Full-gut home renovations are expensive. Here’s what to do instead | Canada Voices

Homeowners dreaming of knocking down walls, HGTV-style, and rebuilding from scratch inevitably face a few big unknowns. How long will the project take? Where will everyone shower, cook and sleep during construction? But one thing is no longer uncertain: It will be expensive.

The full-gut renovation – where floor plans are reimagined and nearly everything is replaced – is increasingly out of reach for many Canadians. According to a CIBC-funded Ipsos poll, the average spend on a renovation project nearly doubled between 2019 and 2024. Statistics Canada’s Residential Renovation Price Index shows costs climbed another 6 per cent between 2023 and 2025 alone.

The reasons are complex, but in summary, pandemic-era supply disruptions sent material prices soaring, while labour shortages pushed wages higher. More recently, the U.S. trade war has added tariffs on consumer goods such as lighting and appliances.

Fortunately, a ground-to-roof redo isn’t always necessary. Across the country, designers are helping clients transform their homes by working with existing layouts and focusing on finishes, furnishings and targeted upgrades rather than major structural changes. The outcome can be striking.

Saint John-based designer Lisa Daye, founder of Meraki Daye Interiors, is well versed in making impactful changes on modest budgets. Before launching her business, Daye was a registered nurse and single mother who furnished her own home gradually. “I was always on a budget, but I still wanted a beautiful house,” she says. “Even if I only had $20, I’d buy something that made my space nicer – like votive candles.”

That philosophy continues to guide her client work, which ranges from $2,000 living-room refreshes to $70,000 kitchen updates and beyond. “I’m a firm believer that you don’t have to be wealthy to have a nice place,” she says. “Paint goes a long way, and it doesn’t cost a lot.” (Her own living room features pink walls and a pink ceiling.)

“People can do a lot with what they already have,” agrees Kristin Hayward, owner of Winnipeg’s iDesign Interiors. With a background in business, Hayward excels at maximizing impact within tight budgets. “It gives me an advantage in analyzing someone’s wants versus their budget, and figuring out where to be strategic.”

One of the biggest cost savers is avoiding structural changes altogether. According to HomeStars, a complete renovation can cost twice as much as a project focused on updating finishes such as tile, countertops and wallpaper. Adding an extension often starts around $100,000, compared with roughly $10,000 to begin remodelling a kitchen without expanding its footprint.

“A lot of older homes have underused spaces,” adds Hayward. “A formal dining room, for example, can often be repurposed with minimal layout changes.”

The following four Canadian homeowners prove the point, transforming dated or dysfunctional spaces with no full-gut reno or financial free fall required.

The room: An uninviting dining room

The homeowners: Ed and Jenn Senez, retired

The designer: Emily Wunder, founder of Emily Wunder Design, Stratford, Ont.

The place before: The couple’s two-storey Stratford home dates to the late 1980s. The dining room felt like a leftover space rather than a destination: badly lit, awkwardly laid out and used only a few times a year. An eight-person table sat beneath a single ceiling fixture, with a bulky sideboard pressed against the wall.

“It was dark,” says Ed. “And it was hard to walk around the table,” adds Jenn. “We host a lot of people during the holidays and the room just didn’t work well.”

The main challenge: To dramatically improve seating, lighting and storage – without altering the footprint.

What it’s like now: Rather than trying to make the room bigger, Wunder made it smarter. The traditional table-and-sideboard arrangement was replaced with a custom, wall-to-wall banquette built beneath an existing vinyl window. It maximizes seating while providing more room to move around and carry serving trays from the kitchen.

To address storage, built-in cabinetry wraps the window, eliminating the need for a freestanding sideboard. Shelving and cupboards now house everything from dishes to wine, while visually elevating the window. “It makes a standard vinyl window look custom,” says Wunder.

Lighting was another key transformation. The single overhead fixture was replaced with wall sconces and a larger ceiling light, creating a warmer, more inviting atmosphere. A custom table anchors the room, comfortably seating up to 12.

Now, the dining room is no longer reserved for special occasions. “We use the space all the time,” says Ed. “My son even studies here, which never would have happened before.”

Lesson learned: Initially concerned about resale, Jenn had imagined a neutral palette of whites and greys. Instead, she followed Wunder’s advice and embraced colour and texture: grass-cloth wallpaper, blue-green millwork and warm brass accents.

“I’m so glad we took the risk,” says Jenn. “It finally feels like us.”

“Renovations are expensive. The design should be perfect for the people who live there,” says Wunder. “Otherwise, why decorate your house for someone else?”

The room: A sunroom without sparkle

The homeowner: Ronak Patel, academic, researcher and psychologist

The designer: Kristin Hayward, founder of Winnipeg-based iDesign

The room: A sunroom without sparkle

The place before: Patel’s 1980s Winnipeg home had good bones – and a sunroom stuck firmly in the past. Accessed through a single doorway off the kitchen, and also joined by an odd little interior window, the room felt disconnected and underused. Faux-stone wall appliqués, knotty pine ceilings and wall-to-wall brown carpeting gave it a heavy, dated feel.

The main challenge: Patel wanted a contemporary update and better flow between the kitchen and sunroom, but without triggering the cost spiral that often accompanies structural work. “I knew that once we started moving walls, we’d need engineers,” he says. “And the price would just keep going up.”

