Complete renovation Vienna everything new, the floor plan stays.

What a complete renovation costs in Vienna

Guide prices net, as of 2026, based on living space. Complete renovation means: every trade is renewed, while the load-bearing fabric and the room layout are largely retained.

Complete, gut or flat renovation

Cost breakdown by trade

Complete renovation in Vienna from a single source

Complete renovation in Vienna refers to the comprehensive renewal of a property — a flat, a house or part of a building — in which not just individual rooms or trades but the entire property is renovated from the ground up. In a complete renovation everything is renewed: from the building services to the surfaces.

The difference from a partial renovation is fundamental. A partial renovation intervenes selectively — a new bathroom, new floors, a fresh coat of paint. A complete renovation, by contrast, renews the property as a whole: electrics, plumbing, heating, walls, floors, windows, doors, surfaces — and often the floor plan too. The end result is a property that comes close to a new build, both technically and in its design. The difference: the established location and the character of the property are preserved.

Skyline Bau carries out complete renovations as a construction company that does the work itself, in cooperation with partner firms holding a master builder licence. This is exactly where the decisive advantage lies: a complete renovation involves many trades that have to interlock. If they are awarded separately, the client becomes the coordinator between master builder, electrician, plumber and others — with all the friction that entails. This role costs time, nerves and, not infrequently, money as well. Skyline Bau takes over this coordination. Many individual trades thus become a single, managed project.

For the client this means: one point of contact, one contract, one fixed price, one schedule. Instead of managing a dozen separate contracts, they have one company responsible for the entire complete renovation — from planning and the execution of every trade through to the handover of the finished property. This bundled responsibility is what makes the decisive difference if damage occurs or a dispute arises.

At the heart of a complete renovation there is usually the strip-out. Before the new can take shape, the old is removed — old floor coverings, old installations, non-load-bearing walls. The complete renovation builds on the shell that has been exposed in this way: it rebuilds the property from the inside out, often including a changed floor plan. Only once the shell is exposed does it also become clear what condition the fabric is really in.

A central issue is the building services. In a complete renovation the electrics, plumbing and heating are renewed — trades that in older flats often no longer meet today's standards. New building services that comply with current standards are one of the biggest gains of a complete renovation: in safety, comfort and efficiency. The electrics in older flats in particular are often not designed for today's power demand.

A complete renovation is often combined with a change to the floor plan. If you are stripping out anyway, you can adapt the layout to how people want to live today — move walls, combine rooms, create an open-plan kitchen. A complete renovation is therefore also an opportunity to tailor a flat to your own way of life. Skyline Bau, as a construction company working with partners licensed as master builders, assesses which walls are load-bearing and which changes are possible. This means the floor plan can be altered without jeopardising the building's structural integrity.

We carry out complete renovations of flats, houses and apartment buildings (Zinshäuser) in Vienna — from Gründerzeit buildings (built 1848–1918) to post-war construction. Skyline Bau plans the complete renovation, coordinates all trades and hands over a fully renewed property — at a binding fixed price under ÖNORM B 2110.

A complete renovation is a major undertaking — but with an experienced construction company that does the work, a confusing project becomes a predictable, orderly process.

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How much does a complete renovation in Vienna cost?

The cost of a complete renovation in Vienna depends on the floor area, the condition of the property, the scope of the trades, the desired standard of fittings and whether the floor plan is changed. Skyline Bau prepares a binding fixed-price quotation under ÖNORM B 2110 after a site inspection.

The price is determined first and foremost by the scope. A partial renovation covering floors and painting is considerably cheaper; a medium-sized renovation with bathroom, electrics and floors sits in the mid-range; a complete renovation with all trades, new building services and possibly a change of floor plan is at the top end. Exactly where a project falls depends on the specific scope of work. That is why every reliable cost calculation starts with a precise clarification of the scope.

A second factor is the condition of the property. A well-maintained property requires less work than a badly run-down period building, where structural damage, old pipes and cables and difficult building fabric increase the effort. The standard of fittings — from solid to high-end — also has a significant effect on the price. Here the client can make deliberate choices about where to invest and where to hold back.

The question of cost-effectiveness is important. The cost of a complete renovation can approach that of a new build — which is why an honest calculation should come before the decision. Skyline Bau inspects the property, assesses the fabric, prices every trade and gives a binding fixed price — complete, with all services included, without surprises later on. For such an extensive project in particular, this cost certainty is of great value to the client.

