Portfolio Architects

Portfolio Architects We maximise the potential of property with great design for property investors across the UK

This is me 🤷‍♀️…. I thought it was about time for a little re-introduction as my last one was over a year ago 😱. Hello t...
22/06/2026

This is me 🤷‍♀️…. I thought it was about time for a little re-introduction as my last one was over a year ago 😱.

Hello to any new faces here. So here goes...

👩🏼‍💼I’m Emma Smith 👋
👷Chartered RIBA & ARB Architect
📍Based in the Midlands but work nationwide remotely
👩‍👦Mum of 1
🧱Grew up on a building site…cheers mum & dad 🤣
🎓So no wonder I became an Architect
✍️At 13, I knew I wanted to be an architect
🏠Obsessed with property ever since
👩🏼‍💻Started Architectural Services for Investors & Landowners | Emma in 2017
🏢Worked as Architect in prime resi in London prior
🌟Longlisted for RIBA Journal’s Rising Star Award in 2019 for entrepreneurial development & architecture
🎖️RIBA Silver Medal Nomination for my Masters Degree thesis & won Charles Reilly Medal
🏘️Also invest in property - BTL, flips & HMOs
🛠️Keen DIYer (except for plastering 😂 that didn’t work out so well)
🏡Serial home renovator
🏚️Bought a derelict barn to convert into my forever home (at least I couldn’t live in this one during the works 🤣)
📸Own personal projects

Outside of property / architecture I love:
❤️ Spending time with family & friends
🚴Spinning & gym classes
🏑Playing most sports, hockey was my main one growing up
🎾 Padel obsessed
🌳Countryside living & walks
🌍Exploring new places & travelling
🎧Listening to podcasts & audiobooks

Just remember that a planning refusal is NOT a forever refusal…Link in bio to blog with full Case Study 🔗
16/06/2026

Just remember that a planning refusal is NOT a forever refusal…

Link in bio to blog with full Case Study 🔗

Welcome 👋 Here’s what we do and who we work with ⬇️We help design-led property investors and landowners transform tired ...
10/06/2026

Welcome 👋 Here’s what we do and who we work with ⬇️

We help design-led property investors and landowners transform tired properties and challenging sites into high-performing assets.

Who we work with:
👤 New property investors
👤 Experienced property investors scaling their portfolios
👤 Landowners sitting on undervalued or underutilised sites
👤 Investors with a challenging site others have said no to or been refused at planning

What we work on:
🏠 HMOs — right from small 5-6 bed hmos right through to large Sui generis HMOs (36 bed HMO our largest to date)
🏢 Commercial to Residential
🏗️ Flat Conversions
🏠 New Builds
🌿 Rural Land Development

We also specialise in tricky projects that others may shy away from such as:

🏛️ Listed Buildings
🌳 Greenbelt land projects
🏘️ Projects in Conservation Areas
🏔️ Projects in Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty
📋 HMO Article 4 Areas

If you’ve just landed on this page — have a look through our projects and if you’ve got something you want to talk through, our DMs are open.

📩 DM us or hit the link in bio.

08/06/2026

❌ Wrong. The information has been sitting on your council’s website the whole time…

Every single local planning authority is legally required to publish a weekly list of every planning application they decided THAT week.

Most investors have never opened one.

Here’s all you do:

📌 Go to your council’s website
📌 Find the weekly planning decision lists
📌 Download the last 3 or 4
📌 Look at the validated dates on the applications they just decided

If those applications were submitted 8 weeks ago — that council is running on time ✅

If every single one was submitted 5, 6, 7+ months ago — that is your queue. That is exactly what you’re walking into ❌ ⏳

It’s not guesswork. It’s not impossible to know.

The data is public, it’s free, and almost nobody looks at it.

Yes, there will always be exceptions or application specific delays — but this is the only data-driven read you can get on your chances of delay before you commit to a site.

Stop going in blind.

Save this before your next deal 📌

Working remotely across the country since 2017 😱Long before remote work became mainstream, we were already delivering pr...
05/06/2026

Working remotely across the country since 2017 😱

Long before remote work became mainstream, we were already delivering property investor projects this way—from day one, pre-pandemic.

Here’s a little look at how we work, and why it works so well for our property investor clients (and us).

03/06/2026

Pre app ready ✍️ 🫡

5 non-negotiables when you get to site 👀SWIPE left 👈🏻
03/06/2026

5 non-negotiables when you get to site 👀

SWIPE left 👈🏻

🤣 Never thought I’d say this — but I actually look forward to getting my electricity bill now….To see how low it is 🤣Now...
29/05/2026

🤣 Never thought I’d say this — but I actually look forward to getting my electricity bill now….

To see how low it is 🤣

Now obviously this data is from a sunny day in May — so peak performance. Solar loves spring and summer and the numbers show it.

But here’s what people miss — even in the depths of winter when the solar is doing very little, the overnight cheap-rate charging strategy never stops working.

That saving is there 365 days a year regardless of what the weather is doing.

The solar is the bonus. The battery charged overnight is the foundation.

Spring and summer you’re barely touching the daytime main grid at all. Winter you’re still buying electricity at a fraction of what your neighbours are paying.

Either way — the bill lands and it still makes me smile every single time. 🤣

And yes — there’s an upfront investment to this. I’m not going to pretend otherwise.

But when you look at it as part of an overall HMO conversion — with build costs — the battery and solar package is a relatively small percentage of the total project cost which pays back in savings each month.

Ps. Make sure to size your system based on your properties unique electric consumption.

A different way to look at property viewings 👀 THE ARCHITECT WAY 🤓🕵️‍♀️🔬Head to our website blog where we go into a lot ...
19/05/2026

A different way to look at property viewings 👀 THE ARCHITECT WAY 🤓🕵️‍♀️🔬

Head to our website blog where we go into a lot more detail and you can get access to our free downloadable viewing template too ✅

18/05/2026

Full Planning APPROVED for 5 dwellings at our farm re-development project in the Midlands 🏠🏠🏠🏠🏠

This project will turn a derelict, eyesore on the edge of a rural village into a high quality residential development made up of:

1 x 5 bed farmhouse
1 x 4 bed barn conversion
1 x 4 bed new build home
1 x 3 bed barn conversion
1 x 3 bed new build home

Not bad considered our clients brought the site with outline planning for 1 farmhouse and a soon expiring Class Q on one of the existing barns 😱!

Planning consultant

Address

Tamworth

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Portfolio Architects posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to Portfolio Architects:

Shortcuts

Featured

Share

Category