Whole-House Renovation in London

Most whole-house projects follow the same spine. The property is stripped back to structure so that what lies behind the plaster can be seen honestly — old wiring, tired pipework, failed damp coursing, timbers that have taken more load than they should. Only once that picture is complete can a realistic programme be set.

Structural work comes first: any wall removals, steel installation, new openings and floor strengthening. First fix follows — electrical circuits, hot and cold pipework, waste runs, heating pipework and any ventilation. Plastering and screeding close the structure up. Second fix brings the property back to life: sockets and switches, radiators and sanitaryware, doors, skirtings and architraves. Decoration and floor finishes come last, when the dust-generating work is behind you.

The sequence matters more than any individual trade. Work carried out in the wrong order gets ripped out and done twice, and that is where most renovation budgets quietly disappear.

When a homeowner appoints trades separately, the gaps between them become the homeowner’s problem. The electrician finishes and leaves; the plasterer arrives to find chases uncut; nobody owns the delay. Multiply that across eight or nine trades and a three-month programme becomes six.

A single point of responsibility removes those gaps. Sequencing, ordering, access and making good all sit with one person, and when something goes wrong there is no argument about whose work it was. For a property you are living in — or paying a mortgage on while you are not — that continuity is usually worth more than a slightly lower quote.

Some clients move out for the duration; others stay in part of the house. Both are workable, but they need different planning. Staying put means phasing the work so that a functioning bathroom and kitchen are always available, protecting circulation routes, and accepting a longer overall programme in exchange for not paying rent elsewhere.

Whichever route you take, it should be decided before the programme is written rather than halfway through. Phasing a project after it has started is one of the more expensive changes you can make.