BreakThru Realty

Buying a Home for a Whole-Home Renovation in South Florida

Keep the location and the bones. Change everything else.

BreakThru Realty helps buyers find a home in the right location that needs work, then coordinates the architects, designers and licensed contractors who turn it into the home they wanted. A whole-home renovation is the Transform size of project: the floor plan, the systems and the finishes all change, and the house that comes out shares little with the one you bought except its address and its structure.

BreakThru Realty · Founder and Broker of Record: Tyson E. Sam, Florida License 3565210

Start My Project

A kitchen before and after a renovation: a closed tile-counter kitchen on the left, an open kitchen with a waterfall island on the right
Before on the left, after on the right. An illustration of the kind of change a project can make, not a completed project, a design or a statement of what a particular home can become.

When a Full Renovation Makes Sense

A whole-home renovation fits a house with a good structure in a location you would not trade, where the layout no longer suits how people live. Mid-century and later South Florida homes are often built of concrete block on a slab, which gives a renovation a durable shell to work inside. The plan usually opens the kitchen to the living areas, rebuilds every bathroom, replaces plumbing, wiring and air conditioning, and brings the roof, windows and doors up to current wind standards.

The Team a Full Renovation Needs

A project this size is designed before it is built. An architect or residential designer draws the new plan, a structural engineer signs off on any wall that carries load, an interior designer sets the finishes, and a licensed general contractor prices and builds from those drawings. We introduce professionals whose past work matches your project, you interview and choose, and each one works under your own agreement with them.

  • Architect or residential designer: the plan and the permit drawings
  • Structural engineer: walls, beams, openings and anything carrying load
  • Interior designer: kitchens, baths, materials and lighting
  • Licensed general contractor: the bid, the trades and the schedule
  • Specialists as needed: roofing, impact glazing, pool, landscape

The Rules That Shape the Plan

Three sets of rules decide what a South Florida renovation can be. The Florida Building Code applies to the new work, and Miami-Dade and Broward counties sit in its High-Velocity Hurricane Zone, with stricter requirements for roofs, windows and doors. In a flood zone, the FEMA 50% rule can require the entire house to meet current flood elevation once the renovation cost reaches half the value of the structure. And the city’s zoning sets what the outside of the house can become. All three are checked before you buy, in the Potential Check.

The Order of Work

Whole-home renovations follow a sequence, and knowing it makes the schedule make sense. Design and engineering come first, then the permit, which can take longer than buyers expect. Demolition exposes what the walls were hiding. Structural work, then the rough plumbing, electrical and air conditioning follow, each inspected by the city before it is covered. Windows, roof and exterior close the shell; drywall, cabinets, tile and finishes complete it. Final inspections close the permits.

Budgeting for What You Cannot See

Older homes keep secrets: cast-iron drain lines at the end of their life, wiring that no longer meets code, earlier work done without permits. A whole-home budget therefore has five parts, not one: the purchase, the construction bid, the design and permit costs, a contingency reserved for discoveries, and the cost of living elsewhere while the work is done. Planned that way from the first day, a surprise is an expected line in the budget rather than a crisis.

Start My Project

A few questions about where and how you want to live. An agent reads every answer and follows up personally. Nothing here asks about credit, income or debts.

Prefer to talk? (786) 914-1017 · sales@breakthrurealty.com

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does a whole-home renovation take?
Longer than the construction alone: design, engineering and the city’s permit review come first, and their length varies by city and by the complexity of the plan. Your design professional and contractor give you a schedule for your project, and it should be in hand before you commit to the purchase.
Is it better to renovate or to tear down and rebuild?
It depends on the structure, the flood zone, the zoning and how much of the house the plan would keep. When a renovation would replace nearly everything, or would trigger flood elevation requirements, building new can be the better route. The teardown-or-renovate guide on this site sets out how to compare them.
Does a full renovation have to meet current building code?
The new work does. The Florida Building Code sets how much of the existing building must also be brought up to date, depending on how extensive the alteration is, and a building official decides for the specific permit. Your architect or contractor explains how that applies to your plan.
Can I buy the home first and plan the renovation later?
You can, but the safest moment to test the plan is before closing, while the inspection period lets you renegotiate or cancel. A plan tested only after you own the house has no exit if the flood rules, zoning or structure stand in its way.
What is BreakThru Realty’s role in a renovation?
BreakThru Realty is a licensed Florida real estate brokerage. Design and construction are performed by licensed, insured professionals you choose, under your own agreements with them.

BreakThru Realty is a licensed Florida real estate brokerage. Design and construction are performed by licensed, insured professionals you choose, under your own agreements with them.

More From BreakThru Dream Home Project

Related on BreakThru Realty