--- title: "Marc Newman Architect — Architects & Building Designers | Houzz" canonical_html_url: https://www.houzz.com/professionals/architects-and-building-designers/marc-newman-architect-pfvwus-pf~346125921 markdown_url: https://www.houzz.com/md/professionals/pf~346125921.md entity_type: LocalBusiness business_name: "Marc Newman Architect" category: ["Architects"] image: https://st.hzcdn.com/fimgs/cec30224001352c2_9197-w400-h400-b0-p0--.jpg address: "Saroni Drive, Oakland, California 94611, United States" latitude: 37.8471 longitude: -122.2223 phone: "(510) 508-5666" website: https://newmanarchitect.com rating: 5 review_count: 14 years_in_business: 20 license_verified: true best_of_houzz_awards: 2 followers: 11 last_updated: 2026-11-05 --- # Marc Newman Architect > Bay Area Architecture Firm Specializing in Custom Homes & Renovations Original Houzz profile: [Marc Newman Architect](https://www.houzz.com/professionals/architects-and-building-designers/marc-newman-architect-pfvwus-pf~346125921) ## Professional summary - **Primary category:** Architects - **Location:** Oakland, CA - **Serves:** San Francisco, Oakland, Santa Rosa, Berkeley, San Mateo, San Leandro, San Ramon, Alameda, Walnut Creek, Palo Alto, Danville, Pleasant Hill, Burlingame, Belmont, El Cerrito, Lafayette, Albany, Orinda, Moraga, Alamo, Emeryville, Hillsborough, Piedmont, Sonoma, Canyon - **Verified License:** Yes - **Houzz rating:** 5.0 out of 5 (14 reviews) - **Best of Houzz:** 2 awards (2022–2026), for Service. ## About ### Houzz Badges - Houzz Pro Software User - Recommended on Houzz - 1,000 Ideabook Saves - Eco-friendly - Offers Custom Work - 20 years in business ### Business highlights - 20 years in business - Eco-friendly - Offers Custom Work Marc Newman Architect is a full service architectural firm committed to providing exceptional service & design for clients. With over 20 years of experience in architecture, Marc specializes in sustainable residential design for new construction, additions & remodels for projects all over the East Bay and the surrounding regions. From modest to high end, Marc has the ability to transform your project into your dream home. His goal for each project is to create spaces that are both functional and inspiring. Architectural design solutions evolve through the understanding of sustainable principles, relationship with place and contemporary construction techniques. When developing a project, site characteristics such as climate, solar orientation, topography & views are often used to guide design solutions. Communication between the owner & architect is essential and Marc works closely with clients to achieve their goals. Whether your residential project responds to personal wishes or to investment goals, Marc Newman will design a creative outlook and provide technical and management support that are in tune with your expectations. ### Services Provided - Architectural Design - Building Design - Home Remodeling - Architectural Drawings - Custom Homes - New Home Construction - Home Additions - Home Extensions - Sustainable Design - Energy-Efficient Homes - 3D Rendering - Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) - Green Building - Space Planning - Pool House Design & Construction - Project Management - Handicap-Accessible Design - Passive Solar Heating & Cooling - Construction Administration - Construction Documents - Environmental Design - Feasibility Studies - Site Selection - Wildland Urban Interface Design ### Areas Served - San Francisco - Oakland - Santa Rosa - Berkeley - San Mateo - San Leandro - San Ramon - Alameda - Walnut Creek - Palo Alto - Danville - Pleasant Hill - Burlingame - Belmont - El Cerrito - Lafayette - Albany - Orinda - Moraga - Alamo - Emeryville - Hillsborough - Piedmont - Sonoma - Canyon ### Typical Job Cost $250,000 - 3 million ## Business Details | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Business Name | Marc Newman Architect | | Address | Saroni Drive, Oakland, California 94611, United States | | Phone | (510) 508-5666 | | Website | https://newmanarchitect.com | | License Number | C-35414 | | Years in business | 20 | | Followers on Houzz | 11 | ## Contact - **Houzz profile:** [Marc Newman Architect](https://www.houzz.com/professionals/architects-and-building-designers/marc-newman-architect-pfvwus-pf~346125921) - **Website:** https://newmanarchitect.com - **Phone:** (510) 508-5666 ## Credentials **Verified License** - Number: C 35414 - Type: ARCHITECT - Issued by: California Architects Board - **Best of Houzz:** 2 awards (2022–2026), for Service. ## Reviews **Overall rating: 5.0 out of 5 — 14 reviews** *Aspect averages:* - Work Quality: 5.0 - Communication: 5.0 - Value: 5.0 ### Featured Review **★★★★★ — HU-632947353, March 2021** > Marc is an awesome architect. He walked us through an ADU (Two bedroom/ 1 bath pool house) and pool design. He is very easy to work with and guided us through the design, planning and permit phases of this massive project. We