Carpentry Pricing Guide NSW 2026 - Get Free Quotes

Carpentry Costs in NSW

Hourly rates of $65 to $110 and day rates of $500 to $850 describe what a carpenter costs, not what a job costs. Almost every project of any size is quoted as a fixed price, because the client wants certainty and the carpenter would rather absorb the risk than justify every hour. The general trade overview sits at carpentry services. Repairs and investigative work are the only real exceptions to that. Span tables assume a grade, a spacing and a load, and changing any one invalidates the rest. Sydney carpenters commonly quote two to four weeks out in a normal market.

Material is a larger share of a carpentry quote than most people assume. On a deck, the timber can be half the total, and moving from treated pine to a hardwood changes the material cost by a factor of two or three without changing the labour at all. Request the material and labour split in writing. It tells you where a cheaper quote found its saving. Merbau, spotted gum and treated pine sit at very different price points per lineal metre while taking the same time to lay. Merbau leaches tannin for the first year and stains concrete underneath it permanently.

The spread within each job type usually comes down to what is already there. A level site, square walls, a sound subfloor and accessible services make for a predictable job, while an older Sydney terrace with settled floors and no two openings the same size does not. Older homes carry a genuine premium on almost every carpentry item. A quote written from the kerb has priced none of it. A wall opened up to reveal termite damage, rot or previous work done badly changes the scope on the spot. Nobody prices for what they cannot see.

Hourly, Day and Fixed Price

Hourly pricing suits repairs and anything nobody can scope in advance. A sticking door, a damaged deck board, a repair to rot found behind cladding or a list of small jobs around a house all belong on an hourly basis, because a fixed price on an unknown either overcharges you or pressures the carpenter into rushing. Adjustments and repairs are quoted at door repair costs. Agree a ceiling before the work starts. Pre drilling dense hardwood adds real hours to a large deck before a single board is fixed. A deck quoted per square metre rarely includes the stairs down to the lawn.

Day rates apply where a carpenter is booked for a block of work. Hanging six doors, fitting out a room of trim or a punch list at the end of a renovation all suit a day rate, and it usually works out below the hourly equivalent because the travel and setup are spread across a full day. Find out what a day actually covers before agreeing to one. Some quote seven hours and some eight. Travel, setup and pack down happen once regardless of how many tasks are on the list. A private certifier can issue a complying development certificate faster than most councils.

Fixed price is the norm for anything that can be drawn or specified. Decks, pergolas, wardrobes, staircases and full rooms of trim are all quotable to a firm figure once the design and materials are settled, and the carpenter carries the risk of it running long. Insist on fixed price where the scope is clear. It is the only basis you can compare across three quotes. A fixed price also removes any argument about pace across a week long job. Most carpenters prefer it for the same reason clients do.

Provisional sums appear in fixed price quotes and are worth understanding. Where something cannot be known until a wall is opened or a floor is lifted, a carpenter may include an allowance instead of a price, and that allowance is adjusted up or down against the actual cost. Have each allowance identified in the quote with its basis for adjustment. A quote full of them is not really fixed. Owners corporation by laws run to a general meeting timetable and not a build schedule. Joist hangers, bracing and stirrups all sit under the boards where nobody looks.

Supply and install versus install only changes the comparison entirely. A carpenter supplying the timber marks it up, which is fair given they are carrying the purchase and the wastage, while a client supplying material takes on responsibility for shortfalls and defects. Decide which of the two arrangements you want before quoting starts. Switching between the two halfway through is where most arguments start. Client supplied timber that arrives short, warped or the wrong grade becomes your problem to resolve mid build. Stainless class four suits really exposed coastal positions where class three will still mark.

Deposits and progress payments are regulated for residential building work in this state. The deposit is capped at 10 per cent of the contract price, and progress payments should follow completed stages, so a request for a third of the job up front is worth questioning. Consumer protections are administered by NSW Fair Trading. Never pay the full amount in advance. Progress payments should follow completed stages rather than the calendar. Paying for a deck frame that has not been built yet is how people lose money.

Decks, Pergolas and Outdoor

Decking is priced per square metre at $200 to $450 supplied and built, and the range is almost entirely about the timber and the height. A ground level deck in treated pine anchors the bottom of that range, while an elevated hardwood deck needing bearers, posts and footings pushes well past the top. Full detail appears at timber decking costs. Height above ground is the single biggest variable in a deck quote. Federation cottages routinely have no square opening anywhere in the house.

