Renovating an apartment in an old Amsterdam building
Renovating an apartment in an old Amsterdam building is a different exercise from renovating a 2015 new-build. You are working on timber joists, on a substrate you only truly know after the strip-out, and within the rules of a building association. Investigate that first and your schedule will hold; skip it and you will find out halfway through.
What this kind of renovation usually involves
An apartment in a nineteenth or early twentieth century property has almost always been renovated before, more than once. Under the laminate there is often an older timber floor, below that the joists, and between the joists sometimes an old fill. Walls are frequently plastered onto reed or softboard backing, which means smooth plaster or tiling cannot simply be applied to what is already there.
Then there is settlement. Cracks in plaster, a door that binds and a floor with a visible slope are normal in the old city centre. Much of it is historic and stable, but you cannot judge that from the crack pattern alone. Where cracks are fresh or continuous, or where there is any doubt about the structure, have a surveyor or structural engineer look before anything is filled or removed.
Damp usually needs attention too: rising damp at ground level, penetrating damp through the façade, and condensation caused by poor ventilation after airtight glazing is fitted. Damp is treated at its cause; painting or plastering over it solves nothing.
The main stages
The order matters more than the speed. First investigation: a site survey, a check of the joists and floor build-up, an assessment of damp, and for buildings from before 1994 an asbestos survey by a certified assessor. Suspected asbestos is removed only by a certified abatement company — never as a DIY job, never as something the builder handles on the side.
Then approvals. Anything touching shared structure, the façade, window frames or risers goes through the building association. A listed building, or one in a protected townscape, adds a further consent route and real lead time. Arrange this before anyone is booked in.
Then demolition and waste removal, then the repairs that only become visible at that point (joist ends, substrate, the source of the damp), then services, then the finishing trades: floors, plaster, tiling, carpentry, painting. Work on gas and electrics belongs with a qualified professional, not with a capable friend.
What the cost depends on
In old buildings the money is rarely in the finish and almost always in what has to happen underneath it. The biggest drivers are the condition of the joists and floor build-up, the extent of the damp problem, how much substrate has to be replaced, and the acoustic requirements between apartments.
Logistics decide a surprising amount as well. Amsterdam staircases are narrow and steep, so sheet material, a bathtub or a worktop often will not go up them; material has to be cut to size or hoisted through a window. A skip or a furniture lift on the street requires a municipal permit or a road closure with its own application time.
Watch the units in the quotation too: plastering, tiling and flooring per square metre, skirtings and frames per linear metre, installations per item, and repair work that can only be judged after the strip-out usually by the hour. Insist that last category is named explicitly, because in old buildings that is exactly where the variance sits.
Questions to ask the contractor
- Have you worked in buildings of this age before, and where?
- How do you assess the joists before building up a floor?
- What is your plan if the wall substrate turns out not to hold?
- How will you handle suspected asbestos during the strip-out?
- Which parts of this job do you think need building-association consent?
- How will material get upstairs, and what does that mean for sizing?
- What is arranged for debris removal and any street permit?
Common mistakes
The classic is closing up the floor before the joists have been assessed. Rotten joist ends at the façade or a deflecting floor are not solved with levelling compound; you simply bury an expensive finish that will have to come out again.
Second: sealing the apartment airtight without arranging ventilation. New glazing and well-sealed joints in an old building, with no supply of fresh air, produce condensation and mould almost reliably.
Third: covering cracks cosmetically without knowing the cause. Fourth: informing the building association once the work is already running. Fifth: assuming a crisp modern finish will stay crisp in a building that has settled. Timber moves with the seasons in old properties, and good detailing works with that rather than against it.
Frequently asked questions
Can I take out a wall to open up the apartment?
Possibly, but never on your own judgement. Have a structural engineer determine whether the wall is load-bearing and what would be required; where shared structure is involved, association consent is needed as well.
Do I always need an asbestos survey?
If the building predates 1994 and you are demolishing anything, have it surveyed by a certified assessor. Never assume it will be fine and never remove suspect material yourself.
How do I stop the plaster cracking again?
By having the cause assessed first and then building up the correct substrate. Reed or softboard backing often needs an additional build-up; simply re-skimming it usually just postpones the problem.
How long does building-association consent take?
It varies by association and by how decisions are taken there, so ask your own association before you fix a schedule. Do not plan on it being settled within a week.
Can I keep living in the apartment during the work?
For contained work often yes; for floor and services work in a small apartment usually not comfortably. Agree in advance which phases are dust- and noise-heavy.