What a complete renovation includes

The term complete renovation sounds self-explanatory — and yet it is worth pinning down exactly what it includes and how far it goes.

A complete renovation is the comprehensive renewal of an entire property. Unlike a refurbishment, which freshens up what is already there, or a partial renovation, which renews individual areas, a complete renovation tackles the whole property — every trade, every room, every installation.

A complete renovation typically includes the strip-out of the existing fabric, the renewal of all building services — electrics, plumbing, heating — new bathrooms, new floors and screeds, new walls and surfaces, new windows and doors and frequently a change to the floor plan. The property is completely rebuilt from the inside out.

The result is a property that comes close to the standard of a new build, both technically and in its design — while retaining the original building fabric. At Skyline Bau a complete renovation is a fully planned project run by a construction company that does the work: all trades coordinated, one fixed price, a reliable process from the first day to the last.

Complete, general or gut renovation?

Several terms are used for comprehensive renovation — complete renovation (Komplettsanierung), general renovation (Generalsanierung), gut renovation (Kernsanierung). They are often used interchangeably but have different emphases. A clear view helps everyone understand one another.

Complete renovation emphasises the word “complete” — every trade, every room, the entire property is renewed. The term is vivid and describes what most clients mean when they want “everything new”. It is precisely this clarity that makes it the most frequently searched term. It states plainly: nothing stays as it was. It says something about the scope: nothing is left out.

General renovation is the term often used in the construction industry for the same thing — the comprehensive renovation of a property, affecting every trade. In practice, complete renovation and general renovation largely coincide. Gut renovation, on the other hand, emphasises the depth of the intervention: the property is stripped back to its core — the load-bearing shell — and rebuilt from there. It is the most radical form of renovation.

For the client, these fine distinctions in terminology matter less than the specific description of the work. What counts is not the label but exactly what is being renovated — which trades, to what depth, with what fittings. In the initial consultation Skyline Bau clarifies what the specific property needs and sets out the scope of work clearly in the quotation — whether it is called a complete, general or gut renovation. What matters is not the name of the service but a clear, traceable description of what it contains.

The trades and their sequence

A complete renovation is not a single trade but the interplay of many. The crucial thing about it is the sequence — and this is exactly where the value of a coordinating general contractor lies.

It starts with the strip-out: the existing fabric is taken back to the bare shell. This is followed by the first-fix installations — the cables and pipes for electrics, plumbing and heating are laid while walls and floors are still open. Reverse this order and finished surfaces would have to be chiselled open again. The correct sequence of trades is therefore not a detail but a cost factor.

Next come the trades that form the rooms: new drywall partitions, the screed, the plaster. Only once this layer is in place do the fit-out trades follow — windows and doors, floor coverings and tiling, the second fix of the building services, and finally the painting and surface work. Every trade has its fixed place in this chain. Move one link and the whole sequence begins to falter.

This is exactly where it is decided whether a complete renovation runs smoothly. If the trades do not interlock — if the screed comes too early or the electrician too late — the result is delays and extra costs. As a construction company that does the work, Skyline Bau manages the entire chain of trades: every trade is scheduled at the right time and the handovers between them are planned. In this way many individual services become one continuous, low-disruption construction process. The client does not have to conduct this complex choreography themselves — that is the real achievement of a general contractor.

It is this management behind the scenes that the client never sees in the finished result — and yet it decides whether deadlines and costs are kept.

Vienna's period buildings: where the costs arise

A large share of complete renovations in Vienna involve period buildings — the Gründerzeit flats that shape the cityscape. Renovating them is both especially rewarding and especially demanding.

Vienna's period buildings have qualities that a new build can hardly offer: high ceilings, generous floor plans, thick walls, stucco, double doors, a character that has grown over time. This fabric is worth preserving — and a complete renovation brings it up to today's technical standard without sacrificing its charm. Old and modern need not be mutually exclusive — a good complete renovation combines both.

At the same time, period buildings bring challenges. The building services are usually outdated, the electrics do not meet today's requirements, and pipes and cables have reached the end of their service life. There is often damp in the masonry, old floor build-ups on timber beam ceilings, and structures from several building periods. A thorough survey at the outset uncovers such issues before they become a problem. Every period building has surprises in store.

