Renovation costs : price per m2

Understanding the cost of renovations and work per square meter is a common problem in the real estate sector. On the construction site, various expenditure items concern administrative procedures, structural renovations, and finishing work. The prices of services and materials generally depend on these costs. In principle, the budget for renovating a house or apartment is determined per square meter of living space.

How is the renovation of a house or apartment carried out? What budget is required for each project? What financial aid is available to properly renovate a home? To avoid making a mistake when choosing a quote for renovating a house or apartment, here is some information!

Expenses related to the preparatory stage of a renovation project

Renovating a house or apartment involves several crucial steps. This must begin with a detailed study of the project and the completion of administrative procedures.

Preliminary study of the project

Undertaking a renovation project requires a preliminary cost study that provides an estimate of the projected cost of the work and renovations. In this context, you must pay careful attention to every detail so that you can provide as many explanations as possible and compare quotes from contractors.

Even if you plan to carry out the renovation work on your home yourself, professional advice, particularly from an architect, is essential. By asking the right questions to an interior designer, for example, you can rationally arrange all the rooms in your home.

Carrying out administrative procedures

Renovating a house or apartment necessarily involves administrative procedures at the town hall. As such, you may be required to obtain a building permit or a prior declaration of work, depending on the scale of your project.

Check with the tradespeople to correctly complete your application and thus easily obtain your authorization. Note that applying for a building permit requires the assistance of an architect as soon as the surface area of ​​the post-work footprint exceeds 150 m ² . In all cases, the services of a professional are essential to properly prepare your authorization application file.

Entrusting the study of your project and the planning application to a professional, particularly an architect, comes at a price. You can charge either a flat rate of €1,000 to €1,500, or an average rate of €100 per hour.

The cost of major renovation work

Structural renovation work within a house primarily involves earthworks and the foundation. This involves maintaining the overall solidity of the entire building. This may require specific work, such as backfilling and drainage. Specific shoring measures are required for load-bearing walls, which play a crucial role in supporting the entire house. This also includes facade renovation work.

Structural renovation also involves reviewing and repairing, if necessary, the roof and framework. The same applies to exterior joinery, such as doors, windows, French windows, frames, and fixed frames. Furthermore, structural work is required if the planned renovation involves extending the home (raising the roof, extending the walls, etc.).

In terms of price, structural renovation work is more expensive than other types of work. This activity itself is also called major renovation. As such, it will cost you a higher amount, at least €1,000/ ^m² .

The cost of carrying out complete renovation work

When it comes to renovations, finishing work is essential for completely renovating your home. Here, the cost of work and renovations per square meter is determined based on several activity categories.

Energy and sound renovation of the house

Energy-efficient insulation is a crucial step when renovating a home. It’s beneficial both in terms of comfort and energy savings. This process is strongly recommended, if not required, by the government before renting or selling a property.

Depending on the condition of the house or apartment, energy and sound renovation may involve the repair of:

• • wall insulation: the cost per square meter can vary from 30 to 100 euros, depending on the craftsman used, the materials and the technique chosen (wall insulation from the outside or from the inside);

• • insulation of floors or lower floors: the required budget can range from €20 to €50/m2 ^depending  on the materials, installation and craftsman chosen;

• • roof insulation: with a cost per square meter ranging from 25 to 80 euros depending on the insulation and the installation technique, but also on the craftsman;

• • attic insulation: which costs between €30 and €100/m2 ^, depending on whether they can be converted or not, but also depending on the materials and technique used;

• • window insulation: which is billed between 210 and 620 euros per room depending on the technique selected (replacement with double glazing, secondary glazing, etc.).

In addition to energy and sound insulation, you should also consider your heating system. In this context, it’s much more sensible to opt for more economical equipment and, above all, one that complies with environmental standards.

Consider replacing your old heating system with an eco-friendly device, such as a heat pump (€4,560 to €15,100), wood-burning heating (€1,560 to €6,100), or solar or biomass heating (€3,100 to €15,100).

Furthermore, regarding the ventilation system, make sure that all the rooms in your house are well ventilated. Specifically, the air circulation in your home must be done from air inlets in the living areas (bedrooms, living room) and air outlets in the utility rooms (bathroom, kitchen, toilets). In this context , opting for Controlled Mechanical Ventilation (CMV) is the most recommended solution, the price of which ranges from 400 euros to 5,500 euros.

Electrical installation work

Electrical renovations represent a significant expense, especially if no renovations have been carried out for years. Moreover, electrical installations are governed by the NF C15-100 standard in France. To meet the required standards, a few essential steps must be taken, namely:

• • the diagnosis of the entire installation in order to access its general condition, the possible risks and dangers that may arise;

• • the preparation of electrical installation plans, the changing of cables and wires, the changing of certain equipment (panel, protection) and the addition of certain mandatory elements (switches, lighting);

• • the dismantling of the previous obsolete electrical installation.

In terms of pricing, the rate may vary depending on whether the electrical renovation is partial or complete, and on the fees of the professional hired. Find in the following table the cost per square meter for the renovation of the electrical network in your home:

To ensure that the electrical installation complies with standards and is in the best possible conditions, it is best to entrust the work to an electrician.

Plumbing renovation work

Just like the electrical system in a home, the plumbing system wears out and deteriorates over the years, requiring renovation. This may include:

• • small jobs, such as changing pipes, replacing faucets, changing a flush, etc.;

• • the complete renovation, including the replacement of all the plumbing.

The cost of plumbing renovations therefore depends on the complexity of the work and, of course, the materials required. On average, the budget to be paid is around 80 euros per square meter (including supplies and installation). To properly renovate your plumbing at a fair price, it’s best to entrust the work to a plumber.

In summary, renovation work relating to the second work is billed at an amount between €500 and €1,000/m2 ^. The budget may be higher if you plan to replace your heating system with more economical equipment, such as ecological heating.

The budget required for finishing work

When it comes to renovations, finishing touches refer to the decoration and beautification work of all rooms. This includes painting, wall and floor coverings, installing lighting, sanitary fixtures (bathroom, toilets and sinks), and fitting out the kitchen. Everyone also talks about a partial renovation of the house. 

Among the finishing works, painting represents a fairly expensive item of expenditure. Generally, the resulting estimate can range from 15 to 40 €/m ² . The cost of the project is assessed in particular according to the type of paint (chosen according to the type of wall to be painted) and the work to be carried out. In addition to painting, you can opt for other types of wall covering, namely glass fabric, wallpaper, tiles, polished concrete and paneling. As for the floor, you must pay an amount between 20 and 195 €/m ² , depending on the type of covering and the installation technique chosen. The layout of the kitchen, meanwhile, requires a budget of between 10 and 30 €/m ² .

In conclusion, the price per square meter for renovating a house or apartment varies depending on the work planned, the materials needed, and the professional hired. Approximately, the quote for properly renovating your house or apartment can vary from €150 to €2,000/ ^m² .

How to finance renovation work properly?

As you can see, renovating a home is not an easy task, both in terms of labor and finances. In practice, a large proportion of French households, especially those living in large cities like Paris, do not have sufficient resources to complete their project. Fortunately, the French government provides financial aid to encourage homeowners to properly renovate their homes.

The very first opportunity available to you is a mortgage. Precisely like building or buying, renovating your home gives you access to a bank loan. Even more relevant, the government has introduced the eco-PTZ  (zero-interest loan) to finance the energy renovation of any energy-intensive home in France, particularly in Paris.

Depending on your situation, you can also opt for MaPrimeRenov’, the energy bonus, the reduced VAT (Value Added Tax) rate of 5.5%, and assistance from the Anah (National Housing Agency).