live on a hillside and in an HOA. Marc made sure our design was compliant with all HOA, City and County guidelines. I highly recommend Marc Newman for your Architectural needs. We love how our project turned out. **Comment from Marc Newman Architect:** > Thank you for the kind review. I've really enjoyed working with you and thrilled you are happy with your new pool & pool house. ### All 14 reviews **★★★★★ — Jonathan G, Sept. 2025** > We were fortunate that Marc was available for our small-ish remodel, converting a den and kitchenette into a bedroom, closet, and bathroom. He gave us many options for how to utilize the space and was quick to iterate on ideas, and had lots of practical suggestions. The finished product matches exactly what we had in our heads at the end of the design phase and is a really lovely space that we're proud of. He also astutely noticed a potential issue with an existing part of the space that we were able to address right from the outset, meaning there were no surprises during construction. > > And as much as we valued the quality of Marc's work we also valued the way he works. He's extremely responsive in general and it was really easy to quickly work through details via email both during design and construction. This ease of communication did not seem to be the norm based on other architects we evaluated. His bid was also clear and transparent, with a great breakdown of the phases of work and the estimated time and cost for each, so it was really easy to judge the reasonableness of it, and in the end it was extremely accurate. Again this did not seem to be the norm, other bids we received were vague and based on a percentage of project cost which didn't make as much sense to us for this kind of job. > > We highly recommend Marc! **★★★★★ — Athena Kouloulias, March 2025** > Working with Marc on our ground up building project has been a wonderful experience. I can't say the process is easy but Marc stayed on top of our project, navigated it, corralled the various engineers, and gave us great guidance throughout the planning process and onto final permit. This was a completely unfamiliar process and an intense learning experience. Marc was patient and helped guide us through it all. We highly recommend him. **★★★★★ — Joe Mullen, March 2025** > Marc is a thoughtful, detailed, and trustworthy architect. He's an excellent listener and brings a viewpoint, which was appreciated during the design phase. He captured exactly what we were looking for. **Comment from Marc Newman Architect:** > Thanks for the 5 star review! I enjoyed working together on your home addition & remodel project. **★★★★★ — Robbie Hull, March 2025** > Highly recommend Marc. He helped us with an almost whole-home remodel that included our kitchen, family room, bedroom, and bathrooms. He was very thoughtful throughout the design process and considered and incorporated each of our requests while still maintaining the overall design aesthetic. Marc also was very responsive and kept the project moving forward. We could not be happier with our remodel project and have Marc to thank for putting together a great design! **Comment from Marc Newman Architect:** > Thank you for the kind review. I'm thrilled you are happy with the remodel, it looks amazing! **★★★★★ — Jaimie, March 2025** > Marc was my architect for remodeling my kitchen, dining room, and adding a beautiful backyard deck accessed through double doors from the dining room. He did an extremely thorough job of recreating drawings and structural elements of my 90-year old house and led me through the process of developing a tasteful and efficient design. I would highly recommend his creative services. **Comment from Marc Newman Architect:** > Thanks for the recommendation. You have a lovely house and glad I could contribute to the remodel. Hopefully, it will last another 90 years! **★★★★★ — Dave Stone, March 2025** > Marc was a tremendous help on our home remodel. Not only was the permitting process quick and seamless, the path to get there was fully enjoyable and never stressful. Marc was engaging and informative, as well as insightful in understanding of our needs and aspirations. We could not be more excited about how well the remodel came together. **Comment from Marc Newman Architect:** > Thank you for the wonderful comments. I'm so delighted you are enjoying the transformed spaces. It looks great! **★★★★★ — Jim Coyle, Aug. 2021** > Marc is amazing. We chose him (over 2 other architects) for our pool house and home renovation in Lafayette, CA. The project was challenging - a phased project that allowed us to moved into the pool house, while the main house was under construction. Further, we needed to synthesize generations of different styles, maximize function while adding some luxury, and do it all as a green net-zero energy project. Marc listened to our needs, and delivered on a design that delivered this on budget. He worked with ideas from both my wife