Planning a renovation in Abbotsford?
Read on: we can help you out with tips and advice for your Abbotsford renovation!
Why renovate in Abbotsford?
Abbotsford has become hot property in recent years, with the suburb transforming into one of Sydney’s most desirable pcokets. If you’re looking for an inner-west lifestyle that offers proximity to the city and plenty of great cafes and restaurants, Abbotsford is for you! The shops of Great North Road give Abbotsford a village feel. There’s also plenty of recreation options and stunning views of the Parramatta River. Whether you have an existing house in Abbotsford you’d like to transform into your ideal home, or if you’re looking to move to the area for the lifestyle it offers, renovating in Abbotsford makes total sense: it’s a suburb on the rise and wonderful place to live.
The realities of renovating in Abbotsford
Renovating in Abbotsford, like any inner-city suburb, can come with its challenges. But be prepared and you can avoid a catastrophe.
Renovating in any Sydney suburb comes with its challenges, but renovating in Abbotsford has its own quirks. In Abbotsford, there are tight sites, even tighter council regulations and sometimes unexpected surprises in the ageing housing stock to contend with…
Plus, with the heat in the market at the moment and competition for quality builders, keeping your project on budget and on time without causing any more grey hairs, you might be in for a challenge! That’s one of the reasons why it’s now more important than ever to work with an architect. An architect can help you design a renovation that will maximise the site and the existing building, navigate the complex world of DAs and compliance with City of Canada Bay, help you to initiate a competitive tender with a shortlist of builders to ensure you get a fair price and work with the builder to ensure the project is pulled off without a hitch.
Builders in Abbotsford
How to find a skilled builder in Abbotsford? Here’s our process…
There are numerous skilled, reliable builders in Abbotsford, many of whom we’ve worked with in previous projects. In fact, builders from all over Sydney are willing to travel to the inner-west for projects, so you’re not just limited to builders in Abbotsford or your local area.
If you work with an architect, we’ll get the design right, organise all the permits you need and conduct a competitive tender with a shortlist of 3-5 builders. Some of these builders we may have worked with before and others we will perform due diligence on, including contacting other architects they’ve worked with to ask for references. This ensures all possible builders are trustworthy and can deliver quality work. Once the tenders come back, we assess them to ensure everything is covered and that each tender can be compared like for like. We then work with you to appoint the builder of your choice and develop the building contract. Even once the contract is signed and work has started, we are still there with you to administer the contract and ensure the project runs as smoothly as possible. This takes a huge amount of stress and hassle out of the project and allows you to have confidence the renovation will be high quality and free from defects. So, once it’s all finished you’ll love the place you live and it will last for many years to come!
Cost of renovating in Abbotsford
The cost of renovating anywhere in Sydney has gone up at least 50% in the last decade, which is leaving many people unprepared for the full cost of their renovation. That said, a renovation can still represent good value for money if you develop an efficient renovation plan which enables the lifestyle you want while utilising the existing building in the best possible way. This is where the expertise of a design and construction expert like an architect comes into its own. An architect can sculpt and manipulate spaces to create your ideal home. You might even be surprised how little additional space you need once issues with flow and the arrangement of rooms are adjusted.
It’s very difficult to estimate the cost of renovating without taking a close look at your personal situation as the complexity and the need for rectification works can differ so widely between projects, but here are some rough numbers to get you started. For help estimating the cost of your renovation, get in touch.
Most additions carried out in Abbotsford will require a new kitchen and bathroom as well as an increase in the living area. This is likely to cost between $4600-$6000 per square metre of addition, plus GST. Also note this is the construction cost only, more on than later. It’ll likely also be necessary to do some repairs or rectifications in your existing house. For fixing up the existing building as part of new works, you should budget on $2800-$4200 per square metre, plus GST. Again, this is just the construction cost.
Choose a time and let’s chat to work out the cost of your renovation!
When planning your renovation budget, it’s also important to factor in other costs associated with renovating. The construction cost only represents around 70% of the overall cost. There will also be project costs like consultant fees (engineer, land surveyor, soil reports, etc.), architect fees, GST, council fees and a contingency. So, to determine the ultimate cost of your renovation, it’s important not to forget these additional costs.
Fluid Studio place great emphasis on developing the design in keeping with the project budget. Typically we’ll provide a detailed breakdown of costs at the end of phase one, concept design. In the meantime, we can certainly discuss your project with you and give you a clearer idea of how much it will cost to renovate in Abbotsford.
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