Renovation and joinery in Marchmont, Edinburgh
We refurbish pre-1919 tenement flats in Marchmont for owners, landlords and letting agents, including HMO standard works and void turnarounds. It is the area where our fixed-programme void refurbishment model is used most often.
What the housing stock means for the work
Marchmont is almost entirely late Victorian and Edwardian tenement, built in blond and red sandstone with generous rooms, bay windows and high ceilings. A large share of it is let, much of it to students, and a significant number of flats are licensed HMOs. That mix produces a very particular kind of instruction: heavy wear, tired services and a hard deadline set by the letting calendar.
Because the stock is pre-1919, wiring, plumbing and heating are often on their second or third generation of partial upgrades. We renew rather than patch where the survey shows it, so the flat is not back on the maintenance list within a year.
- Full rewire, consumer unit replacement and interlinked detection
- Room layout adjustments to meet HMO room size and circulation standards
- Fire doors, closers and compartmentation records
- Grout-free panelled wet areas and repairable LVT floors for let property
- Bay window and sash repair rather than replacement
Constraints you should expect in Marchmont
The programme is the constraint. Tenancies here largely turn over in the summer, so a void refurbishment has a real, unmoveable date. We commit to a completion date at instruction and run all trades in one continuous sequence rather than a series of visits.
The building itself adds the rest. Common stair and roof responsibilities sit with the whole block and the factor, several streets are in a conservation area, and permit parking is in force. Any work touching common elements is checked against the title position before pricing.
- Fixed completion dates set against the letting calendar
- HMO licensing schedule confirmed with the council before pricing
- Common repair and factor involvement for shared elements
- Permit parking, stair protection and daily waste removal
What Marchmont clients ask us for most
Void refurbishment between tenancies, EPC and HMO compliance works, and durable bathroom and kitchen replacement are the three biggest instructions here, usually for landlords and agents holding several flats in the same few streets.
Frequently asked questions
How quickly can a Marchmont flat be turned around between tenancies?
A standard cosmetic and compliance turnaround runs in two to three weeks. A full void refurbishment with rewire, new bathroom, new kitchen, plaster repair and decoration typically runs four to seven weeks depending on scope. We commit to the completion date at instruction, because the letting date is the thing that actually matters.
Do you carry out HMO licensing works in Marchmont?
Yes. That work usually covers interlinked fire detection, fire doors and self-closers, safe electrical certification, heating and hot water provision, room sizes and circulation, and kitchen and amenity standards. You receive the electrical report, detection commissioning records and fire door records as a pack that goes straight into the licensing file.
What specification lasts best in a Marchmont student let?
Panelled wet areas rather than tiles, because grout is the first thing to fail; glue-down LVT that can be repaired plank by plank; rigid carcass kitchens with quality hinges and runners; and a scrubbable satin wall finish that can be touched up between tenancies. It costs slightly more once and considerably less over five years.
Who is responsible for the common stair and roof?
Responsibility is shared across the block and set out in the title deeds, usually administered by a factor. Individual flat works do not change that, but where a defect in a common element affects your flat, we identify it at survey and report it so the common repair route can run alongside your internal programme.
Turning around a flat in Marchmont?
Give us the address and the date it has to be ready. We will survey, price one fixed scope and commit to the programme.