What it’s like now: Instead of reconfiguring the layout, Hayward focused on connection. The interior window between the kitchen and the sunroom was converted into a second doorway – a relatively small intervention that dramatically improved circulation, without requiring engineering approvals.

Some materials were replaced (the faux stone lining some of the walls was mercifully retired, the carpeting was replaced by affordable vinyl flooring), while others were cleverly disguised. Rather than ripping out the pine ceiling, Hayward painted it jet black, transforming its rustic texture into a moody, modern feature. “Pine is rough and doesn’t fit tightly together,” she explains. “Painting it dark hides the imperfections and seams. Whitewashing would have done the opposite.”

The sunroom now feels intentional, dramatic and fully integrated into the home, and achieved without a single wall coming down. The Manitoba Home Builders Association awarded the project a gold in its Renovation of the Year awards. “I never used to go in there,” says Patel. “Now I think it’s my favourite room.”

Lesson learned: Beyond the sunroom, Patel also renovated the entire ground floor, including the dining room, foyer and kitchen. Along the way, he learned the value of shopping around. An initial contractor quoted him $500,000 – more than four times his target budget. By getting multiple estimates, he found a contractor who completed the work for about $120,000. “It’s the Wild West out there,” he says. “People think they can charge whatever they want, and they’ll try.”

The room: A bland-as-can-be kitchen

The homeowners: Geoff Gauthier, marketer and host of the podcast Outrage Factory, and his partner, Alison

The designer: Jamie Banfield, founder of Jamie Banfield Design, Port Moody, B.C.

The place before: The couple’s end-unit Vancouver townhouse had one undeniable asset: light. “We liked it because it had lots of windows,” says Gauthier. “Nine on the main floor alone – almost twice as many as our previous place.”

“The ceilings,” adds Alison, “are also nine feet high, which is really nice.”

The finishes, however, were less inspiring. Builder-grade, generic beiges and browns defined the kitchen and living spaces.

The main challenge: The kitchen was undersized and short on storage, but expanding it outward wasn’t an option. As part of a townhouse complex, the exterior walls and windows were immovable, while load-bearing walls inside limited how much the kitchen could encroach on nearby rooms.

What it’s like now: While the kitchen couldn’t grow outward, it could, in a sense, grow upward. The nine-foot ceilings had been underused, with upper cabinets stopping short at an unnecessary bulkhead. “The bulkhead was empty,” says Banfield. “No pipes, no ductwork. A lot of builders install them simply because they’re cheaper than cabinets.”

By removing the bulkhead and extending cabinetry to the full ceiling height, Banfield added substantial storage while visually elongating the space. An area once reserved for a breakfast table was reconfigured into an island with seating and built-in storage below.

The load-bearing walls remained in place, but one was partially transformed into a slatted screen, creating a more open connection to the adjacent dining area. Painted blue to match the island’s cabinetry, the slats allow light to pass through while maintaining structural integrity. The kitchen now feels more open, functional and intentional – without moving a single wall.

Lesson learned: Gauthier and Alison began with an $80,000 budget to renovate their entire main floor, including the kitchen, dining area and family room. They kept costs in check by choosing durable, mid-range materials and investing where it mattered most. The kitchen cabinets, for example, are vinyl, upgraded with thoughtful detailing. Finished in a faux wood grain that runs continuously across the doors, they read as though they were fashioned from a single piece of wood. “Vinyl is often looked down on,” says Banfield. “But with a little thought, it can look like a million bucks.”

The room: A primary bedroom and bathroom with sleepy style

The homeowner: Kathy Wright, semi-retired legal assistant

The designer: Lisa Daye, creative director of Saint John–based Meraki Daye Interiors

The place before: Wright’s three-storey Saint John home was structurally sound, but hadn’t seen a major update since it was built in 1990 – bi-fold closet doors and plenty of greige included. Then, in 2019, a flood necessitated repairs. Insurance covered the major fixes, but Wright took the opportunity to update the décor for herself. “I wanted a space that brought me joy,” she says.

The main challenge: For Daye, the goal was clear: Create a calm, cohesive home that supported Wright emotionally as well as aesthetically. “Kathy had been through a lot,” she says. “I wanted the house to feel serene, grounded and comforting – a real safe haven.”

What it’s like now: Over the last five years, Daye and Wright have worked room by room, updating furniture, finishes and fixtures.

During their top to bottom reno, the primary bedroom and bathroom became true sanctuaries. The bedroom, formerly a dark teal with a black headboard, is now bright blues and whites, paired with botanical wallpaper. The headboard is the same, but reupholstered in white fabric. The bathroom, once finished in greige tile, pops with personality thanks to leafy green and pink wallpaper and brass accents. “My stepson’s daughter always tells me she loves my bathroom,” Wright says.

Lesson learned: A five-year renovation timeline might sound glacial, but for Wright, it was exactly right. Moving slowly allowed her to make thoughtful decisions – and wait for deals on furniture and materials. “I tried to be frugal,” she says. “Going slow helps.” Just as important, there was no pressure to meet arbitrary deadlines. “Your home should make you happy,” she says. “Not stressed.”