Good to know
Questions we hear before a project starts.Building with a licensed Sydney renovation and extension builder
Frequently asked questions
Which areas do you work in?
All Sydney metro areas, including the Inner West, North Shore, the Hills, Northern Beaches and the Eastern Suburbs. If you are just outside metro Sydney, ask us — we will tell you honestly whether we are the right fit.
Are you licensed and insured?
Yes. R&Q Interiors holds NSW Builder Licence 378767C (ABN 99 620 764 829) and is a member of the Housing Industry Association (HIA). Every residential project over $20,000 (including GST) is covered by insurance under the NSW Home Building Compensation Fund (HBCF) — taken out before work starts and before we accept any money, including the deposit. That cover protects you as the homeowner: it compensates you for incomplete or defective work if the builder dies, disappears, becomes insolvent, or has their licence suspended for failing to comply with a money order. Every project is also delivered under a written building contract and backed by the statutory warranty under NSW home building law.
Do you handle council approvals (DA / CDC)?
Yes. We coordinate architects, engineers and certifiers and manage the DA or CDC approval pathway alongside your consultants, so you are not left to navigate council on your own.
Will my project need a DA, or can it be approved faster as a CDC?
Most home extensions in NSW take one of three pathways: exempt development (no approval needed, for minor work only), a CDC — a Complying Development Certificate, assessed by a private certifier, available when the design meets the standard criteria in the NSW Codes SEPP — or a council DA when it does not. Your project is generally pushed off the CDC pathway and onto a DA if any of these apply: it exceeds the height or storey limits in the code; it does not meet the required boundary setbacks or landscaped-area minimums; the property is heritage-listed or in a heritage conservation area; the land is flood-prone or in a high bushfire attack level zone; or the work changes the number of dwellings on the site. R&Q Interiors has completed projects on all three pathways, and confirms which one applies at the first site consult — before you spend money on design.
How long does council approval take in Sydney?
The two pathways are not comparable. A CDC is assessed by a private certifier and is typically measured in weeks once the documentation is complete, because the certifier is checking the design against a fixed set of criteria rather than exercising judgement. A council DA is typically measured in months, and the clock effectively stops whenever council issues a request for further information or neighbour notification is required — which is why two projects lodged the same week can finish assessment months apart. A heritage or conservation-area overlay lengthens it further. R&Q Interiors coordinates the architects, engineers and certifiers and manages whichever pathway applies.
Can we keep living in the house while you build?
Often yes, and it depends on which trades are running and whether a working kitchen and one bathroom can be kept serviceable. Some phases of a renovation are workable around a family; demolition, floor levelling and anything that takes out the only bathroom generally are not. R&Q Interiors builds inside occupied homes regularly and will tell you at the estimate stage which phases will be liveable and which will not — before you commit, rather than after the deposit.
What kind of contract do you use?
A plain-English building contract with a set programme, clear inclusions and defined payment stages. R&Q Interiors offers both of the contract types NSW home building law recognises, and recommends the one that suits the job. A fixed-price contract gives you a price for a documented scope — the right answer whenever the scope can be pinned down before work starts, which is most projects. A cost-plus contract, where you pay the verified cost of the work plus an agreed margin, suits jobs where the scope genuinely cannot be known up front: heritage work, remediation, and structures that only reveal themselves once opened. Under NSW law a cost-plus contract must carry a written warning that the price is not fixed, together with an explanation of the price-variation provision, and every progress claim must be supported by invoices or receipts. We will tell you which type we think your project should use, and why.
How are variations and extra costs handled?
Any variation is quoted and approved in writing before the work proceeds. No surprise invoices, no creeping costs — you stay in control of the budget throughout.
How long will my project take?
It depends on scope and the approval pathway. Design and documentation typically run several weeks; approval time then depends on whether the project goes the CDC or DA route (see the approval-timing answer above). Construction time varies with the size of the work. You receive a weekly progress update the whole way through.
Do you provide design, or do I need my own plans?
Both work. We can coordinate design with architects and engineers, or build from plans you already have. Either way we manage the documentation and approvals.
What warranty do I get after handover?
Under NSW home building law, your work carries a statutory warranty of 6 years for major (structural) defects and 2 years for other defects, with a defects-liability period following handover.
Do you take on remedial work — waterproofing, leaks and structural repairs?
Yes. We handle balcony and bathroom waterproofing, leak detection and rectification, concrete cancer and structural repairs, and crack stitching. We diagnose the cause first — not just the symptom — document the scope, then deliver a durable, code-compliant repair.
Which council assesses your suburb — the Hills District and the Strathfield ring +
How to check a builder before you sign — our licence and the five checks +
Your rights under NSW law — deposits, contracts, variations, warranty +