Anything more than a metre above ground changes the job substantially. Balustrades become mandatory, the structure needs engineering consideration, and the footings go deeper, which is why a deck at 1.2 metres can cost double the same deck at 300 millimetres. Balustrade work is quoted at balustrade installation costs. Measure the fall before requesting quotes. Balustrade height and the gaps between members are both specified rather than optional. An engineer's certificate on an elevated deck runs to several hundred dollars.

Pergolas run $3,500 to $15,000 depending on span, roofing and whether they attach to the house. An attached pergola requires flashing into the existing roof and structural fixing to the wall, while a freestanding one needs four posts and footings instead. Pergola pricing is set out at pergola installation costs. Flashing into the roof and fixing to the wall add cost and buy a longer life. Flashing into an existing roof is the detail that decides whether an attached pergola leaks in five years. Find out how the flashing into the existing roof is being handled.

Carports sit in similar territory with a different approval position. A carport is generally read as a structure serving a vehicle, which brings setback and site coverage considerations that a pergola may avoid, and the roofing specification is usually heavier. Vehicle structures are priced at carport installation costs. Check the setbacks before designing anything. Custom knife setup at a timber merchant is charged once, so order the whole house together. Blackbutt and spotted gum both blunt saw blades faster than pine ever will.

Timber fencing is quoted per metre and varies with height and paling. A standard 1.8 metre paling fence is straightforward on level ground, while a sloping boundary needs stepped or raked panels and considerably more labour. Fencing costs are detailed at timber fence costs. A fence on the boundary is usually a cost shared with the neighbour. Raked panels follow the slope while stepped panels stay level and drop in increments, and the two look quite different when finished. MDF swells irreversibly once it gets wet, which rules it out of wet areas entirely.

Gates are priced separately and disproportionately. A timber gate needs a stronger frame, hinges rated for the weight and a post set deeper than the fence posts either side, and a gate that drops within a year is almost always a hardware failure rather than a timber one. Gates are quoted at timber gate costs. Pay for the heavier hinges on any gate you expect to last. A gate post carrying a heavy gate needs to go considerably deeper than the fence posts beside it, usually into concrete. Skimping there is why gates sag.

Stairs, Wardrobes and Doors

Internal staircases run $4,000 to $30,000 and the spread reflects design more than size. A straight flight in painted pine with a simple balustrade opens the range, while a curved or floating stair in solid hardwood with glass or steel closes it. Staircase costs are set out at timber staircase costs. The balustrade specification frequently costs more than the stair itself. Bushfire attack levels can differ across a single property depending on aspect and vegetation. Timber moves across its width rather than its length as it dries.

Stair geometry is regulated and not a matter of taste. Riser height, going depth, headroom and balustrade height all have to satisfy the National Construction Code, and a stair built outside those dimensions will not pass inspection regardless of how it looks. Building requirements are published by the Australian Building Codes Board. Never accept a stair built to fit the opening. Riser height has to be consistent across the whole flight, since a single riser out by ten millimetres is a genuine trip hazard. Payment structure on residential work follows rules and not preference.

Built in wardrobes cost $1,200 to $6,000 depending on the internal fitout. A basic robe with a shelf and a hanging rail behind sliding doors is quick, while a fitted interior with drawers, shoe racks, multiple hanging heights and soft close hardware is joinery and not carpentry. Wardrobe costs are detailed at built in wardrobe costs. The door system and the internal fitout are priced as separate items. Sliding doors, hinged doors and open shelving all price differently before the interior is considered. The door system is a decision in itself.

Internal doors run $350 to $1,200 supplied and hung, and the hardware carries a surprising share of that. A hollow core door on standard hinges is inexpensive, while a solid core door with quality hinges, a decent handle set and a rebated frame costs several times more and behaves entirely differently. Door pricing appears at door installation costs. A solid core door is worth the extra in any bedroom or study. Statutory warranties follow the property and not whoever commissioned the work.

Older homes make door hanging slower than the rate suggests. A settled Federation cottage may have no square openings anywhere in the house, which means each door is scribed and planed to fit instead of simply hung, and that turns a forty minute job into two hours. Mention the age of the house. Carpenters quote an older house quite differently once they have seen it. Every door in an old house is effectively a custom fit. An insurance document issued last spring may run out before your job finishes.

