Guide to renovation prices in the Aude
It's always difficult for a builder or renovator to give prices and costs for renovations without seeing the property. This applies in the Aude as it applies anywhere. At the same time, if you have a limited budget, it's difficult for you to even start to plan your renovations if you don't have some idea of what they are going to cost.
If there's one price of advice we can give you without seeing the property it's this:
Pay no attention to the cost of renovations that you get from your real estate agent
If an immobilier in the Aude - or anywhere in France - gives you an estimated cost to install a kitchen or bathroom, or to do whatever it is the property needs, the best thing you can do is ask them to give you a document guaranteeing the price and saying that they will personally pay any overrun. Their job is to sell a house, not to do renovations.
If you've seen a property for sale in the Aude, in a location that you like, but it needs work the thing to do is:
Get an English speaking builder to look at the house and give you an estimate of renovation costs before you make an offer.
Of course, if you speak French the builder doesn't need to speak English. The estimate will be just that, an estimate. It won't be a devis - or quote - but it will give you an idea of the repairs and renovations that need to be done and how much they will cost. It will also give you an idea of what renovation work you may be able to do yourself and what you will have to hire a professional builder or renovator to do.
Costs to renovate a house in the Aude:
As we said at the beginning, it's hard to estimate renovation costs without seeing the project but here are some price ranges that may help. At least they'll keep you from having a heart attack when you get an estimate!
| Make and install a bathroom in a space where there is no bathroom, run all supply and waste pipes, run electricity, tile floor and walls, paint walls, ceiling and trim, install fixtures - sink, bathtub, toilet, shower, | €10,000 + |
| Renovate an existing bathroom, tile walls and floor, paint, install new fixtures | €5,000 + |
| Make and install a kitchen in a space where there is no kitchen, run all supply and waste pipes, plumb for dishwasher and washing machine, run necessary electrics, refinish floor, paint walls and ceilings, install sink, tiled worktop and backsplash and shelf above worktop. | €10,000+ |
| Renovate an existing kitchen - almost impossible to say without seeing the kitchen. | €6,000 + |
| Rewire the electrics in a 3 bedroom house including a new consumer unit. | €5000 + |
| Renovate or restore a wooden floor | €2000 + |
| Tile walls, floor, or stairs - including tiles at about €15 per m2 | €50 + per m2 |
| Make a roof terrace | €10,000 + |
| Reroof village house | €10,000 + |
How renovation costs are calculated
Renovation prices are a function of labour plus materials.
People are usually surprised at the cost of labour in France. It's high. If you pay someone 9€ an hour you pay the government about 13€. That's just for an unskilled labourer. On top of that is the cost of running a business. Administration, accounting, advertising, telephone, vehicles, tools, the list goes on. In order to make a profit a business has to charge the unskilled labourer out at 40€ an hour. That's 280 € for a 7 hour day.
Materials prices can depend on you. A bathtub can cost anywhere from 300 to 5,000 euros. That's before taps. It's not always cheapest to buy the cheapest material. Cheap paint doesn't cover well so you need more coats. The increase in labour to do the extra painting will cost more than you can save on the paint. The same is true for taps, light fixtures, and electrical components.
TVA is added to labour and materials. The normal TVA rate is 19.6%. Right
now in the Aude there is a special TVA rate, 5.5%, for renovations. Certain
conditions apply.
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Chris Bullivant
info@aude-france-renovations.co.uk