Apartment Finishing, Start to Finish: Timeline and Costs

Key takeaways: A standard 90 m² apartment typically takes 8–10 weeks from design sign-off to handover. The biggest delays come from decisions made too late — material selection and MEP rough-in changes after work has started are the two most common causes of schedule slippage.

Week 1–2: Design sign-off and procurement start

Once the 3D renders and finish schedule are approved, long-lead items get ordered immediately — imported materials, custom joinery, and specialty lighting can take weeks to arrive, so this step starts before any demolition happens on site.

Week 2–4: Demolition and MEP rough-in

Existing finishes come out, and electrical and plumbing rough-in happens for anything that's changing. This is the stage where "hidden" problems in an older building — outdated wiring, unexpected plumbing routes — tend to surface. A good contractor flags these immediately rather than working around them silently.

Week 4–7: Flooring, wall finishes, and joinery installation

The bulk of the visible construction happens here: flooring goes down, wall treatments are applied, and custom cabinetry is installed. This is also the stage most vulnerable to delay if material orders from week 1 haven't arrived on schedule — which is why early procurement matters more than it seems at the design stage.

Week 7–9: Lighting, fixtures, and furniture placement

Light fixtures are installed and tested, kitchen and bathroom fixtures go in, and furniture arrives and is placed according to the approved layout. Snagging — the list of small defects to fix before handover — usually starts here rather than at the very end.

Week 9–10: Final snagging and handover

A final walkthrough against the approved design catches anything that still needs adjustment. Handover includes documentation: warranty information, finish specifications, and as-built notes for future reference.

What actually causes delays

In our experience, the two biggest causes of schedule slippage are: material decisions made after ordering has already started (forcing a re-order and a wait), and client-requested layout changes discovered mid-construction rather than during the 3D design phase. Both are avoidable by treating the design and render approval stage as genuinely final before demolition begins.

Read our interior design service page for what happens before this timeline starts, or our pricing guide for how these stages translate into cost.