Questions to ask yourself before you start renovating

Renovating can be a stressful time and in my interior design business I meet lots of clients who aren’t sure where to start with the renovation process. Before you begin there are quite a few questions you should ask yourself and some background work you will want to do about what is and isn’t possible on your site. Spend some time working through these questions before you start renovating and you’ll find yourself much better prepared to take on the renovation challenge when the time comes.

Why are you renovating?

Before you do anything else you’ll want to consider why you are renovating at all. Perhaps it will be better or easier to move than renovate? A few important questions to consider are below.

Is it better to stay put and renovate or move? Are you renovating because you want to save money on moving costs (e.g. stamp duty)? Perhaps you like where you live but you’ve run out of space or your home is old and tired? Is it worth putting money in to the home that you’ve got? Would you make back this money if you had to sell the house? Even if you’re not thinking about selling it’s important to make sure you don’t over capitalize on the value of your home in case you ever had to sell it in a hurry. Also, make sure you factor in the costs and hassle of having to move out of your property while you are renovating. In most instances you’ll need to rent elsewhere for a period of time and many people forget to factor in the cost of this when they are planning out their renovation budgets.

What is actually possible on my site?

If you’re in an apartment or townhouse

You will need to consider the strata conditions and what you are or are not allowed to do as part of a renovation. Take a look at your Body Corporate By-Laws as these should list out what is allowed to be done in your apartment block or unit/townhouse.

Often you will find there are rules that dictate what sorts of structural changes you are allowed to make, times and rules for when you can/can’t undertake building works, what sort of flooring you can lay (some apartment buildings do now allow floating floors, for example – due to noise that this type of flooring can create for neighbours). There can be many other rules as well! The By-Laws normally also list out what sort of approvals you will need to get from your Body Corporate before you can start renovating. If they aren’t listed there, contact the Strata Manager or Body Corporate to find out. You will mostly likely need to have plans and details prepared for presentation to the Body Corporate so they can review what you want to do and what materials/finishes are being used. Make sure to factor these approvals in to your renovation timeline as Body Corporate meetings can be as infrequent as quarterly for small apartment blocks, which means you may have to wait some time for a meeting to come up where your project can be discussed and approved.

In addition to approvals you will also need to consider how your apartment building is constructed, as this will very likely determine the scope of what you may or may not be able to do. For example, if you’re in an apartment on a middle floor and the primary construction of the building is concrete slabs, it will be very difficult to do any moving around of plumbing, particularly for bathrooms. You’ll very likely be constricted to the layout of existing bathrooms as moving plumbing and drainage would likely sit in the roof cavity of your neighbour below. Bathroom and kitchen renovations are possible, but just keep in mind that you’ll most likely need to keep plumbing located where it is now. Some expert plumbing advice early on may help you work out what will and won’t be possible. This sort of advice would be worth paying for before you go down the costly route of investing money in designers.

An additional issue to factor in is about the engineering of your building. Many people in apartments wish to have walls moved in order to open up spaces. In older style apartment buildings a popular request, for example, is to open an older style (closed in kitchen) up to make a more open plan living/dining/kitchen concept. This can be possible in apartment buildings but will require advice from an engineer. If you can get hold of construction drawings for your building (e.g. via strata or Body Corporate) and then engage an engineer to give you some advice before going too far, this will be very beneficial in order to find out what might be possible in your particular building. All structural changes will need to be approved by your Body Corporate.

If you’re in a house

If you are renovating a house you will have a bit more flexibility in terms of what is possible to renovate internally, but you will likely still be bound by rules and regulations imposed by your local Council as well as by building regulations. As a very general rule, if you’re just renovating internally without making any structural changes to your home, then you are unlikely to need any permission from local Councils. However, if you wish to do any structural work (e.g. including opening up back doors, adding decks, changing location of any windows or doors – plus anything more significant that that) then you will likely need to seek permission, or at least advice, from your local Council.

The first place to start with investigating what is and isn’t allowed is to conduct a search of your state’s planning authority (e.g. in NSW the first place to look is the NSW Planning Portal https://www.planningportal.nsw.gov.au/find-a-property), which will give you information about what floor space ratio you will be allowed plus any zoning and restrictions that apply where you live - e.g. if you’re in a heritage or conservation area or a bushfire zone.

