Permits, inspections and the timeline nobody warns you about

Approval is the part of the programme you do not control, and it is the reason most renovation timelines slip before a single wall comes down.

Apply earlier than feels necessary

Structural work, additions and anything affecting the exterior need approval before the schedule can be fixed. In most jurisdictions that is six to twelve weeks, and it is not accelerated by wanting it faster. We submit while the design is being finalised rather than after.

Inspections are milestones, not paperwork

Framing, electrical rough-in, plumbing rough-in and insulation all have to be signed off before they are covered. A missed inspection means opening up work that was already finished, which costs days and goodwill in equal measure.

What a realistic programme looks like

For a whole-house renovation: four to eight weeks of design, six to twelve weeks of approval running alongside it, then three to six months on site. Anyone promising you a start date before approval is quoting a hope, not a schedule.