Builder advice in Edinburgh

Buying a flat or house in Edinburgh: what we look at

Most Edinburgh buyers come to us with one of three things: a Home Report with Category 2 or 3 ratings against the roof, stonework or windows, a factor's statement that mentions upcoming common repairs without a price, or a listed flat where the work they want might need consent. We read the Home Report against how Edinburgh buildings are actually built: sandstone tenements with shared roofs, stairs, chimneys and rhones, timber sash and case windows, and slate roofs that need full scaffolds for most repairs. Then we tell you which findings matter, what your share might cost, and what to ask the seller and the factor.

We review Home Reports on flats and houses right across the city: the New Town, West End, Stockbridge and Comely Bank; Marchmont, Bruntsfield, Newington and the Southside; Morningside, Grange and Merchiston; Leith, Trinity and Newhaven; Abbeyhill, Meadowbank and Portobello to the east; and Corstorphine, Murrayfield, Gorgie and Fountainbridge to the west.

Chat to Your Builder gives independent property advice for buyers in Edinburgh and across Scotland, from a working builder with nearly 30 years on site. We turn the findings in your Home Report into plain-English priorities, likely repair-cost ranges and the right questions to ask next. Written review and call: £59.

What to send: the Home Report, the listing link, the factor's details and any recent common repair notices, and photos from your viewing, especially of the stair, the windows and any ceiling staining. Comparing two Edinburgh flats? Send both and we will tell you which one carries the bigger repair bill.

Local building insights for Edinburgh

What we look out for when we review a Edinburgh Home Report, your photos and the paperwork. No site visit is needed: we work from the report your surveyor wrote after theirs. Where something needs a look in person, we tell you who to call.

• New Town and West End: Georgian tenements and townhouses inside the World Heritage Site. Shared roofs, chimneys, stair stonework and listed sash windows are where the money goes, and almost every change needs consent
• Marchmont, Bruntsfield and Newington: late Victorian sandstone tenements. We look hardest at stonework, rhones and downpipes, roof condition and whether the stair is being looked after by a factor or nobody at all
• Stockbridge colonies and Abbeyhill: upper and lower colony flats with their own outside stairs. The split of roof, wall and garden responsibilities is in the title deeds, and it matters
• Morningside, Grange and Merchiston: large stone villas where the costs sit in roofs, chimneys, boundary walls and mature trees close to the house
• Leith and the waterfront: converted warehouses and newer blocks, so the questions are the factor, the building's fire safety and cladding paperwork, and the service charge

Common property issues in Edinburgh

Tenement roof and chimney scaffolding

Edinburgh tenements often need full scaffolds for any roof work. A £35k roof job split eight ways still means £4,400 each — and that's before stonemason rates.

Sandstone and lime mortar erosion

Craigleith sandstone is durable but lime-pointed and previous cement repairs are accelerating decay. Pointing renewal is a £15k–£40k job per elevation.

Sash and case window decay

Listed properties cannot fit modern double glazing without consent. Restoration runs £900–£1,800 per window; secondary glazing £350–£600.

Shared stair, backcourt and dyke walls

Backcourt boundary walls and the common stair are shared liabilities. Many factor schedules underreport upcoming works.

Reading the Home Report's categories

The Single Survey in a Home Report rates each element Category 1, 2 or 3. Category 3 means urgent repairs or replacement are needed now, and Category 2 means repairs are needed in the future. A Category 2 against a tenement roof or stonework can still be a large shared bill, so we turn the categories into likely costs and timing.

Missing shares and owners who will not pay

Under the Tenement Management Scheme, a majority of owners can usually agree a common repair, but collecting each owner's share is another matter. Ask the factor whether any owners are in arrears and whether any repairs have been voted through but not yet paid for, because those debts can follow the flat.

Colony flats and their outside stairs

The colonies in Stockbridge, Abbeyhill and elsewhere are pairs of upper and lower flats in terraced rows, with the upper flat reached by an outside stair. Who maintains the roof, the stair and the gardens varies from deed to deed. Read the title before assuming it works like a tenement.

Realistic renovation costs in Edinburgh

Job	Typical cost	Worth knowing
Full tenement rewire (2-bed)	£4,800 – £7,500	Cornice reinstatement adds £1,500–£3,000.
Sash window full overhaul (×6)	£6,000 – £10,800	Listed-consent compliant restoration.
New kitchen, mid-spec	£9,000 – £15,000	Add £2k–£4k to move services in solid walls.
Roof slate strip & relay (your share, 8 flats)	£3,800 – £5,500	Plus scaffold share £600–£1,200.
Bathroom refurb, full tile	£5,500 – £9,500	Tanking essential below joists in tenements.
Stone indent repairs to tenement front (your share, 8 flats)	£1,500 – £5,000	Plus scaffold share; stonemason availability sets the timetable.
Secondary glazing, listed sash (per window)	£350 – £600	Usually acceptable where double glazing is not.

Planning quirks that catch buyers out

• Listed building consent is needed for almost any change to a listed building, inside or out, including windows, doors and the colour of external paint in some New Town streets.
• The whole city is a short-term let control area, so using a flat as a holiday let generally needs planning permission as well as a licence.
• Houses in multiple occupation (HMOs) need a council licence, and the council can refuse planning permission where a street already has a high concentration of HMOs, as in parts of Marchmont and Newington.
• Property factors have to be on the Scottish Property Factors Register and follow a code of conduct, which gives owners a route to complain if common repairs are handled badly.

Edinburgh stone flats are wonderful homes but the common-repair model trips up almost every first-time buyer. A written review and a call within 24 hours before you confirm your offer is the single highest-ROI thing you'll do in this market.