Re: My own home (as is)I hope you let us see your plans.
I certainly will :)
Have you considered balconies cut into the roof slope on those areas where the roof is lowest? Or might that be something the city frowns on? Also depends on your budget, and personal preferences/requirements.
I have. It will depend on all of the factors you mention. The city hall does not object to this, as long as I meet the requirements of the Urban Planning Code regarding the relationship between the maximum occupied area and the maximum roofed and semi-roofed area.
The Velux CABRIO is a lovely alternative to a full balcony, but eye-wateringly expensive.
Sadly, not an option due to its cost.
Please forgive me for asking, but does your area have issues with crime, or is it normal to have security bars on all the windows in Argentina?
So, you noticed that, huh? It's sad, but security bars and alarms have long ago become a defacto standard for almost every house that is not within a private guarded neighborhood. And yes, it's because of the crime rate, which has been only increased for the last 30 years, and not only in my area but almost in the whole country. It's anyway only a dissuasive measure (one of my crew members has a saying: "You just give me a 3-foot 1" steel pipe and I will break into any house with security bars.")
I've never used pro-level CAD but it has always looked like the last tool to use when you are done with the design. I totally agree that SH3D is for the early fluid planning phase when things are changing every five minutes.
That's my approach for any project, and it's also the reason I've paid for SH3D's license. A professional CAD software is mandatory for most submitting construction-permit requests to most city halls (they don't accept blueprints on paper anymore).
