Luxury renovation: the details that change your home and your budget

1. The best investment may be behind the wall

A luxury renovation is not defined by stone or furniture alone. Before choosing finishes, review layout, building services, acoustic comfort, lighting and storage with professionals. Explain how you use each room and which problems you want to solve. A coherent decision about circulation and everyday use can offer more than expensive materials assembled without a shared design.

2. Distinguish a full renovation from a finishes upgrade

For an apartment in Barcelona or Madrid, document what stays, what is removed and what is replaced. Include protection of shared areas, material access, waste removal and finishing work. If opening the kitchen into the living room, a professional must assess the intervention before it is priced as simple demolition. Show undecided items as pending, not as fixed-price work.

3. Write specifications that leave less room for surprises

For bespoke joinery, specify dimensions, internal fittings, hardware, finish and installation. In a kitchen, separate cabinets, worktop, appliances and services; in bathrooms, specify sanitaryware, taps and surfaces. Request samples or references and define approval of alternatives. “Similar” or “premium” without enough detail makes quotes harder to compare and obscures what your home will actually receive.

4. Location changes how the work is organised

For a second home in Alicante, Valencia, Málaga or Tarragona, agree when the property can be visited and how you will approve samples remotely. In Girona, Lleida or A Coruña, also describe access and existing condition, whether an apartment or house. The province helps identify companies; the municipality and specific property help establish whether they are suitable.

5. What does a luxury renovation cost? Start with the scope

No single price per square metre captures all these choices. For useful proposals, provide floor area, photos, any plans, intended work and priorities. Compare quantities, taxes, exclusions and change procedures. Give every company the same documents. You can submit your request to Constructores.com: we look for up to three companies according to area, expertise and availability, with no charge for requesting quotes.

Sources consulted

• Spanish Technical Building Code