Renovation budget for a 220 m² townhouse in Lyon?

P

pine.still

Property investor
Established
I have a working scope and total, but the risk allowance is still unresolved. The current estimate is €254,400 for a 220 m² Lyon townhouse, covering kitchens, bathrooms, floor and wall finishes, an electrical review and limited energy work. No extension is intended.

What I cannot yet price confidently is the condition behind the finishes. Moisture, roof or floor movement, old services and earlier alterations could all change the job once areas are opened. What focused inspections or exploratory work would you request, and how would you set the contingency without using it to cover vague contractor exclusions? I am also concerned about sequencing the service work before new surfaces are installed.
 
The missing facts are whether the house will be occupied during the work and how much can be inspected before tender. I’d keep the contingency outside the contractor’s quoted sum so it remains under your control. Also clarify whether the budget includes design fees, taxes, surveys and temporary accommodation rather than treating every overrun as construction risk.
 
“Electrical checks” is too open-ended for comparable prices. Ask each contractor what happens if the checks identify outdated circuits, insufficient capacity, inaccessible wiring or a board that needs work. The quote should distinguish inspection, minor corrections and wider replacement rather than placing all discoveries into an undefined extra-work clause.
 
No extension does not mean no structural uncertainty. Removing flooring, kitchen units or bathroom finishes can expose movement, damaged joists or previous alterations. Before setting the reserve, ask the surveyor to concentrate on cracks, floor levels, roof condition, party-wall areas and any places where services have been cut through the building fabric.
 
The aim should be a reserve that remains available for genuine discoveries. The obstacle is that a generous percentage will not fix bids built on different assumptions.

Issue every contractor with the same room-by-room schedule and ask for separate lists of exclusions, provisional sums and access assumptions. One quote may include waste removal and making good while another leaves both as extras, so comparing only the totals would be misleading. I would standardise the scope first, then size the contingency around what still cannot be inspected.
 
Sequencing could be the bigger cost control, as Anna suspected. Resolve plumbing routes, electrical changes and energy work before closing walls or laying floors. Order any long-lead kitchen, bathroom or heating items against a realistic installation date, but avoid having delicate materials sitting on site while dusty work continues. Will all bathrooms remain in their current positions?
 
Julia’s bathroom question matters. Moving fixtures can turn a finishes project into an access problem, especially if waste pipes or supply lines run beneath floors that were expected to remain. Ask where every connection can be reached, what opening-up is included, and who pays for reinstatement. Limited exploratory openings may answer more than a general visual inspection, provided the owner approves them.
 
Moisture deserves its own investigation rather than a line under painting. Map staining, musty areas, salts, damaged skirting and poorly ventilated rooms, then ask whether the cause appears active or historic. Roof leaks, plumbing leaks, condensation and moisture entering at lower levels require different sequencing. Finishing damp walls early could mean paying twice.
 
Permit timing should be checked before orders are placed. Even without an extension, proposed changes to windows, the façade, roof or external equipment may need local confirmation or approval. The exact position depends on the work and location in Lyon, so list every exterior alteration and verify it with the relevant local authority rather than assuming the interior programme covers everything.
 
For tender comparison, I’d create a simple matrix: demolition, disposal, protection, plumbing access, electrical remedial work, substrate preparation, making good, testing and final cleaning. Put each contractor’s inclusion or exclusion beside it. Also require rates or a method for valuing unforeseen work; otherwise a reasonable base quote can become difficult to control once walls are open.
 
As a planning allowance, I would test the budget with roughly 15% held back, not committed to finishes. I’d consider more if there will be little opening-up before work starts, or less only after the electrical, plumbing, moisture and structural uncertainties have been narrowed. That is a budgeting preference rather than a Lyon rule, and the reserve should not compensate for missing taxes or professional fees.
 
I agree with holding it separately, but one percentage across the whole €254,400 may be misleading. A known kitchen package and an uninspected floor void do not carry the same uncertainty. Break the estimate into defined work, provisional work and genuinely unknown conditions, then attach the reserve mainly to the latter two. That also makes decisions easier if discoveries occur.
 
Breaking the reserve between defined, provisional and unknown work makes sense, but I would hesitate to do that before the bidders have exposed their assumptions. Otherwise the same uncertainty may sit in both a provisional price and the contingency.

Arrange a walk-through using the room schedule. Record inaccessible areas, decisions still awaiting approval and materials that could disrupt the sequence, then give the same written answers to everyone and request a proposed programme. An unresolved plumbing route or floor void is more important than a small difference in headline price because it can force finished work to be opened again.
 
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