The work itself
Labour and materials for the scope as written. This is the number people mean when they say 'the quote'—and it is usually 70 to 80 percent of what the project actually costs.
What the work costs
Build a budget that survives the job site.
Renovation budgets do not fail because the labour was mispriced. They fail because of the five things that were never in the quote to begin with. Here is how the money actually breaks down, and what drives price on each trade.
Straight answer first
There are no price tables on this page yet.
I would rather publish nothing than publish a national average dressed up as a Halton number. Cost ranges go up here as I confirm them—each one dated, each one priced from work I have actually done. Until then, this is the part that matters more anyway: how the money is structured, and what moves it.
The six parts of a budget
The quote is not the budget.
Most homeowners budget for the first item on this list and are surprised by the other five. Plan all six from the start and a renovation stops producing unpleasant conversations.
The things you cannot see yet
Rot, undersized framing, failed waterproofing, wiring that is not to code, an unexpected material behind the wall. On any house over thirty years old, something is found.
The decisions you haven't made
Every allowance—tile, fixtures, hardware, lighting—is a placeholder, and placeholders are almost always set low. Price your actual selections before you sign, not after.
Permits, engineering and inspections
Permit fees, a structural engineer's stamp where a beam is involved, ESA notification for electrical. Small individually, and routinely left out of a quote.
Living through it
Meals out, storage, temporary accommodation, a second bathroom you no longer have. Real money, never quoted, always spent.
Contingency
Not optional. Fifteen percent on a straightforward job in a newer home; more in an older one, and more again as soon as you open a wall you have never seen behind.
Six rules that hold
What twenty-five years of pricing work teaches.
None of these are theory. Each one is the summary of a pattern that repeats on job after job, in every price bracket.
The cheapest quote is usually incomplete, not efficient
When one quote is far below the others, it is almost never because that contractor found a smarter way to do the work. It is because something is missing from the scope. Find out what before you celebrate.
Cost per square foot is a conversation, not a calculation
It is useful for orienting a discussion and useless for pricing a specific job. Two kitchens of identical size differ by a factor of four depending on cabinetry, whether services move, and what is behind the wall.
Moving water and gas is where budgets break
Keeping plumbing and gas where they already are is the single most effective cost control in any renovation. Moving a toilet drain or a gas line is disproportionately expensive relative to how small the change looks on a drawing.
Finishes are visible, assemblies are not—spend accordingly
Waterproofing, insulation detail, ventilation and drainage are invisible and decide whether the work lasts. Tile and hardware are visible and can be changed later. Homeowners consistently allocate the budget the wrong way round.
The permit is cheaper than the consequence
Permit fees are a rounding error against the cost of unpermitted work discovered during a sale, an insurance claim declined, or a buyer walking away days before closing.
Sequence beats speed
Work done out of order gets redone. Choosing finishes late, or starting demolition before selections are confirmed and in stock, is the most common cause of a job stalling half-finished.
Where cost actually comes from
Price drivers, trade by trade.
Every trade guide sets out what specifically moves the number on that work—cabinet construction, finish level, roof pitch, panel capacity, whether the drain moves. That is where a wide spread between quotes usually explains itself.
A real number for a real property
The only reliable estimate is one made on site.
A walkthrough produces a room-by-room priority list, cost ranges for your property specifically, the projects that will not return their cost, and the inspection risks a buyer will find. It is free, and there is no obligation to list.
Estimates are estimates.
Any figure discussed here or in a walkthrough is a preliminary opinion based on experience, not a contractor’s quotation and not a guarantee of price. Only a written quote from a licensed contractor who has seen the property is a price you can rely on.
A straightforward first conversation
Work out the budget before you commit to the work.
Tell me where you are in the process. We’ll discuss the property, the market, and the questions that matter most to you.