and I. He gave push back at select times when he felt a design element was important, and we agree with every one of those decisions. He was diligent with permitting, submitting the right amount of documentation, and in a timely manner. Throughout the project, he was extremely friendly while addressing any problems that came up. My wife and I continue to consider Marc a good friend, and appreciate all he did to make our home a reality. **Comment from Marc Newman Architect:** > Thank you so much for the thoughtful & wonderful review. I loved working on your home project and getting to know you both. The main house transformation & pool house look awesome! **★★★★★ — HU-406072364, May 2021** > Marc is a true professional, talented and smart. He's a quiet giant. > The work he did for us, an independent school in Berkeley, exceeded expectations. He designed an outdoor classroom for our middle school deck - no easy feat, demanding functional as well as aesthetic requirements. Moreover, the deck sits right next to a registered historic landmark! > Marc a pleasure to work with and we will again, without hesitation. **Comment from Marc Newman Architect:** > It was a pleasure working with you on the outdoor space. I'm glad the kids enjoy it and hope to work with you again in the future. **★★★★★ — emilyschultz41, April 2021** > Marc was professional, reliable and knowledgeable. He worked with us to make our bathroom remodel plan work. I highly recommend Marc. **Comment from Marc Newman Architect:** > Thank you for the recommendation. I enjoyed working together on your project. **★★★★★ — HU-197616516, March 2021** > Marc was literally the foundation in our finally, successfully completing a nearly $200K front stair demo and replacement on our 1898 Haight-Ashbury Victorian, which we were intent on doing without destroying its historic character -- and did so after our having been told by a couple of other architects (one quite prominent in the Victorian renovation space) over a couple of years that we'd need to make highly undesirable design changes to accommodate current code requirements. I wasn't sure that Marc would be able to navigate the San Francisco Building Dept bureaucracy and deliver on our hopes after the prior advice we'd received (and further after having hired another Oakland architect 10 years back for a deck project, which proved a much bumpier, less successful and expensive ride through SF's Planning Dept and even Board of Appeals, as that architect wasn't so well versed in SF rules), but deliver Marc did, and I'm pretty sure ours is the most photographed home on a block of classics thanks to his talented efforts. He also worked well in coordinating with the engineer and city to get the project past some unexpected structural hurdles. Couldn't be happier with the result -- and while the overall project cost more than twice as much as anticipated going in, Marc's fees were less than I would have expected given the ultimate cost of the project, and were entirely reasonable --- for that matter, absolutely worth every penny. Highly recommended, I'd reach out to him first, should another project come up in this home or any other. **Comment from Marc Newman Architect:** > I'm delighted we were able to maintain the historic and original details in your Victorian home. I enjoyed working together and glad you are happy with the final results.. Thank you so much for the great review! **★★★★★ — mrgoodwords, March 2021** > I hired Marc to design a net new bathroom addition to our house. This work included excavation of quite a bit of soil, building a retaining wall and foundation pad that tied into the original footing. Marc was great -- he was responsive, detailed, thorough and communicative. His drawings were clear and precise and required no revisions when reviewed by the planning department. I highly recommend his services and will use him again on future projects **Comment from Marc Newman Architect:** > Thanks for the nice review. I hope we can work together again. The bathroom looks great! **★★★★★ — lukefcrawford, March 2021** > I’m a general contractor and homeowner. I have worked together with Marc for over a year now. We are building our own family home. The house is three story new construction home in the Oakland hills. The project is extremely complicated due to several neighbors view rights and it’s just a difficult lot to build on in general, Marc has been instrumental in working with the city, my wife and I then also the neighbors to design a house that fits in well to the area, and has a positive outcome for all parties involved. Marc is very easy to work with, very responsive, detailed and creative. I will work with marc to finish our home, then hopefully in the future, on new projects. I would recommend marc to anyone that needs a good architect! **Comment from Marc Newman Architect:** > I'm excited to see your house finished! It has been a pleasure working with you and looking forward to