This is where the value of experienced construction professionals shows. Skyline Bau knows the peculiarities of Vienna's period buildings — the timber beam ceilings, the load-bearing structure, the typical weak points. This experience spares the client nasty surprises in the middle of the project.

This experience feeds into the planning: the complete renovation is planned so that the valuable fabric is preserved, the outdated technology is consistently renewed, and the typical period-building surprises do not turn into incalculable variations. In this way the charm of the period building is retained while technology and comfort are brought up to today's standard.

Specifics: Gründerzeit, Dippelboden ceilings, protected zone

• Vienna's period buildings — Gründerzeit properties call for experience with historic building fabric.
• All trades — strip-out, building services, bathroom, floors, walls, windows, surfaces.
• New building services — electrics, plumbing and heating brought up to today's standards.
• Layout change — adapted to modern living requirements, checked by a structural engineer.
• a construction company that does the work itself — one contract, one fixed price, one contact person.
• Coordination of trades — the interlocking trades are managed centrally.
• Occupied or vacant — complete renovation usually in a vacant property, carefully planned and completed swiftly.
• Funding — certain renovation measures are subsidised in Vienna.
• Realistic Austrian prices — prices in Austria are higher than comparable figures in Germany.
• Fixed price under ÖNORM B 2110 — all trades fully costed, without variations.

active in all Viennese districts

Process and construction time

A complete renovation is a complex project involving many trades — and precisely for that reason it follows a clearly structured process. Once you know it, you understand why coordination is so crucial.

It begins with the site inspection and planning: Skyline Bau assesses the fabric, discusses your wishes, plans all the trades and prepares the binding fixed-price quotation. This is followed by the strip-out — taking everything back to the bare shell. The trades are then carried out in the correct order: first the first-fix installations for electrics, plumbing and heating, then screed, walls and plaster.

Next come the fit-out trades: windows, doors, floors, tiles, the second fix of the building services and finally painting and surfaces. The project concludes with the handover of the finished property. The construction time depends on size and scope — Skyline Bau states the binding time frame in the fixed-price quotation and manages all trades so that it is met. With a complete renovation in particular, a reliable schedule is an essential part of the service.

Renovate or build new?

Every major complete renovation is preceded by a fundamental question: is renovation worthwhile at all — or would demolition and a new build make more sense? An honest answer to this belongs to any serious advice.

The sober finding first: the cost of a complete renovation can approach that of a new build. When a property is taken back to the shell and completely rebuilt, the effort is considerable. That is why a realistic cost calculation — not an optimistic estimate — should come before the decision.

There is a lot to be said for a complete renovation: the existing fabric is put to use, the character of a period building is preserved, and the property already stands in its established location. In densely built-up areas, demolition and a new build are often impossible or only possible with great effort — a complete renovation is then the realistic route. This, too, is part of an honest weighing-up of renovation against new construction.

Renovation may not be the right choice if the fabric is fundamentally damaged — in other words, if the very thing that is meant to be preserved is itself the problem. This judgement can only be made on the specific property. There is no blanket answer to the question of renovating versus building new.

Skyline Bau, as a construction company working with partner firms licensed as master builders, assesses the fabric honestly and says openly whether a complete renovation is the economically sensible route — even when the honest answer for once speaks against taking on the job. Honest advice builds trust — and protects the client from making the wrong decision.

Added value and living comfort

A complete renovation is a substantial investment. It is worth focusing on what it gives back — because the return is considerable.

The first gain is living comfort. A completely renovated flat feels like new: warm, airtight windows, heating that works, a modern bathroom, level floors, a well-thought-out layout. The difference from the unrenovated state can be felt every single day — it is the difference between living with compromises and living without them. This daily gain in comfort is often what clients value most in hindsight.

The second gain is efficiency. New windows, better insulation where appropriate and modern heating noticeably reduce energy costs. Over the years, part of what the complete renovation costs is recouped through lower running costs — and at the same time the property is made future-proof. A complete renovation is therefore also a decision made with the coming decades in mind.

The third gain is the increase in value. A completely renovated property is worth significantly more than an unrenovated one — on the market, when letting and in a later sale. For owners and investors alike, a complete renovation is therefore not merely an expense but an investment in lasting value.

Skyline Bau carries it out so that this value endures — with professional workmanship across every trade and a four-year warranty. A complete renovation is meant to last for many years — and it is carried out with corresponding care.