Timber windows are a specialist item and priced accordingly. Replacing or repairing timber sashes, particularly in heritage properties where the original profile has to be matched, involves joinery work and glazing that a general carpenter may subcontract. Establish who is carrying out the glazing before you accept a figure. Matching an original sash profile means either milling new stock or repairing what is there. Repair is frequently cheaper and always slower. Scaffolding on a two storey job costs less than an incident does.

Skirting, Architraves and Trim

Skirting is quoted at $18 to $45 a metre supplied and installed, and the profile drives the figure. A simple splayed MDF skirting is the cheapest option, while a deep colonial profile in primed pine or hardwood matched to existing runs well past it. Skirting costs are detailed at skirting board installation costs. Run a tape around the perimeter before you ask anybody for a figure. Hollow core and solid core doors behave completely differently for sound.

Architraves are priced the same way and usually specified together with the skirting. Matching profiles across doors and windows is what makes a room look finished, and mixing profiles between rooms is the detail people notice without being able to name. Trim around openings is quoted at architrave installation costs. Keep one trim profile running consistently through the whole house. Running the same profile through a whole house costs no more than mixing them. Composite boards need the manufacturer's end spacing or they buckle in the first summer.

Matching existing trim in an older home is slower and sometimes impossible off the shelf. Period profiles are frequently unavailable as standard stock, which means either a custom run from a timber merchant, a close approximation, or salvaging from elsewhere in the house. Allow for custom milling in a heritage property. Custom milling is a lead time question as much as a cost one. A timber merchant running a custom knife charges a setup fee, so ordering the whole house at once matters. Ordering room by room multiplies that cost.

Timber flooring installation is a related trade with its own pricing. Solid tongue and groove, engineered boards and floating floors each install differently and at different rates, and the subfloor condition underneath decides how much preparation is needed. Board and floating floor rates appear at timber flooring installation costs. Have the subfloor checked and levelled before boards are ordered. Riser height must stay consistent across an entire flight without exception.

Shelving, cabinetry and built in joinery blur the line between trades. A carpenter builds structures on site while a cabinetmaker manufactures units in a workshop, and the finish quality and price differ accordingly. Joinery work is covered at cabinet making and joinery costs. Work out which of the two trades you are actually asking for. Site built shelving in a recess suits an irregular opening, while a workshop built unit gives a cleaner finish in a square one. Timber merchants outside the major centres carry limited stock beyond treated pine.

Paint finish quality depends heavily on the carpentry underneath. Gaps at mitres, nail holes left proud and joints that open up as the timber moves all show through paint, and a painter cannot fix poor trim work. Painting work sits at door and trim painting costs. Inspect every mitre and joint before the painter turns up. Filler shrinks a little as it cures, so nail holes that looked flat before painting show as small dishes once the paint goes on. A second pass over the filler before painting sorts that out.

Choosing the Timber

Treated pine is the default for structure and the cheapest outdoor option. It is graded for its intended use, with different treatment levels for above ground, in ground and structural applications, and using the wrong level outdoors is a genuine durability problem and not a technicality. Check the treatment level for the application. The treatment level is stamped along the length of the timber. Insurance funded repairs take priority over new work in any storm affected district.

Australian hardwoods cost more and behave differently. Spotted gum, blackbutt, ironbark and merbau are common decking choices in New South Wales, and they are denser, more durable and considerably harder to work, which shows up in the labour as well as the material. Hardwood decks last decades with maintenance. Hardwood also moves noticeably more across the first twelve months. Blackbutt and spotted gum both need pre drilling for fixings because of their density, which adds real time to a large deck. An oiled hardwood deck wants recoating every twelve to eighteen months here.

Composite decking has changed the comparison over the past decade. It costs more per square metre than most timber, requires no oiling, and does not silver or splinter, though it does get hotter underfoot and cannot be sanded back. Composite options are covered at composite decking installation. Weigh the maintenance you avoid against the higher upfront figure. Composite boards also expand and contract along their length, so the spacing at the ends is specified by the manufacturer. Ignoring that guidance produces buckling in the first summer.

Bushfire prone areas restrict what can be used outdoors. Properties mapped as bushfire prone are subject to construction requirements that specify particular materials and details depending on the assessed level, and decking, cladding and pergolas are all affected. Requirements are administered through the NSW Government planning framework. Check the bushfire mapping before you settle on any timber.

