The single most expensive mistake in Sydney flooring is laying the floor first and asking afterwards.
No obligation. Takes 30 seconds.
Floor Sanding and Polishing Sydney connects Sydney and greater Sydney property owners with qualified, connects Sydney property owners with licensed local floor sanders for strata approval. Tell us the rough floor area and whether you're in a house or an apartment and we'll match it to a licensed contractor covering your suburb. Firm per-square-metre price after an inspection.
Under **section 110 of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015**, installing or replacing wood or other hard floors in a lot is a **minor renovation**. Minor renovations need approval from the owners corporation by **ordinary resolution** — more than half the votes cast — with at least fourteen days' written notice of the meeting.
Some schemes have registered a by-law under s.110(6)(b) delegating that decision to the strata committee, which is considerably faster. Whether yours has is the first thing to find out.
Re-sanding and recoating a hard floor that is already there and already approved. It doesn't change the acoustic performance the scheme signed off on, so it's normally treated as maintenance.
Swapping carpet for carpet is also generally fine. It's the change from soft to hard that triggers everything.
The proposed floor and — the part that decides it — the acoustic underlay specification with its test report, showing the assembly meets whatever figure your by-law sets.
A sparse application invites objections. One that arrives with the acoustic evidence already attached usually doesn't, because it answers the only question anyone actually cares about.
Schemes vary. Some adopt the model by-laws, some have registered their own stricter flooring by-law, and a few effectively prohibit hard flooring outside wet areas altogether.
Your strata manager can send you the registered by-laws. Do that before you get quotes, not after.
Sydney.
Where this job typically sits. Access is usually a bigger cost driver than size.
| Job | Indicative price | What moves it |
|---|---|---|
| Sand and polish, per square metre | $40 – $70 /m² | Sydney rates run above the national average. Covers sanding plus coats. |
| Typical 3-bedroom home (~110m²) | $4,400 – $7,500 | Whole floor, sanded and finished. Condition drives the range. |
| Typical 2-bedroom apartment (~70m²) | $2,800 – $4,900 | Before any acoustic underlay, which is a separate line. |
| Single room (~15m²) | $800 – $1,400 | Small jobs carry proportionally more setup. |
| Acoustic underlay, supplied and laid | $25 – $60 /m² | Strata work. The test report matters as much as the product. |
| Acoustic test report | $400 – $1,200 | Field testing to demonstrate compliance where a by-law requires it. |
| Board replacement | $100 – $220 per board | Baltic pine and old hardwood profiles are both hard to match. |
| Extra coat of finish | $9 – $15 /m² | Three coats is standard; a high-traffic hallway may want four. |
| Parquetry restoration | $80 – $130 /m² | Slower and more skilled than strip flooring. |
| Recoat only (no full sand) | $20 – $35 /m² | Where the finish is worn but the timber is sound. Far cheaper. |
Prices are indicative only and usually quoted per square metre. What a floor costs depends on its condition, the timber, how many coats it needs and whether boards have to be replaced. In a strata building, acoustic underlay and testing add to it. You get a firm price after an inspection.
To replace carpet with a hard floor, yes. It is a minor renovation under <strong>s.110 of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015</strong> and needs approval by ordinary resolution, with fourteen days' notice of the meeting. Some schemes have a registered by-law delegating that to the strata committee, which is considerably faster.
Two to eight weeks realistically. A general meeting needs notice; a committee decision under a delegating by-law can be much quicker. This is the longest part of the whole project and it is entirely outside your contractor's control — plan around it.
Owners who install first and seek approval afterwards are the ones who end up removing a new floor at their own cost. The owners corporation can require reinstatement, and a neighbour complaint is usually what triggers it.
The core job — taking a tired timber floor back to bare wood.
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Meeting the noise rating your by-law sets — and proving it.
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The softwood under most inner-Sydney terraces, and why it's treated differently.
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The finish itself — water-based or solvent, and how many coats.
Read more →Tell us the suburb and the floor area and we'll get it to the right person.
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