Renovation budget for a 135 m² condo in Porto / sold-price history

[avery_fable]

€130,200 is my early allowance for renovating a 135 m² Porto condo. My main concern is that apparently limited electrical work could become a larger upgrade once walls are opened.

The project includes new kitchen and bathrooms, floors, decoration and moderate energy improvements, without an extension. I am also allowing for possible moisture, difficult plumbing access and sequencing problems, but I do not yet know which belong in the defined scope and which should sit in contingency.

What targeted inspections or opening-up would you arrange before committing? I would also like contractors to state exclusions, approval responsibilities and material lead times clearly, since those could affect the programme as much as the finishes.

 

[ben.cedar]

At preliminary-budget stage, I would separate a genuine contingency from items that simply have not been priced yet. Something around 15% may be reasonable for hidden conditions, but only after allowances for finishes, waste removal, protection of common areas and temporary services are listed. Ask each contractor what happens if moisture, old wiring or inaccessible pipework is discovered, and whether investigation and making good are included.

 

[kit_escrow]

How old is the building, and can you inspect the unit below or speak with the condo management about previous leaks? That may tell you more than a general visual survey. Also clarify whether the bathrooms and kitchen stay in their current positions. Moving plumbing would make the €130,200 much harder to assess from the information given.

 

[route.awake]

The word “checks” is the detail that makes 15% feel premature. Unknown wiring requirements, unmapped moisture and uncertain plumbing routes are missing scope, not yet genuine surprise events.

Price targeted testing or limited opening-up before setting the contingency. Then ask bidders to separate confirmed work from provisional allowances and to list access assumptions, exclusions and reinstatement. Otherwise a low base quote can consume the reserve before the renovation itself is properly under way.

 

[xavi_trades]

There are two plausible approaches here: add a broad contingency now, or define the uncertain work before comparing bids. I would favour the second because vague electrical and plumbing allowances are difficult to recover from once a contractor has been selected.

Send every bidder the same breakdown and request separate prices for demolition, tested electrical upgrades, plumbing repairs, moisture treatment and making good. Require explicit exclusions, access assumptions, approval responsibilities and early-order materials. Put surveys, decisions, ordering and site work on one sequence; that will show whether cost uncertainty or material lead time is the harder constraint.