Complete renovation in Vienna for owners, investors & property managers

Typical service packages for complete renovation in Vienna

• Site inspection, survey of the existing fabric and condition assessment
• Planning of all trades and layout options
• Binding fixed-price quotation under ÖNORM B 2110
• Strip-out down to the bare shell
• New electrical installation to today's standard
• New plumbing and heating installation
• New bathrooms with bonded waterproofing
• New screed and new floor coverings
• Drywall, new walls and plastering
• New windows and doors, professionally fitted
• Painting, filling and surface work
• Handover of the property ready to move into, at a fixed price

From planning to handover

Why coordination decides everything

In a complete renovation every single trade matters. But what decides the success or failure of the whole project is something else: coordination.

You can think of a complete renovation as an orchestra. Each trade — electrician, plumber, bricklayer, tiler, painter — is a musician who has mastered their instrument. But without a conductor everyone plays for themselves, the entries do not fit and the ensemble falls apart. The construction company doing the work is that conductor.

If the trades are awarded separately, the client takes on the role of conductor — a task for which they usually lack the time, the experience and the market knowledge. The result is the typical set of problems: one trade waits for another, nobody feels responsible for the transitions, and when defects appear one firm passes the responsibility on to the next.

As a construction company that does the work, Skyline Bau takes on this coordinating role in full. This shifts the greatest burden of a complete renovation — the coordination — from the client to the specialist firm. One company plans all the trades, schedules them, takes responsibility for the transitions and answers for the overall result at the end.

This continuous responsibility from planning to acceptance is the core of the model of a construction company that does the work. The client has one contract, one fixed price, one point of contact — and the certainty that it is not they but an experienced construction firm conducting the complex choreography of the complete renovation. It is precisely this relief that lies at the heart of what a construction company doing the work provides.

Why Skyline Bau for your complete renovation in Vienna

• Construction company that does the work — the complete renovation as a professionally planned project.
• All trades from a single source — strip-out, building services, fit-out, surfaces.
• A construction company that does the work itself — one contract, one fixed price, one contact person.
• Coordination of trades — no interface problems, no friction losses.
• Assessment of the fabric — as a construction company working with partners licensed as master builders, we have the building fabric assessed expertly.
• Floor plan expertise — load-bearing walls identified, layout changes checked by a structural engineer.
• Fixed price under ÖNORM B 2110 — all trades fully costed, without variations.
• A reliable schedule — all trades managed so that the deadline holds.
• €3 million construction liability insurance.
• Subcontractor on the Parliament renovation 2022 — renovation work on the Parliament building, 1010 Vienna, in 2022.

Definition: all trades at the same time instead of one after another

A complete renovation in Vienna is the holistic modernisation of a flat or a house in one continuous construction phase. Unlike a partial renovation (bathroom only, kitchen only) or a simple refurbishment (painting only, flooring only), a complete renovation renews all four areas at the same time:

• Energy efficiency: insulation of roof and façade, installation of new windows, an energy-optimised floor build-up.
• Building services: replacement of old heating with modern systems (heat pump, district heating transfer station), new sanitary installations, a completely new electrical installation to ÖVE/ÖNORM E 8001.
• Infrastructure: complete renewal of water, waste water and electrical lines — in Vienna's period buildings this frequently means riser renovation throughout the entire apartment building.
• Interior fit-out: new floor coverings (parquet, vinyl, tiles), wall surfaces in drywall, new doors, entirely new bathrooms and kitchens.

Doing everything at once is the biggest economic advantage: one scaffold, one construction phase, one contract under ÖNORM B 2110:2023 instead of four separate contracts with conflicts at the interfaces.

Specific costs in 2026 by size

• Viennese period flat of 90 m² standard complete renovation: €90,000 to €135,000 (€1,000–1,500/m²)
• Flat of 60 m² standard: €60,000 to €90,000
• Detached house of 150 m² complete renovation including energy efficiency: €150,000 to €280,000 (gut renovation €100,000–150,000 for 100 m²)
• Complete renovation of a Viennese apartment building (Zinshaus): €800 to €2,000/m² depending on condition and standard
• Medium-sized bathroom of 7–10 m² as a component: €18,000 to €25,000 standard, higher-end fittings from €25,000
• New kitchen as a component: €15,000 to €35,000 depending on choice of materials

Skyline Bau prices a complete renovation on a binding basis under ÖNORM B 2110:2023 — no lump sums without a detailed breakdown, no hidden variations.

