Renovation builders across the UK

A renovation is the least predictable kind of building work. An extension starts with empty ground and a drawing. A renovation starts with a house that has been altered by several generations of owners, and you only learn the full story when the plaster comes off. That changes what you should look for in a builder: less a polished brochure than a habit of surveying, writing down what is included, and telling you early when something turns up. This page explains how a renovation is scoped and organised and what to check before you hire. For the big structural jobs inside it, see extensions and loft conversions; this page is about the whole-house work that surrounds them.

What counts as a renovation

The word covers very different jobs, and builders price and organise them differently.

• Light refurbishment. Decorating, new floors, a replacement kitchen or bathroom, minor repairs. Often one or two trades, little structural change.
• Full refurbishment. Strip-out to the bones, then new electrics, plumbing, heating, plaster, floors and finishes. Many trades, in a sequence that matters.
• Period or heritage restoration. Repair rather than replace: lime plaster, timber sash windows, traditional roofs. It needs specific skills.
• Renovation with structural change. Knocking through, new openings, chimney breast removal, underpinning, a re-roof. This brings in engineers and building control.
• Renovating to let or to sell. Faster and to a fixed finish, with attention to safety certificates and compliance.

If your project is mainly a kitchen or bathroom, see kitchens and bathrooms instead.

Why the age of your house matters

The English Housing Survey 2024-25 reports that 20% of owner-occupied dwellings and 32% of private rented dwellings in England were built before 1919 (English Housing Survey 2024-25 headline report, read 12 October 2026). Those homes often have solid walls, lime plaster, timber floors and layers of later repairs, some done well and some not. A builder who has worked on houses of your age will ask different questions, for example about damp, ventilation and what the walls are made of, and will be more cautious about modern cement, plastic paint or sealed finishes on old fabric.

Who manages the work

There are three ways to run a renovation. Choose deliberately, because it decides who is responsible when two trades blame each other.

One main contractor. A builder takes the whole job, brings in or employs the trades and answers to you for all of it. This is simplest for a full refurbishment and is the model most people expect when they ask for a renovation builder. Ask who the sub-contractors are and whether they carry their own insurance.

You coordinate trades. You hire an electrician, a plumber, a plasterer and so on. It can save money, but the sequence, the snagging and the gaps between trades become your problem. It suits people with time and building knowledge.

An architect, designer or project manager. They draw, specify and administer, and a builder or builders carry out the work. It adds a layer of cost and control, and is more common where there is a design brief, a period building or a large scope.

Whichever route you choose, make sure the scope is written down room by room. Ask each builder to price from the same schedule of works, so the quotes can be compared. Our guide to hiring a builder has more on quotes and contracts.

Approvals that can apply

Planning permission. Most internal renovation does not need it. The Planning Portal says you do not need planning permission to move internal walls. Exterior changes, such as new windows in a conservation area or a changed roof, can need permission or be restricted, so check with the council planning team before you assume.

Building regulations. The Planning Portal also says that removing a load-bearing wall requires building control approval because it alters the structure, and that you would need a structural engineer's report with calculations (Planning Portal, load-bearing walls, read 12 October 2026). Other work in a renovation can also fall under the regulations, for example replacing electrical or heating systems, and changes to drainage, stairs or insulation. GOV.UK says someone registered with a competent person scheme does not need you to get approval separately for the work the scheme covers, and warns that people doing non-compliant work can be prosecuted and fined (GOV.UK, building regulations approval, read 12 October 2026). Our building regulations guide explains the routes. In Scotland, changing roofs, external walls or other structural elements needs a building warrant, and it is an offence to start work without one when you need one (mygov.scot, building warrant, read 12 October 2026).

Listed buildings. If your house is listed, internal as well as external work may need listed building consent. Government guidance on prosecutions (published in 2006, so check current law with your council) describes the offence of carrying out unauthorised works as one of "strict liability", meaning the intention of the person who did the work is not relevant (Best practice guidance on listed building prosecutions, December 2006). Find out the listing status before work starts, and ask the builder what they have done on listed houses.

Party walls. Cutting into a shared wall, rebuilding a chimney breast on one, or digging close to a neighbour's foundations may fall under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996. The GOV.UK booklet says a party structure notice should be served at least two months before the planned start, and a notice for adjacent excavation at least one month before (GOV.UK booklet, read 12 October 2026).

Asbestos, damp and what is behind the walls

HSE states that asbestos can be found in any industrial or residential building built or refurbished before the year 2000 (HSE, where asbestos can occur, read 12 October 2026). That means most renovations of older houses should treat it as a possibility. Textured ceiling coatings, old floor tiles, boards in partitions and cement roofing are typical places to look, but only a survey or test can tell you.

Ask any builder how they handle it. A responsible answer includes a survey before demolition or strip-out, stopping work if suspect material is found, and using properly licensed or competent specialists where the type of material requires it. A shrug, or a plan to bag it up and take it to the tip, is a red flag. Do not sand, drill or break material you suspect.

Damp, rot, old wiring, lead pipework and uneven floors are common discoveries too. Because of that, a sensible renovation contract includes a way of pricing the unknown: a contingency you agree in advance, and a rule that any extra work is priced and approved in writing before it starts.

How long does a renovation take?

This varies more than any other building project, because it depends on what is found. A light refresh can be days or weeks. A full refurbishment is a sequence of trades, and the order matters: structure and first-fix services, then plaster, then second fix, then decoration. Ask each builder for a written programme with stages, rather than a single end date, and ask what typically delays work on a house like yours. Do not plan a move-in date before the plaster has dried and the sign-offs are done.

What to check before you hire a renovation builder

1. Experience of your kind of house and scope. A bungalow refit and a Victorian terrace restoration are different skills.
2. A written schedule of works. Room by room, with what is included and excluded, so quotes can be compared.
3. How unknowns are handled. Contingency, a survey before strip-out, and written approval for changes.
4. Asbestos and lead. Their approach before demolition, and who they use.
5. Structural work. Who designs and checks any openings, and who deals with building control.
6. Electrical, gas and heating. Whether the work is done by registered tradespeople (in Great Britain, gas work should be done by someone on the Gas Safe Register) and whether certificates will be given at the end.
7. Insurance, contract and payments. Public liability, who insures the works, a written contract and payments tied to stages, not a big deposit.
8. Snagging and guarantees. How defects are dealt with after you move in, and what guarantee stands behind the work.

Red flags

• A lump-sum quote with no schedule of works.
• A builder who says there is no need to check for asbestos, or that building control is a formality.
• No written contract, or a contract with no way of dealing with extra work.
• Large up-front payments, or a request to pay in cash with no paperwork.
• Being told a load-bearing wall can come out with no calculations.
• Reluctance to name sub-contractors or show insurance.

How our list ranks builders

On MyLocalBuilders.uk the ranked list is ordered by verified reviews from the last 12 months, then by distance. Reviews are published only after the reviewer is verified as a customer, and nobody pays to move up the list. A separate, labelled Featured slot sits above it; when a town has more than three featured builders they take turns in it, and on other days they sit in the list where their reviews place them. When you send an enquiry it goes to one builder only. Use search to find builders near you, and read their profiles for renovation work before you ask for quotes.