Timber grading and certification matter more than people realise. Structural timber carries a grade stamp, and a carpenter using ungraded material for a bearer or a joist has created a problem that only surfaces at inspection or later. Australian Standards are published by Standards Australia. Ask which grade is being used on anything structural. F grades and MGP grades both appear on structural pine, and a span table assumes a particular grade. Silvering is a surface change and not a structural one.

Coastal exposure changes the specification along much of the New South Wales coast. Salt laden air corrodes standard fixings quickly, and a deck built with galvanised screws near the beach will show rust staining within a couple of years where stainless would not. Specify stainless fixings near the coast. The material difference is small against a rebuild. Class three and class four stainless are both available, and the higher class suits genuinely exposed positions. The screws cost a fraction of what replacing a deck does.

Licensing and Insurance

Residential building work valued above $5,000 in labour and materials including GST requires a contractor licence in New South Wales. That threshold catches most carpentry beyond minor repairs, and the licence has to be held by the person or company you are contracting with rather than somebody they know. The public licence register is maintained by NSW Fair Trading. Verify the licence number on the public register yourself.

Home building compensation cover applies above $20,000. Where the contract value exceeds that figure the contractor must take out cover before receiving any payment, including a deposit, and give you evidence of it, and the cover responds if they die, disappear or become insolvent. Ask for the insurance certificate before you pay any deposit. Without the certificate in hand there is no cover behind the job. The certificate names the insurer, the contractor and the property, and it should arrive before the deposit rather than with the final invoice. Hardwood plugs over countersunk screws cost more and look far better.

Written contracts are required above $5,000 and worth having regardless. A small jobs contract covers $5,000 to $20,000 and a full home building contract applies above that, setting out the work, the price, the timeframe, the payment schedule and the parties. Contract templates are published through Service NSW. Get the scope and price in writing at any contract value. Two people recall a verbal scope quite differently a fortnight later. A scope written as decking to rear yard is not a scope. Dimensions, species, fixing method and finish all belong in the document.

Statutory warranties apply to residential building work and cannot be signed away. They cover defects for defined periods depending on whether the defect is major, and they follow the property and not the original owner. Disputes go to the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal. Keep every document from the job in one place.

Public liability insurance is separate from the compensation scheme and worth confirming. It responds if the carpenter damages your property or injures somebody, and a certificate of currency takes moments to produce for anybody who holds one. Request the certificate instead of an assurance. Check the expiry date while the certificate is in front of you. Certificates lapse annually, so one issued eight months ago may expire mid project.

Safety obligations apply on residential sites as much as commercial ones. Work at height, power tools, dust and manual handling all carry duties, and a carpenter working from an unstable ladder on your roofline is a risk you are partly exposed to. Workplace safety is administered by SafeWork NSW. Proper scaffolding on a two storey job is not a discretionary item. Two storey work, roof edges and elevated decks all bring height duties into play. A carpenter proposing to work off a plank between two trestles is cutting corners.

Approvals and Compliance

Some carpentry needs no approval and some needs a great deal. Internal trim, doors, wardrobes and repairs are generally exempt, while decks, pergolas, carports and anything structural may require exempt development assessment, complying development certification or a full development application. Planning information is published by the NSW Department of Planning. Check the pathway before anything is designed rather than afterwards.

Exempt development is the pathway most small outdoor structures use. It allows certain works without any approval provided they satisfy every criterion, covering floor area, height, setbacks and distance from boundaries, and missing a single criterion pushes the job into a different pathway entirely. Read every criterion instead of the summary. A single dimension over the limit and the exemption falls away entirely. Floor area, maximum height, boundary setbacks and site coverage each carry a number.

Complying development is the middle pathway and moves faster than a full application. A private certifier or the council can issue the certificate where the proposal meets the standards, which suits larger decks and pergolas that fall outside exempt provisions. Allow several weeks for the certificate to be issued. It is quicker than a development application, not instant. A private certifier is usually faster than a council for the same certificate. Either way the drawings have to be complete before assessment begins.

Heritage listings and conservation areas override the general pathways. Large parts of inner Sydney, Newcastle and many regional towns sit within conservation areas where external changes need consent, and a pergola visible from the street may be assessed quite differently from one hidden behind the house. Check the heritage listing before committing to any design. Every council publishes its conservation area maps online.

Strata properties add another layer of approval. Work affecting common property, including anything attached to an external wall or a balcony, generally requires owners corporation approval through a by law or a resolution, and doing it without that consent can result in an order to remove it. Confirm the strata approval position before anything else. Owners corporation approval can take longer than the carpentry does. A by law may be required instead of a simple resolution, depending on what the work affects. A pergola beam spanning five metres is a different member from one spanning three.

