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.
If you have a whole-house renovation on your list for a property in Cowes, we can help from the first measurements to the final clean-up. For a typical home, plan for 8–24 weeks on site, depending on scope, though larger or more complex jobs take longer. We cover postcodes PO31 and nearby Newport, Isle of Wight, Ryde and Gosport, and every quote we send is fixed for the scope described in it.
- Guide price
- £50,000–£134,000 inc VAT
- Time on site
- 8–24 weeks on site, depending on scope
- Postcodes
- PO31
- Planning rules
- England
- Local area
- Isle of Wight
- Survey
- Free, with a written quote
How much does a whole-house renovation cost in Cowes?
Use the table to gauge the cost of a whole-house renovation in Cowes before we visit. Figures include VAT and are scaled for the South East, coming out about 12% above the national guide, which gives £50,000–£134,000 overall. After a free survey, you receive a fixed written price.
| Type of job | What it usually involves | Guide in Cowes |
|---|---|---|
| Light refurbishment | Decoration, flooring, minor repairs and perhaps one new kitchen or bathroom. | £17,000–£50,000 |
| Full refurbishment | Rewire, heating, plastering, new kitchen and bathroom, flooring and decoration throughout a 3-bed house. | £50,000–£134,000 |
| Renovation with structural changes | A full refurbishment plus wall removal, layout changes or extra bathrooms. | £112,000–£202,000 |
Your price depends mostly on:
- Size of the house and number of rooms being renovated
- Whether rewiring, new heating and full replastering are needed
- Kitchen and bathroom specification
- Hidden problems such as damp, rot or outdated drainage
What do you get?
- 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
- New kitchen and bathroom fitted to your chosen specification
- Flooring, internal doors, skirting and joinery
- Decoration and a final clean before handover
Local housing and a whole-house renovation
The island has Victorian seaside villas and terraces in Ryde, Ventnor, Shanklin and Cowes, older cottages in island sandstone and limestone, and thatched roofs in some villages. Post-war bungalows, chalets and newer estates are common around Newport and the larger towns.
Salt and wind exposure is high on most coasts, and parts of the south, such as the Undercliff near Ventnor, are known for ground movement.
So when we survey a Cowes property for a whole-house renovation, the first step is working out how it was built and what has been changed since.
Permissions for a whole-house renovation in Cowes
Homes in Cowes come under the regulations for England, summarised below. We don't rely on general rules alone: we confirm the position for your address with the council before a quote goes out.
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
We look at the job
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
Next you receive a written quote with a fixed price for the agreed specification. It lists what is included, what is not, and how payments are staged, so you can compare it properly.
Getting ready
Preparation matters as much as the build. We agree access, parking and working hours with you, order materials in good time, and confirm any permissions so the job isn't held up once it starts.
On site to finish
The job proceeds in the order set out in the programme, with dust and debris kept under control. Finally we tidy away, inspect the work together and pass the finished project over to you with its paperwork.
What you can expect from us
Common questions
Which parts of a renovation need building regulations approval?
Several parts of a renovation fall under building regulations, including rewiring and new circuits, new boilers and heating systems, structural changes such as removing walls, replacement windows and changes to drainage. Some of this is self-certified by suitably registered trades, and some needs building control approval. In Scotland a building warrant may be needed for certain works. We arrange the right approvals and certificates.
Which postcodes in Cowes do you cover?
We cover PO31, along with the rest of Isle of Wight. 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.
How much does it cost to renovate a whole house?
A full refurbishment of a typical 3-bed house costs £50,000–£134,000, 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 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.
Do you cover Newport, Isle of Wight, Ryde and Gosport?
Yes. As well as Cowes, we cover Newport, Isle of Wight, Ryde and Gosport and the rest of Isle of Wight. Our coverage is UK-wide, so the process is the same wherever you are: a free site survey, a quote in writing that fixes the price for the agreed scope, and one point of contact while the work is planned and carried out.
Nearby towns
Cowes and its PO31 postcodes are part of our coverage. Homeowners in Newport, Isle of Wight, Ryde and Gosport can also book a free survey with us and receive a written price for their job.