Next work out what local Council your house is in and what planning and zoning conditions apply to your plot. You should be able to find out what your local Council is by looking at your rates notice or you can use the planning portal for your state to find this out as well. You can then use Google to search for that local Council’s website. Each Council site normally then has a section all about planning, renovations and development. A read of this will give you a good overview of what the process is for applying to renovate or develop your site. Some particular restrictions  that you might face include:

o   Floor space ratio – most councils impose a rule on how much of your block you are allowed to build on. This ratio differs from council to council and is a really important rule to find out about up front, particularly if you are wanting to extend your home or if you are looking to build a new house on an existing site.

o   Building height restrictions – you will also likely have rules on how high you can build on your plot. This is important if you are wanting to build a second storey as it will tell you how high this will be allowed to be on your site.

o   Minimum ceiling heights – this is a really important rule to understand and will be particularly important for anyone who might be hoping to build a new room in a basement or dig out under a house to create extra living space. This will also be an important rule to understand if you’re wanting to extend up in to existing attic space, without adding a new roof or full level. You will need to check the most current version of the “Building Code of Australia” but as a general rule a habitable room (e.g. bedroom, living room etc.) must have a minimum ceiling height of 2.4m and a non-habitable room (e.g. laundry, storeroom, pantry) must have a minimum ceiling height of 2.1m.

o   Bushfire and flood zones – check to see if you’re house sits in bushfire or flood prone areas. The reason this is important is not only so that you know if this is the case and can be prepared for this, but also because when you’re building in bushfire or flood prone areas you will most likely have rules placed on you regarding what materials you use to build with (e.g. fire retardant materials) or may have minimum floor heights you have to work with (e.g. in flood prone areas). Both of these can have significant cost implications when building or renovating.

o   Heritage or conservation sites – a search of your local planning portal will also give you information about whether your house or plot has heritage or conservation status. As a general rule heritage status is far more strict in terms of what you can or can’t do to your home and can mean that you may not be able to change any aspects of the external part of your home (e.g. windows/door placement), it may require you to use certain materials or paint colours – so as to ‘restore’ the home to original condition and may also have strict rules on what sort of materials or look you can have with any extension (e.g. you may be able to add an extension to the back of the house but you most likely will have to design this in such a way that it cannot be seen from the front the street facade).

You will need to be sympathetic to the heritage condition of the home and, in many cases, will be required to restore certain parts of the home to original condition, using traditional materials. This can be costly and should be factored in to your budget. If your home has heritage or conservation status it would be a good idea to seek some advice early on from a heritage consultant who will be able to walk you through what that means and what you will need to consider as part of your renovation. When heritage status is involve Councils will often require a report from a heritage consultant to be submitted as part of the Development Application. 

What budget am I working to and is this realistic?

Building is generally more expensive than you think it will be. It is important to think early on about what overall budget you are hoping to work to for your project and whether this is realistic for what you want to have done. If you need some help in starting to plan this out then you will find some resources here that will help you.

Some things to consider as part of your budget, that many people forget (and then run out of money for at the end!) are;

o   Consultant and design fees – e.g. for your architect/designer, council fees, certifier fees, engineer(s), site surveyors and other specialists you may wish for internal works (e.g. media or lighting consultants). Depending on the size of your project these consultant fees can add up to tens of thousands of dollars, so make sure you factor their fees in to the overall budget.

o   Demolition and rubbish/tipping costs – these can be really expensive and tipping/rubbish removal, in particular can be a very high part of your renovation costs

o   Labour – this is normally one of the biggest costs of your renovation budget and is often under budgeted for.

o   Quality vs budget renovation – the sorts of fixtures, fittings, flooring, insulation or even screws and nails you choose can vary greatly across building. If you want to have a high end renovation you will need to budget accordingly for this.

o   Builder’s margin – the building industry is booming at the moment and builder’s currently have high margins, which they place on everything they do for you. So if they purchase fixtures and fittings for you, they will add a margin to that purchase, when the arrange a trade for you (e.g. plumber), they add a margin to that plumber’s bill. Be aware of this and make sure you leave a good margin in your budget for this. Builder’s margins can range from 12% (which would be considered extremely reasonable) up to even 30% or more for very busy or high end builders (or builders who are quoting on your project but add a huge margin as they don’t actually want to take on your job!).

o   Furniture and accessories – many people get to the end of their renovation and have completely run out of money to furnish or style their new spaces. Make sure you budget for any furniture or accessories you will need as it is really depressing to have a beautiful new space finished and then have to move your old IKEA sofas back in! For a 5 bedroom house that needs mostly new furniture I would normally get clients to allow around $40,00-50,000 for a mid range selection of furniture and accessories.

o   Landscaping – this is notoriously forgotten on the budget. Hard landscaping (e.g. driveways, walls, built in BBQs, awning structures etc.) are very expensive and need to be budgeted. But planting is also costly and you should factor in some money for this at the end.

