A whole-house renovation is a planned refurbishment of an entire home, typically combining rewiring, heating, plastering, new kitchen and bathroom, flooring and decoration, and sometimes layout changes, carried out in a logical order under one project.
Anyone planning a whole-house renovation in St Austell wants three things: a clear price, a realistic timetable and a tidy job. We publish a guide of £46,000–£122,000 including VAT for the South West up front, explain that work normally takes 8–24 weeks on site, depending on scope, and confirm both in writing after a free survey of your property.
- Guide price
- £46,000–£122,000 inc VAT
- Time on site
- 8–24 weeks on site, depending on scope
- Postcodes
- PL25
- Planning rules
- England
- Local area
- Cornwall
- Survey
- Free, with a written quote
What should you budget for a whole-house renovation in St Austell?
What will a whole-house renovation cost in St Austell? Our guide range is £46,000–£122,000 including VAT. That figure is adjusted for the South West, about 2% above the national guide, and is intended for planning a budget. A firm written price for your chosen specification follows a free survey at your home.
| Type of job | What it usually involves | Guide in St Austell |
|---|---|---|
| Light refurbishment | Decoration, flooring, minor repairs and perhaps one new kitchen or bathroom. | £15,500–£46,000 |
| Full refurbishment | Rewire, heating, plastering, new kitchen and bathroom, flooring and decoration throughout a 3-bed house. | £46,000–£122,000 |
| Renovation with structural changes | A full refurbishment plus wall removal, layout changes or extra bathrooms. | £102,000–£184,000 |
What moves the price up or down:
- Size of the house and number of rooms being renovated
- Whether rewiring, new heating and full replastering are needed
- Kitchen and bathroom specification
- Structural or layout changes and associated approvals
Scope of the work
- Room-by-room survey and a planned order of works
- Strip-out of old kitchens, bathrooms, flooring and finishes
- Rewiring and new consumer unit by qualified electricians, with certificates
- Heating and plumbing upgrades by qualified engineers
- Flooring, internal doors, skirting and joinery
- Decoration and a final clean before handover
Local housing and a whole-house renovation
Older Cornish homes are often built of granite or slatey local stone, with slate roofs and sometimes slate-hung walls facing the weather. Cob cottages survive in places, Truro and Falmouth keep Georgian and Victorian streets, and many towns have rendered post-war houses, bungalows and newer estates on their edges.
Stone and cob properties often need breathable lime render, careful repointing and roof repairs. Post-war and newer homes commonly benefit from new windows, roofline renewal, external rendering and single-storey extensions.
These patterns matter for a whole-house renovation: older walls, roofs and floors in St Austell can need different materials or extra preparation compared with newer homes.
Planning and building rules in St Austell
Planning law differs across the UK. For a home in St Austell, it is the England rules below that count, and we check them with the council ahead of any quote.
Internal work such as a new kitchen, bathroom, flooring, plastering or decorating does not need planning permission in England, unless the house is listed, when listed building consent may be needed even for internal changes.
Some internal work is covered by Building Regulations: new electrical circuits and work in bathrooms (Part P), new drainage, structural changes, extractor ventilation and any new window. Notifiable work is certified by a registered installer or by building control.
Rules change and every property is different, so we check the planning history and constraints for your address before we quote.
The four stages
Free site survey
We begin by looking at the job in person. During the free survey we discuss options, materials and budget for a whole-house renovation, and photograph or measure anything the quote needs to reflect.
Your fixed price
We put everything into a written, fixed-price quote: the specification, what's excluded, staged payments and the expected time on site. Take whatever time you need to decide; there's no pressure to commit.
Getting ready
Once you accept, we agree start dates, order materials and deal with any planning, building control or neighbour notices the job needs. You'll know who is coming and when before work begins.
The work itself
On site, the agreed plan is followed and any change is put in writing first. At completion we do a final clean, go through the snagging list with you and leave you with the relevant documents.
How we work
Whole-house renovations in St Austell: questions
How much does it cost to renovate a whole house?
A full refurbishment of a typical 3-bed house costs £46,000–£122,000, covering rewiring, heating, plastering, a new kitchen and bathroom, flooring and decoration. A light refresh costs much less, while renovations with structural changes cost more. The biggest variables are the condition of the house and the kitchen and bathroom specification. We survey every room and give you a written price for the agreed scope.
What contingency should I allow?
A contingency is money set aside for problems found once work starts, such as rotten joists, hidden damp or wiring that is worse than expected. For older houses, setting aside at least 10–15% of the build cost is sensible. We look for warning signs during the survey and price known issues upfront. If something unexpected is found, we explain it and price it before carrying on.
Who do I deal with during the job?
One point of contact manages your project from survey to handover. They schedule the trades working under our contract, keep you updated on progress, and are the person to call with any question. You don't need to coordinate builders, electricians or decorators separately, because that is part of what we do.
What happens if you find damp or rot?
If we find damp or rot during a renovation, we stop that area, show you the problem and explain the likely cause, such as a leaking gutter, bridged damp-proof course or poor ventilation. We then give you a written price to fix the cause and repair the damage before carrying on. Treating the cause matters more than treating the symptom, so we focus on that first.
Which postcodes in St Austell do you cover?
We cover PL25, along with the rest of Cornwall. If your postcode is not listed, get in touch anyway: our coverage is UK-wide, and we can usually arrange a survey wherever you live. Enter your postcode in the guide-price tool or contact form and we will confirm.
Near St Austell
We cover every part of St Austell, including PL25, and nearby Truro, Newquay and Falmouth. Wherever you are within that patch, the survey is free and the quote comes to you in writing.