Boundary structures raise questions with neighbours as well as councils. Dividing fences, retaining walls and structures near a boundary all carry their own rules about cost sharing, notice and setback, and the conversation goes better before the posts go in. Wall structures are priced at timber retaining wall costs. Talk to the neighbour well before the posts go in. Dividing fence costs are generally shared between neighbours where the fence is on the boundary. Retaining walls and structures near a boundary follow different rules again.

What Drives the Price

Timber selection moves the material cost more than any other decision. The same deck in treated pine, in merbau and in a premium Australian hardwood can differ by a factor of three on material alone, with the labour barely changing. Price the same design in two timbers. It separates the material question from the build question.

Site conditions decide the labour on almost every job. A level, accessible site with square walls and sound existing structure is a predictable build, while a sloping block, restricted access or a settled old house adds hours to every stage. Walk the site with the carpenter before any figure is given. Photographs consistently miss the details that drive the hours. A sloping site needs stepped footings and sometimes retaining, neither of which appears in a per square metre rate. Colorbond and polycarbonate roofing on a pergola price quite differently.

Access affects both the material and the labour. A rear yard reached only through the house means every board is carried by hand, and a site where a trailer cannot get close adds a day to a large deck before anything is cut. Mention every access constraint when you make the booking. Carpenters price them once they have seen them. Carrying four metre lengths through a hallway is slower and riskier than wheeling them down a driveway. Some sites need the timber craned or hand carried in short lengths.

Height and structural complexity change the engineering. Anything elevated, spanning further, or carrying load needs larger members, deeper footings and sometimes an engineer's involvement, and that engineering is a real cost separate from the carpentry. Establish whether engineering certification sits inside the quote. On anything elevated, engineering usually should be included.

Finish level is the quiet variable that separates two quotes at the same scope. Mitred returns, concealed fixings, hardwood plugs over screws and a properly sanded finish all take longer than the quick version, and the difference is invisible in a written quote. Have the carpenter describe the finish standard they are quoting. Finish standard explains most of the gap between two similar quotes. A tight mitre and a filled gap look identical on paper and nothing alike on a wall. Stair treads in solid hardwood cost several times a painted pine equivalent.

Sydney Metro Costs

Sydney carries the highest carpentry rates in the state and the deepest market to draw from. Hourly figures reach the top of the national range, reflecting demand, wages and what it costs to run a trade business in the city. What varies most across the metropolitan area is not the rate but the housing stock, since a Federation terrace, a mid century brick home and a new build each present quite different problems to the same carpenter. A carpenter who works Federation homes daily prices them differently from one who works new estates. Each is quick at the work they see every week.

Inner Sydney terraces are where the old house premium shows most clearly. Settled floors, out of square openings, lath and plaster walls and no two rooms alike mean scribing and fitting instead of cutting to a measurement, and a carpenter who works these houses regularly quotes them differently. Repairs to existing structures sit at deck repair costs. Expect more hours than the same job in a newer home. Councils publish conservation area maps online alongside the planning controls. Checking takes minutes and avoids a redesign.

Conservation areas across the inner suburbs constrain external work. Councils through those areas assess visible changes carefully, and a deck or pergola facing a street frontage may need consent where the same structure at the rear would not. Check the conservation area mapping first. Approval timeframes shape the build schedule.

Coastal suburbs need a different specification from inland ones. Salt exposure through the eastern suburbs, the northern beaches and the southern coastline attacks standard fixings and untreated timber, and specifying stainless hardware and durable species is worth the modest premium. Budget for stainless near the water. Rust staining appears within a couple of years otherwise. Standard ceiling heights, square openings and consistent stud spacing all speed a job up considerably. Soft close hardware on wardrobe drawers is where a fitout budget goes.

Newer estates through the growth corridors are the most straightforward work in the city. Square construction, level sites, good access and standard dimensions make for predictable jobs at the lower end of each band. Shed and garage work is quoted at shed and garage construction costs. Prices on that sort of work sit toward the bottom of every band above. A merchant an hour away means either a delivery fee or half a day lost collecting material. Both end up in the quote.