Pro-tip – make sure you get three quotes no matter how big or small your project is. Even if you only need to get some decking made, it’s worth getting multiple quotes as you’ll be able to get a good idea of whether or not you’re quotes are coming in around the same or can question any trades who are providing particularly high or low quotes about why that is the case.

Make sure you aren’t over capitalising

Once you’ve got an idea of your overall budget and have made sure that this appears to be pretty reasonable for what you want to do it’s important to consider whether you will be over capitalising on your home by investing that amount of money in to it.  

If you follow the real estate market and have a good finger on the pulse of property values, recent sales and what sorts of things add or subtract value, then you probably will instinctively know whether or not it’s worth spending what you’ve budgeted for on your home.

If you aren’t really clear on all of that then here are a few tips to make sure:

o   Take a look around on Domain or Realestate.com – type in the parameters of what you expect your finished home to be like – e.g. if you’re adding an extra bedroom then use that new bedroom count. Look at recent sales of renovated versions of your own home and see what these are selling for (tip – look at the recent sales, not what places are listed for as this often varies greatly!). You will also get a sense of what sort of finish and look/feel works in your neighbourhood. Do buyers expect on-trend kitchens and bathrooms? Are the homes high end in your price bracket? Can you get away with spending less on certain aspects of the home? Are open plan spaces selling for more? Would adding another bedroom dramatically increase the value of your home (generally it does in most areas!)? These are some of the questions to consider as you look around. You may also get some good design ideas while you’re doing this – so don’t forget to take note of any of these while you look around.

o   Seek some advice from a few local real estate agents. Take a look around your neighbourhood at sales signage in front gardens and take note of a couple of the top agents in your area (i.e. the ones who appear to be listing lots of the local houses). You can also do this on Domain or Realestate.com.au as well. Once you’ve got the names of a few agents give them a call or email and tell them a bit about your property and what you are wanting to do. You could even invite them over to give you an appraisal of your home, plus some advice. Normally agents are happy to do this – as they hope that one day they might get your sales business! Seek their advice on what your house is worth now, how much you are thinking of spending on it and what you think the house would be worth when it’s done. This will give you an idea of whether or not adding that sort of money to the house will improve it’s value. This may or may not ultimately impact whether or not you do the renovation (e.g. if what you’re spending on the home isn’t estimated to increase it’s worth terribly much), but it is important knowledge to have and may motivate you to stick to that budget once the renovation starts!  

What sort of help will you need?

For extensions, new builds and major structural changes:

You will definitely need to engage someone to help you draw up plans for this kind of project as plans will need to be approved by your local Council and specific documents will be required for that approvals process. The size and scope of your renovation will determine the sorts of professional you will have involved in your project.

If you have a particularly complicated building or site then it may be worth investing in the expertise of an architect. You should expect to pay around 10% of your budget on architect fees. Architects will be able to also engage any consultants you need on your project, such as engineers, surveyors and other specialists. For complicated projects an architect is the best solution to make sure you get a great result that you’re happy with. But they are costly and if you can learn some of the steps yourself then you will save yourself some money along the way.

An alternative solution might be to hire a draftsperson and work with an interior designer on the internal finishes. I find drafts people great when you’ve got a clear picture of what you want to do but just need the plans drawn up for you. This might be the case for less complicated extensions or when you’re clear on the structural work you want to do.  

No matter who you choose for your drawings you will need to ensure that the drawings comply with the building and planning regulations. Check credentials for your chosen professionals before you start work and seek out references if you need to.

For smaller renovations and internal works:

These sorts of renovations don’t normally need an architect or draftsperson involved. But if you’re wanting to hire a professional then the best place to start would be an interior designer. They can help you prepare concepts and drawings for the renovation, help choose your fixtures and finishes and manage the project for you as well. If they need to employ a draftsperson to draw up any structural work they will be able to manage this for you as well.

To find architects, drafts people or interior designs  a good place to start is Houzz. On this platform you are able to find professionals to work with who are working in your area, you can read reviews from previous clients and you can see images of their previous work. A tip I always give clients when searching for professionals is to make sure that when you’re looking at their work you like what you see. If a designer has great reviews but is working in a completely different sort of style/aesthetic to what you like then you are unlikely to make a good match. It’s always best to choose a designer who has an aesthetic that you love. Other places to look for architects/drafts people/designers is to ask friends for recommendations. Also look on Instagram (search hashtags like #sydneyinteriordesigner to find people working in your area) and do Google searches. It’s really important to have a great fit with your designer as you’re going to be working very closely together for a long time!  

What is my design aesthetic/style?

The final question to ask yourself before you get started is all about what your style and aesthetic is. Many people have a good idea of this, some people have no idea at all! I have written a whole post about my process on working this out - so if that’s something you’re interested in you can check that out here.

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