Practical Guides for Smarter Renovations

A photograph of pipes in an open wall can be useful years later, but only if you know which wall

A whole-home renovation can involve hundreds of small decisions that meet in the same room. The wall colour is easy

A renovation drawing set tells one story through several views. The floor plan shows how rooms connect, an elevation shows

In a selective demolition project, the most valuable information may concern what stays. A wall lining might be removed while

A measured floor plan can tell your designer where the rooms are without answering whether the proposed renovation will fit.

The narrow gap beside an extension can look like an obvious place for scaffolding until someone points out that it

A neighbour may support your new kitchen and still worry about the excavation beside their fence. They may dislike the

A favourable building inspection does not necessarily mean a house will accommodate the renovation you have in mind. It may

Work already built cannot always be dealt with through the same approval process that should have occurred before construction. The

A missing approval document is a records problem before it is a conclusion about the building. The paperwork may be

Discovering a room, deck or structural alteration that does not match the documents you hold can be unsettling. The next

The space beside a septic tank is not automatically available for an extension, driveway or paved terrace. The visible cover