Restoring Auckland’s character
and Heritage Homes

Heritage restoration costs in Auckland depend almost entirely on scope. As a 2026 guide:

Interior heritage refresh — $250K to $400K
New kitchen, bathroom(s), full repaint, floor refinish, electrical and plumbing upgrade, plaster repair, lighting. No structural reconfiguration, no extension, original layout retained. Suits a tired but structurally sound villa or bungalow.

Full restoration with reconfiguration — $400K to $700K
Everything above, plus structural changes (wall removals, open-plan living/kitchen), partial re-piling, partial re-roofing, heritage joinery restoration, possible single-room extension. Most of our heritage projects sit in this band.

Major restoration + extension or recladding — $700K to $1.2M+
Full re-pile, full re-roof, full weatherboard recladding where original cladding is end-of-life, multi-room extension, complete services upgrade (electrical, plumbing, ventilation, insulation), full kitchen + bathrooms + laundry. Typical of grand Remuera and Epsom villas that need everything done at once.

For the full breakdown — see our Auckland Renovation Cost Guide, or use the instant estimator for a ballpark in 30 seconds.

Many heritage homes require building consent, especially when structural work, re-roofing, or extensions are involved. Some properties also sit within heritage overlays or have additional planning considerations depending on their zoning. We manage this entire process on your behalf, including liaison with Auckland Council and any required heritage assessments.

Yes — that’s the whole point of what we do. A well-planned heritage renovation preserves the architectural details that give the home its value: ceilings, mouldings, timber features, joinery, proportions. We reshape the layout, light, and flow around those features rather than stripping them out. Done well, the home reads as more original after the renovation, not less.

The four big ones are: hidden structural issues (aging timber framing, settled piles, old roof structures), outdated services (knob-and-tube wiring, galvanised plumbing, lead paint), planning constraints (heritage overlays, character protections), and budget uncertainty caused by all of the above. A fifth comes up on weatherboard villas where the original cladding has reached end-of-life — full weatherboard recladding is usually the right call rather than chasing repairs. Our integrated design, QS, and build process is specifically built to surface and manage these risks early — before they become expensive variations mid-build.

The timeline depends on project scope and council approval requirements. A typical full heritage renovation in Auckland takes 8–14 months from initial consultation to completion. This includes 8–12 weeks for design and documentation, 8–16 weeks for Auckland Council building consent (longer for heritage overlay properties), and 4–8 months of construction. We’ll give you a realistic schedule at the planning stage.

Yes — managing consents is part of our service. Our team has experience with Auckland Council requirements including heritage-specific planning rules, so we handle this on your behalf throughout the project. If your property is within a heritage overlay, we’ll guide you through the additional process from the first conversation.

In many cases, yes — but it depends heavily on scope. Interior-only renovations with isolated work areas often allow you to stay. Full re-piling, re-roofing, or whole-home renovations usually mean temporary accommodation is the better call. We’ll walk through this honestly with you at planning stage so there are no surprises, and we can help arrange phased construction to keep one wing liveable if that’s what works.

The Master Build 10-Year Guarantee is New Zealand’s most comprehensive residential building guarantee. It covers defects in materials and workmanship, structural defects for 10 years, and loss of deposit. Crucially, it is backed by an independent insurance policy — not just our word as a company — which means you are fully protected even in circumstances outside our control. See the full guarantee details.

We carry out heritage renovations across greater Auckland — particularly Remuera, Epsom, Mt Eden, Ponsonby, Grey Lynn, Herne Bay, Westmere, Pt Chevalier, Parnell, and Newmarket where most of Auckland’s villa and bungalow stock sits. We are based in Newmarket and work across both the inner-west, central, and eastern suburbs. If you’re unsure whether we cover your area, call us on 09 393 5658.

The easiest first step is a free, no-pressure phone consultation — usually 15–30 minutes. We’ll ask about your home, your goals, your budget range, and your timeline, and give you honest advice on what’s possible. From there, we arrange a site visit and develop a concept design with a transparent cost estimate. Call us on 09 393 5658 or fill in our online project discovery questionnaire.