Renovation FAQs

We keep the parts of the home that can do what the brief asks of them, and change or remove the parts that cannot.

The brief is what settles it, because what you want the house to do is what makes any given part of it worth keeping. Often the driver is natural light, or opening the house up to a rear yard that is not being used.

From there it becomes a structural and practical question. Some parts of a home lend themselves to change and others are better removed. What should not happen is a renovation shaped by what happens to be standing rather than by the needs behind it.

Yes, and it is one of the more common reasons people renovate.

Wholesale layout changes are done regularly, usually to improve how the home works day to day, bring in more natural light, or connect the living areas to the rear yard.

What sets the limits is structural support and the cost of repositioning plumbing, electrical and gas services. Neither prevents a layout change, but both shape how far it can sensibly go.

Yes, and it is often the main reason people renovate in the first place.

Most of the renovations we work on are about adapting an older home to the way families live now. That means prioritising light, flow, outdoor enjoyment and better everyday function. Homes of an earlier era were frequently built with small separated rooms and living areas turned away from the yard, so there is usually a lot to gain from reworking the orientation.

In NSW, many cosmetic and non-structural renovations can be completed without council or CDC approval, including kitchen and bathroom upgrades, new flooring, painting, cabinetry and replacing existing windows or doors. Once the work changes the structure, floorplan, building footprint or external form—such as removing walls, adding an extension or creating new openings—some form of approval will usually be required.

Renovations are subject to NSW legislation for appYes, if the work fits within the complying development standards. If it does not, it goes to council as a development application.

Renovations in NSW are approved under one of three routes.

Exempt development covers minor work that needs no approval at all.

Complying development (CDC) is assessed and approved by a private certifier. It is faster, but the work has to fit within set standards.

A development application (DA) goes to council, and is required once the work falls outside those standards.

Which route applies is determined by what you are proposing rather than by preference. It is worth establishing early, because the pathway affects both the programme and the design.

rovals; which means the works can be approved by either DA (Council application), Complying Development (Certifier approved) or Exempt Development. Which avenue entirely depends on the scope and scale of the renovation work.

Pools always need approval, through either complying development or a development application. The submission usually includes the pool design, engineering plans, the relevant insurances and a BASIX certificate, along with fencing and barrier compliance.

Alfresco areas and larger backyard works depend on scale. Landscaping and paving at ground level are often exempt, while roofed structures, decks above a certain height, and anything involving significant excavation or retaining will generally need approval.

Heritage or conservation zoning almost always means the work has to go to council.

Most heritage items and conservation areas are protected through LEP mapping under NSW legislation, which puts them beyond what a private certifier can approve. That removes the complying development pathway and makes a development application the route.

Most councils also publish site-specific or area-specific controls setting out what can and cannot be done in a heritage context. Those are worth reading before any design work starts, because they shape what is achievable.

Yes. What you are allowed to build is set by the zoning, the applicable planning controls and any heritage or conservation overlay on the property, and all of that can be established before design begins.

We run a feasibility analysis before any design work starts. It combines a planning review with a brief taken from you, and sets out the build potential of the property along with preliminary budgets. The point is to know the boundaries before you spend money designing inside them.

Major renovations in Sydney generally start from around $500,000, and larger or more complex projects reach $1 million or more.

That range covers work involving substantial structural alterations, extensions and a high level of new finishes. Where a project sits within it is driven by how much of the existing building is retained, how much new floor area is added, the extent of the structural changes, site access, and the level of finishes.

These are indicative figures for planning. An accurate number needs a look at the specific property, because the condition of what is already there moves the cost more than the size of the project does.

Five things account for most of the variation, and the first carries far more weight than the rest:

1. How much of the existing structure is changing. This is the single biggest driver.
2. The size and complexity of the extension.
3. The condition of the existing structure.
4. Site access.
5. The cost of the new finishes and materials.

Extensions are the easiest of these to quantify, because new work is predictable. The opposite is true of structural change to the existing house. The more dramatic that change, the more unknowns come with it, and the wider the range around any early estimate.

You can get a usable ballpark from a single site visit, and the figure tightens at each stage after that.

1. Walk through with a builder. Very rough, but enough to confirm quickly whether your intent is in the right range.
2. Walk through with a builder and architect together. Turns initial thoughts into early design intent, backed by build advice.
3. Concept design. The builder can start quantifying specific costs against something drawn.
4. Fully documented plans. This is where a builder can be genuinely exact.

Two things to hold throughout. Always carry a contingency, and always check what is fixed price and what is cost-plus in the builder’s contract.

Demolition is a key cost that can be overlooked or under-budgeted. Once you start demolishing and pulling back behind the walls, it can be common to keep on demolishing as what you uncover can be in need of repair or replacing.

Because floor area is one of the weaker predictors of renovation cost.

What drives the difference is the structural change involved, site access, the condition of the building, how many services have to be relocated, and the level of finishes and detailing. Two homes of identical size can sit a long way apart on all five.

It is also why a renovation cannot sensibly be quoted per square metre in the way a new build sometimes can.

Access can affect renovation timing and costs quite a lot. It’s often an overlooked component when families are buying a home, but the constraints can be permanent often unavoidable. Tight side access, steep sites, limited street parking, or having to move materials through the existing house can increase labour and make demolition, excavation and material handling slower.

Usually not, for a major renovation.

Where the work is contained to one section of the house it can be manageable. Once it involves kitchens, bathrooms, services, structural work or extensive demolition, staying in the house becomes impractical and slows the build down.

In most cases moving out for the main construction period is the better decision. It gives the builder better access, improves safety on site, and lets the project run at full pace.

On an integrated project, the builder does. Design, cost, approvals and construction are all managed under one team.

On a typical renovation that coordination is split between the designer, planner, engineer, interior designer, builder, pool contractor and landscaper, and the homeowner ends up holding the gaps between them.

Bringing it under one team is what removes that burden and keeps the disciplines aligned. It is also a natural link through to the service page.