Transform the home you already have. When your house stops working for you, we rework it around how you live now.
A renovation reworks the home you've already got so it suits the way your family actually lives. AA7 Constructions specialises in renovating existing Sydney homes, with every project led by licensed builder Andrew Akkari.
1. Site Assessment
We come to your home, listen to what's not working and assess what the existing structure will allow, before any numbers are put in front of you.
2. Design & Approvals
We work with your architect or designer, or introduce you to ones we've worked with, and give construction input as the design develops and goes through any approvals.
3. Building Cost Proposal
Once plans are finalised, you receive a detailed written cost proposal, so you know what your renovation will cost before work begins.
4. Build & Handover
We manage the build from strip-out through to finishes, keep you updated at every stage, and walk you through every detail before handing over your home.
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Plenty of the homes we're called to aren't short on square metres. They're short on rooms that work. A kitchen closed off from where the family actually sits. A bathroom you walk through a bedroom to reach. A formal dining room nobody has eaten in for a decade, and one living area everybody crowds into.
Renovating is about undoing decisions made for a way of living that isn't yours. Walls come out, rooms change what they're for, and light gets into places it never reached. Done properly, you end up with a house that feels much bigger without adding a square metre to it.
The tell on a bad renovation is the joins. A new floor that doesn't meet the old one cleanly. A ceiling line that steps where it shouldn't. Cornices that stop halfway down a hallway. Skirtings in two different profiles because nobody checked.
Older Sydney homes have details worth keeping, and keeping them means matching what's already there rather than working around it. Levels, lines, profiles and finishes are carried through from the original house into the new work, so the renovated part doesn't announce itself every time you walk past the junction.
It's a fair question and the honest answer isn't always renovate. If the structure is sound, the roof has life left in it and the layout can be reworked, renovating usually makes more sense than starting again, and keeps the character you'd lose with a knockdown.
But if the footings are failing, the house needs re-levelling or you'd be replacing everything anyway, there's a point where you're spending new-build money on an old house. If that's where your project is heading, we'll tell you at the first visit rather than take the job and let you work it out at the end. And if a new build makes more sense, we build those too.
Renovations throw up decisions once the walls are open, and you want them made by someone who knows your house. Andrew has more than 25 years in the trade, and you deal with him directly from the first site visit to the final walkthrough.
Pennant Hills
A full renovation and extension of a home in Pennant Hills, designed by Sydney's Finest Designs and built during the COVID lockdown. The existing home was renovated throughout while the extension was built alongside it, with changing site restrictions, trade disruptions and material shortages requiring careful programming and coordination from start to finish.
View the Pennant Hills project
More renovations: Waterloo | Maroubra | Carlton | Leichhardt
Credentials
NSW Builder Licence 288792C | Home Building Compensation cover on every eligible project | ABN 44 607 778 263
Tell us about your project. We'll come out, look at the site and give you a straight answer on what's possible.
Start the conversationWhat happens at the first site visit?
Andrew meets you at the property, walks through it with you and listens to what you're planning. He'll look at the site, the access and any existing structure, and what they'll allow isn't always what you'd assume. You'll get a straight read on what's possible on your property.
How much will my project cost?
It depends on the size, the site, the finishes and what's behind the walls, so anyone giving you a number over the phone is guessing. After the first visit, and once the plans are settled, you'll get a written cost proposal setting out exactly what's included and what isn't.
How long will it take?
It depends on the size of the job, the site and the approvals required. You'll receive a realistic program with your cost proposal, and we keep you updated against it throughout the build.
Do I need council approval?
It depends on the property and the work you're planning. Some minor works can be carried out without planning approval, while other projects may need a development application or a complying development certificate. Your architect, designer or planning consultant will confirm the right pathway for your project. Where a principal certifier is required, you appoint them directly and we work with them through the build.
Can we live at home during the build?
On an extension or renovation, often yes, for much of it. There's usually a stage where it gets difficult, and we'll tell you at the cost proposal stage which parts of your build you can live through, so you can plan around it rather than find out a fortnight before. A knockdown and rebuild means moving out for the build, and you'll have the program early enough to plan for it.
What happens if something unexpected comes up?
On an existing home, something usually does: older wiring, tired plumbing, structures built to a different standard. On a new build it's more often what's in the ground. Either way, you'll hear about it straight away, with what it is, what we recommend, and what it means for cost and timing. Nothing extra goes ahead until you've approved it.
Can we make changes once the build has started?
Yes, and most people do. Anything you want changed gets priced and agreed in writing before the work happens, so a change never turns into a surprise on an invoice.