Remodeling Your Home

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Remodeling Your Home

Apr 24, 2017

Remodeling Your Home

Planning a renovation on the Gold Coast? Before you commit to a new kitchen or a full bathroom rebuild, it pays to know which upgrades add real value, what order to do them in, and where a fresh coat of paint can do the heavy lifting for a fraction of the cost.

Whether you're getting ready to sell, updating a home you plan to stay in, or tackling one room at a time, this guide walks through the most popular renovation ideas room by room, with practical advice from our residential painting team.

Cutaway illustration of a two-storey home showing renovation ideas including painting walls, bathroom renovation, roof restoration, front door

Why Painting Is the Best Value Upgrade

Most renovation budgets go on kitchens and bathrooms, but fresh paint changes the look and feel of every room in the house. It's quicker, less disruptive, and you can live in the home while it's done. For many homes, a professional repaint delivers most of the "new house" feeling for a small part of the cost of structural work.

Repaint	Replace or Rebuild
Days, not weeks or months	Weeks to months, often with trades delays
Live in the home during the work	Rooms out of action, sometimes the whole house
Refreshes every room at once	Improves one room at a time
Usually no council approval needed	May need approvals and certification
Easy to change again later	Locked in for years

If you're not sure whether a room needs a renovation or just a refresh, paint it first. Many homeowners find that once the walls, ceilings and trims are done, the room they planned to rebuild suddenly feels new enough.

Inside the Home

1. Painting Walls and Ceilings

The single biggest visual change you can make. A good interior repaint isn't just colour on the walls. It includes patching cracks and dents, sanding, sealing stains and getting crisp lines on trims and cornices.

Lighter, warm neutrals make smaller rooms feel bigger and brighter
A feature wall adds personality without overwhelming a room
Washable finishes suit hallways, kids' rooms and busy family areas
Have damaged plaster fixed first with proper wall repairs

Tip: light changes colour. Test samples on several walls and look at them morning and evening before choosing. Read more in Consider the Light.

2. Bathroom Renovations

Bathrooms are one of the most expensive rooms to rebuild. If the tiles and fittings are in good shape, a repaint with a mould-resistant bathroom paint, new tapware and fresh grout can make a big difference. In our humid climate, the right paint matters. Standard wall paint in a poorly ventilated bathroom is a recipe for mould and peeling.

3. Kitchens and Smart Appliances

New appliances and benchtops get the attention, but cabinetry makes up most of what you see. Professionally repainted cabinet doors in a modern colour, paired with new handles, can transform a dated kitchen without the cost of new joinery. Splashback and ceiling areas also benefit from a scrubbable, grease-resistant finish.

4. Bedrooms and Living Areas

These rooms rarely need structural work. Paint, lighting and window furnishings do most of the work. Calming tones suit bedrooms, while living areas can carry a bolder accent. Our article on the psychology of colour explains how colours affect mood.

5. Cleaning and Decluttering

The cheapest upgrade of all. Clearing out a room shows you what really needs fixing, and a clutter-free, freshly painted room looks far better in sale photos. It also makes the painting job faster, since furniture doesn't have to be moved and protected.

Outside the Home

6. Roof Restoration

A full roof replacement isn't always needed. Many tiled and metal roofs can be cleaned, repaired and recoated instead. Lighter, heat-reflective roof coatings can also help keep the home cooler in a Queensland summer. If your Colorbond has faded, see Revitalising Faded Colorbond.

7. Front Door and Street Appeal

The front door is the first thing buyers and visitors notice. A freshly painted door in a strong colour, with new hardware, is one of the quickest street appeal wins there is. See our guide to painting your front door.

8. Exterior Walls, Fences and Decks

Landscaping lifts a property, but tired fences, decks and exterior walls can undo the effect. Exterior timber needs the right coating to handle sun and rain, and the colour you choose has to work with your roof, gardens and neighbours. Read Exterior Timber and Caution with Exterior Colours before you choose.

9. Outdoor Living Areas

Covered patios, alfresco areas and enclosed outdoor rooms are a Gold Coast favourite. Painted ceilings and posts, stained timber and weatherproof finishes make these spaces feel like part of the house. Pairing them with shade, such as plantation shutters and shade sails, makes them usable all year.

10. Solar and Energy Efficiency

Solar panels and insulation reduce running costs, and paint can help too. Heat-reflective exterior and roof coatings reduce how much heat the home absorbs, and orienting colour choices around the path of the sun helps exterior colours last longer.

Gold Coast Weather Is Tough on Paint

Strong UV, high humidity, heavy summer storms and salt air near the beach all shorten the life of exterior paint. Choose paints made for Australian conditions, prepare surfaces properly, and expect coastal homes to need more frequent maintenance than homes further inland.

Getting the Renovation Order Right

One of the most common renovation mistakes is painting too early, then having it damaged by other trades. As a general rule, painting comes after the messy work and before the finishing touches.

1 Structural, roofing and plumbing
Walls, windows, roof repairs and anything behind the walls.

2 Electrical and air conditioning
New power points, lighting and ducting, so no one cuts into fresh paint later.

3 Plastering and wall repairs
New sheeting, patching and cornices, allowing time to dry.

4 Painting
Ceilings, walls, trims and doors, while floors can still be protected or haven't been laid yet.

5 Flooring, fixtures and furnishings
New floors, light fittings, window furnishings and furniture last.

Tip: if floors are already in, they need careful protection. See Protecting Your Floors When Painting.

Healthier Paint for a Healthier Home

If you're living in the house during the work, low-VOC and low-odour paints make a real difference to indoor air quality, especially in bedrooms and nurseries.

Choose low-VOC or zero-VOC water-based paints for interiors
Keep windows open and air moving during and after painting
Allow freshly painted bedrooms to air out before sleeping in them
Avoid aerosol sprays and strong solvent-based products indoors

Learn more in How VOCs in Paint Affect Indoor Air Quality.

Renovating an Older Home?

Houses built before 1970 are the most likely to have lead-based paint, and homes built or renovated before 1990 may contain asbestos. Sanding, scraping or drilling can release harmful dust. Have suspect materials checked before work starts, and use professionals who follow the correct safety procedures.

Renovation Painting FAQs

Should I paint before or after new floors?

Ideally before. Painting first means drips and spills don't matter, and the floor installers won't be working around fresh paint. If the floors are already down, they just need to be properly protected.

Can I stay in the house while it's being painted?

Usually yes. We work room by room and use low-odour paints so you can keep living in the home. Bigger renovations involving plastering or floor sanding may be easier if you can stay elsewhere for a few days.

How often should a Gold Coast home's exterior be repainted?

It depends on the surface, the paint used, how much sun and weather it gets, and how close you are to the beach. Coastal homes and west-facing walls generally need attention sooner. Regular washing and touch-ups extend the life of the paintwork.

Will painting add value when I sell?

Fresh, neutral paintwork helps a home present well in photos and inspections, and it removes one of the first jobs buyers mentally add to their list. It's one of the most common pre-sale jobs for that reason.

To Sum it Up

A successful renovation starts with knowing where your money makes the most difference. For many Gold Coast homes, a quality repaint delivers more visual impact than any single room rebuild, and it lifts every room at once.

Plan the order of work so painting comes after the messy trades, choose paints made for our coastal climate, and opt for low-VOC products if you're living in the home. Whether you're preparing to sell or settling in for the long term, the right paint finish is what makes a renovation look complete.

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