Regional NSW Costs

Regional rates run below Sydney for labour, though material and travel frequently narrow the gap. Timber merchants are fewer outside the major centres, delivery costs more, and a carpenter covering a wide district builds the drive into the price. Establish how travel is charged on a regional job. It is the main structural difference from a Sydney quote.

Bushfire prone mapping affects a great deal of regional New South Wales. Properties in mapped areas face construction requirements that specify materials, detailing and sometimes species for external work, and this can rule out the obvious timber choice entirely. Confirm the bushfire attack level early. It changes the specification and not the price alone. Insurance funded repair work pays reliably and takes priority in a busy market.

Trade availability fluctuates sharply after weather events. Storm and flood damage through the Hunter, the Northern Rivers and coastal districts generates months of repair work, and carpenters in affected areas book out well beyond their usual lead times. Book further ahead in affected regions. Repairs take priority over new work. A forgotten fixing on a rural job is a two hour round trip rather than a run to the local supplier. Carpenters allow for that in the day.

Rural properties change the job in ways the hourly rate does not capture. Long driveways, distance from suppliers, limited mobile coverage for coordination and the need to bring everything on the first trip all extend the day. Handyman work is quoted at handyman services costs. Expect a site visit before a firm figure. Local timber availability shapes what gets specified outside the cities. Some regional areas have excellent access to local hardwoods at competitive prices, while others carry limited stock and long lead times on anything beyond treated pine.

What to Look Out For

Verify the licence before you discuss the price. Work above $5,000 needs a contractor licence and work above $20,000 needs home building compensation cover, so check the number on the public register yourself and ask for evidence of cover before paying any deposit. An unlicensed job leaves you without the statutory warranties or the cover that would otherwise apply to defective work. A quote naming the species and the fixing type has already answered half your questions. Door frames in older homes are frequently out of plumb as well as out of square.

Read the quote for provisional sums and exclusions. Allowances are reasonable on genuine unknowns behind a wall or under a floor, though a quote carrying several of them has stopped being a fixed price. Establish which items are provisional and how they are adjusted. Confirm whether the figure is supply and install or install only, since mixing the two mid job causes most disputes. Skirting mitres open up as the timber dries in the first heating season.

Settle the approval pathway before anything is designed. Decks, pergolas, carports and structural work may need exempt development assessment, complying development certification or a full application, and exempt development fails if a single criterion is missed. Building something without consent can result in an order to remove it at your own cost. Bearer and joist spacing follow the span table for the grade being used.

Match the timber to the exposure and not the budget. H3, H4 and H5 each suit a different exposure, and using the wrong one outdoors shortens the life of the structure. Specify stainless fixings anywhere near the coast, since galvanised hardware shows rust staining within a couple of years. Bushfire prone mapping may restrict the species and detailing available to you regardless of preference. Scotia or quad at the floor line hides a multitude of gaps.

Ask what the finish standard is, because it explains most unexplained price gaps. Walk the site with the carpenter instead of relying on photographs. Older homes with settled floors and out of square openings cost more, and a carpenter who has seen the house prices it honestly. Deck boards laid too tight cup and lift after the first wet season.

What to Look for in a Quote in NSW

A carpentry quote should identify the timber species, grade and treatment level for each element, state whether the figure is supply and install, and separate material from labour clearly enough that you can see where a cheaper quote found its saving. It should list any provisional sums with the basis for adjustment, confirm which approvals are required and who is obtaining them, and state whether engineering is included on anything elevated or structural. The licence number, the home building compensation position and a current public liability certificate belong on the document. The provisional sums and the approval responsibility are the two items most likely to change a final figure. Subfloor ventilation matters as much as the boards above it.

Give every carpenter the same brief. Dimensions, the timber you prefer, photographs of the site and the existing structure, access constraints and your deadline all shape what should be proposed. Send the identical package to each of them. If each carpenter assumes a different timber you end up with three numbers that cannot be lined up.

Request photographs of recent work of the same type. Photographs of a deck they built three years ago tell you more than one finished last week, because the joints, the fixings and the timber movement have had time to show themselves. Look specifically for photographs of work a few years old. Anybody proud of their carpentry will have it.

Settle the licence, the scope, the timber and the approvals before anybody orders material. Verify the licence and insurance, agree exactly what is included and excluded, specify the species and treatment level, and confirm who is responsible for any consent. Related work is priced at wardrobe installation and at staircase installation and repairs, with the trade overview at carpentry services. With the paperwork sorted and the species chosen, what remains is a build date and a delivery.