The process in three clear phases

• Phase 1 — Survey: recording the current condition. For Viennese period buildings this often includes an energy performance certificate prepared by an authorised energy consultant, a structural check where necessary and an investigation of hazardous substances (asbestos, man-made mineral fibres) to ÖNORM B 3151.
• Phase 2 — Planning and funding application: detailed planning with a bill of quantities to ÖNORM A 2050, applying for funding before construction starts (renovation cheque, base renovation (Sockelsanierung) via the Vienna Housing Fund (wohnfonds_wien), MA 50 housing subsidy), notification to the building authority (MA 37) if the work requires a building notice.
• Phase 3 — Execution: coordinated execution of all trades under a fixed-price contract. Classic sequence: dismantling → chiselling → risers/electrics → plaster → screed (4 weeks' drying) → drywall → sanitary fittings → flooring → painting → handover.

Funding landscape for complete renovation in 2026

• Federal renovation cheque (Sanierungsscheck) via sanierungsoffensive.gv.at — up to €9,000 for thermal measures on a detached house, up to €14,000 for comprehensive thermal renovation.
• wohnfonds_wien base renovation (Sockelsanierung) — up to 40% of eligible costs for apartment buildings.
• MA 50 housing subsidy — a scheme for individual flats and smaller multi-occupancy buildings, which can be combined with thermal and energy funding via wien.gv.at.
• Raus aus Gas / Raus aus Öl (Out of Gas / Out of Oil) — federal funding for replacing heating systems, which can be combined with the renovation cheque.
• OeKB climate loan — low-cost loan financing for thermal renovations.
• Hauskunft Wien (hauskunft-wien.at) — the City of Vienna's free advice centre for combining funding schemes.

Why Skyline Bau rather than a pure renovation specialist?

Secondly — a model compliant with the Unfair Competition Act (UWG): a construction company that does the work, with partners licensed as master builders. Regulated activities (master builder § 94 Z 5, electrical engineering § 94 Z 16, gas and sanitary engineering § 94 Z 25, tiling § 94 Z 38) are handled exclusively by authorised partner firms.

Thirdly — funding actually put to use. We plan the complete renovation so that all four funding schemes can be combined — renovation cheque + base renovation + MA 50 + Raus aus Gas.

Fourthly — subcontractor on the renovation of the Austrian Parliament in 2022. A federal reference at the highest national level, which proves that Skyline Bau can also deliver extensively documented renovation work.

What you receive from us before signing the contract

Four things you will hear elsewhere — but not from us

Trust does not come from someone promising everything. It comes from someone telling you where the limit is.

When you do not need us

Not every project needs a construction company. At the site visit we will tell you honestly if we are not the right choice — even if that means losing a job.

Why we say this: a customer we sold an unnecessary renovation to will not come back and will not recommend us. A customer we told honestly that their bathroom will last another ten years will call us in ten years — and in the meantime, when the riser renovation in the building comes up.

Reference: Parliament building, Vienna

what you should know

So that you know exactly what to expect, we answer the most important questions here — honestly and from the practice of a construction company that carries out the work itself.

What does a complete renovation include?

A complete renovation renews the entire flat or the entire house — all rooms, floors and bathrooms, and often the electrics and installations. Unlike a partial renovation, which only affects individual areas, everything is done in one go. That saves time and money compared with separate renovations spread over several years.

Complete or partial renovation — which is better?

A partial renovation is enough if only certain areas have defects and the rest is in good order. A complete renovation pays off if a lot needs doing at once or the property is more than 25 to 30 years old — by then pipes and cables, bathrooms and floors have usually all reached the end of their life at the same time. Doing everything at once is cheaper than opening up the walls several times.

How much does a complete renovation cost?

Depending on the scope, a complete renovation costs around 800 to 1,800 euros per square metre. The exact price depends on condition, fittings and the share of technical installations. After a free site visit you receive a binding fixed-price quotation with no hidden variations.

Who coordinates all the different trades?

That is exactly the advantage of hiring a construction company that does the work: we coordinate all trades — demolition, installation, electrics, tiling, painting — with one site manager and one schedule. You have a single point of contact and do not have to mediate between firms yourself.

Frequently asked questions about complete renovation in Vienna

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