Budget
The budget line most renovations forget
Imogen Vale · 2 October 2026 · 1 min read
A contingency is not padding. It is the line that lets you say no to a bad compromise when the unexpected arrives.
Every renovation encounters something the drawings could not show. The question is whether the budget was built with that in mind.
Why ten percent is the wrong rule
A blanket contingency treats a cosmetic refresh and a structural alteration as the same risk. A kitchen replacement in a sound house needs a small allowance. Work involving new footings, a heritage overlay or services relocation needs considerably more.
Where the money actually goes
The surprises that hurt are rarely finishes. They are what is behind a wall, what is under the floor, and what a council requires once the application is lodged. These items appear after a contract is signed, when the only options are to spend or to compromise.
Spend it once, properly
Clients often resist setting money aside because it feels like admitting the project will overrun. In practice the allowance is what protects the design: without it, the first surprise is paid for by removing something that mattered.
A simple test
If the allowance were fully spent, would the house still be one you want to live in? If the answer is no, the base budget is too tight.