future projects. Thank you for the thoughtful review. **★★★★★ — HU-638428259, March 2021** > Excellent clear and honest communication. I look forward to working with Marc in the future. I would highly recommend Marc to anyone. **Comment from Marc Newman Architect:** > Thank you for the kind review. I've enjoyed collaborating together and looking forward to the next project. ## Selected projects - [Contemporary Residence & Pool House](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/contemporary-residence-and-pool-house-pj-vj~6508131) - Location: Lafayette, CA - Photos: 21 - Description: An existing 1940’s ranch home with a mid-century addition was transformed into a new contemporary residence utilizing sustainable practices and net-zero energy goals. Preserving the mid-century addition was the heart of this project and the reconfigured open floor plan with new entry, kitchen, living and family room interact seamlessly. The entire house was taken down to the studs and redesigned with a new master suite addition. A minimalist approach, clean details and natural materials are vita… - [Hillside Home](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/hillside-home-pj-vj~7606807) - Location: Oakland, CA - Photos: 22 - [Modern Art Gallery Residence](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/modern-art-gallery-residence-pj-vj~6583266) - Location: Hillsborough, CA - Photos: 23 - Description: Role: Project Architect Architect of Record: Robert Nebolon Architects Photography: Bruce Damonte - [Modern Hillside Home](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/modern-hillside-home-pj-vj~6583737) - Location: Oakland, CA - Photos: 18 - Description: Role: Project Architect Architect of Record: Robert Nebolon Architects Photography: Thomas Story/Sunset Magazine - [Rolling Hills Home](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/rolling-hills-home-pj-vj~7821313) - Location: Martinez, CA - Photos: 6 [See all 5 projects](https://www.houzz.com/professionals/architects-and-building-designers/marc-newman-architect-pfvwus-pf~346125921) ## Video - [Company video](https://player.vimeo.com/external/840885510.m3u8?s=7291c8fd1503fdf8ece76be7d8c8686adebfa587&oauth2_token_id=1384357804) ## Frequently Asked Questions **Do you handle permitting, zoning, and regulatory approvals?** Yes, we absolutely assist with permitting, zoning, and regulatory approvals. Our experience includes navigating city, county, and HOA guidelines to ensure your project is compliant and moves smoothly through the approval process. We're diligent in preparing documentation for a successful outcome. **What types of projects do you specialize in (custom homes, remodels, additions)?** We specialize in sustainable residential design, encompassing new construction, additions, and remodels. Our expertise covers everything from custom homes and ADUs to pool houses, transforming spaces across the East Bay and surrounding regions into dream homes. **How do you help clients design within their construction budget?** We work closely with clients to align designs with their investment goals and expectations. While we strive to deliver projects on budget, specific strategies like value engineering or phased construction are discussed as part of our technical and management support. **Do you provide full-service architectural services through construction?** Yes, we are a full-service architectural firm. We provide comprehensive services from initial design concepts through to construction administration, ensuring seamless project management and technical support throughout the entire building process. **Do you design fully custom homes?** Absolutely, designing fully custom homes is a core part of our expertise. We specialize in new residential construction, tailoring every detail to transform your vision into a unique, functional, and inspiring dream home, from modest to high-end projects. *FAQ content may be generated based on the Pro's Houzz profile and website.* ## Ideabooks - [Exterior](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/147674007/list/exterior) — 1 idea - [Dining](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/146957196/list/dining) — 1 idea - [Deck](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/146957135/list/deck) — 2 ideas - [Living](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/146855049/list/living) — 3 ideas - [Family Room](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/146855070/list/family-room) — 5 ideas - [Kitchen](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/146854797/list/kitchen) — 6 ideas - [Master Bath](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/146855081/list/master-bath) — 2 ideas - [Bar](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/146855076/list/bar) — 5 ideas [See all 8 ideabooks](https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/users/newmanarchitect) --- *Source: Houzz professional profile. Reflects the profile as of 2026-11-05.*