a licensed architecture or engineering firm. On a project that needs a stamped drawing we bring in an architect or an engineer to provide it, and we tell you that at the start rather than at the point where the building department is asking for it. The rest of it - the feasibility work, the design, the permitting, the bidding and the construction administration - is ours, and it is most of what a project needs.
Do you work outside the Hudson Valley?
Yes. We're based in Brooklyn and the work isn't local - current projects are in New York, Vermont, California and Washington. What is bounded is our zoning software: Aldo reads zoning at the parcel level across the Hudson Valley today and grows a county at a time, so anywhere outside that we research by hand like everyone else.
How does a project start?
With a conversation about the site, what you want to build, and what you're working with. If there's a parcel involved, feasibility comes first, because the answer changes the plan and it is far cheaper to change a plan than a foundation. Get in touch and tell us what you have - a site, a program, a rough idea, a spreadsheet.
How long does design take?
From first conversation to permitted drawings, four to eight months is typical for a straightforward cabin: schematic design, design development, construction documents, permit submission. We're upfront about that because you're trying to plan around a build season, and a timeline that sounds good in February is worth nothing in July.
Permits and building
Do I need a permit to build a cabin?
Almost certainly, wherever you are in Upstate NY. New York State requires a permit for any new structure over 144 square feet, and most townships add requirements of their own. Delaware County, Sullivan County, Greene County and Ulster County all have building departments and we've worked with all of them. Don't skip it: an unpermitted structure is a problem at resale and can be ordered demolished.
Will you help with the permit process?
On our own projects we put the submission together, go to the planning board, and keep the calendar honest about what a variance really adds. We've taken a site through a rezoning and a zoning text amendment, which is about the far end of what a municipality will entertain and not something most projects should need.
How long does a permit take in Upstate NY?
It varies more than people expect. Some townships come back in two to four weeks. Others - particularly those with environmental overlay districts or floodplain considerations - can take three to six months. The Delaware Water Gap area spans two states and is its own kind of complicated. Budget more time than you think and start before you are ready to build.
How long does it take to build a cabin?
For a simple cabin under 800 square feet, a good crew can frame and close in the structure in four to eight weeks. Full completion, including interior finish, systems and inspections, usually runs four to six months from breaking ground. Finding and scheduling a contractor is often the longest part of the whole thing - availability in the Hudson Valley and Catskills is tight. Start that search early.
What costs do people forget?
The ones that aren't the building. An engineer's stamp typically runs $2,000 to $5,000 through a local PE. Permit fees vary by county and commonly land between $1,500 and $6,000. Then site survey, site-specific foundation design, well, septic, perc test, driveway, clearing and power. Those are the costs that decide whether a project works at all, and they are exactly the ones a price per square foot leaves out.
Can you recommend builders in my area?
We keep informal relationships with builders in the Hudson Valley, the Catskills and the Delaware Water Gap. Tell us where you are and we'll point you at people we've seen do good work. We don't take referral fees - we just want the build to go well.
Designing for the Northeast
Do you design for Northeast winters?
It's most of the job. Everything we draw is designed for Northeast snow loads, uses wall assemblies that meet or exceed the New York State Energy Code, and is detailed for air-tightness. A design made for Georgia will not perform the same way in Sullivan County in January, and the difference shows up in the heating bill for the life of the building.
Can you build on a sloped site?
Usually, with a foundation designed for it - a daylight basement, a stem wall, or piers instead of a slab. Steep slopes need site-specific engineering. Slope is one of the things worth knowing before an offer goes in rather than after, because it moves the site work number more than almost anything else.
Do you design for off-grid?
Yes. We use all-electric systems and high-performance insulation, which is what makes off-grid solar and battery setups straightforward rather than a fight. We don't specify the solar array itself - that's sized by an installer for your specific site - but the building is designed so that electrification is not an afterthought.
Short-term rental
Do you design with short-term rental in mind?
When that's the plan, yes, and as a design constraint rather than an afterthought: open layouts, height where it counts, a real connection between inside and out. It's also worth checking the rules before the design, not after - short-term rental limits in the Catskills went from nonexistent to serious in about three years, and a pro forma built on 200 rental nights is a fiction in a town that allows 120.
What rental income can I realistically expect?
It depends on location, quality, amenities and how well the listing is run, so treat any number as a starting point rather than a forecast. Well-designed, well-positioned cabins in the Hudson Valley can gross $60,000 to $120,000 a year. The decisions that move it most: a soaking tub or hot tub, real outdoor space, good photography, and a two-bedroom or loft layout that suits small groups.
About Offsite
Who are you and where are you based?
Offsite is a design and development studio based in Brooklyn. We design high-performance cabins, small homes and ADUs, and we build the software that gets them made. We're small on purpose: every project gets real attention.
How do I get in touch?
Through the contact page. Tell us what you want to build and we'll tell you what we think. If you only want to know what a parcel allows, you can run it yourself on Aldo without talking to us first, which is often faster.