Serving Aurora Town of Aurora Permits Victorian Core, 2000s Belt

Home Renovation in Aurora

Renovator Toronto renovates across Aurora, which has an unusually split housing stock. Aurora grew from about 700 people in 1863 to 2,107 in 1888, then declined and reverted to agriculture when industry left at the turn of the twentieth century. Growth resumed after the Second World War and accelerated from the early 2000s. 2021 census figures give 62,057 people in 21,506 occupied dwellings, up 11.9 percent since 2016.

Town of Aurora issues the permit

A genuinely Victorian core beside a large 2000s subdivision belt

Northeast Old Aurora is a heritage conservation district

Get a Aurora renovation estimate

Send your Aurora address and what you want renovated. We reply to book a free site visit.

What can we help with?

Service

So the right crew reviews your project.

Itemized written quote with HST at 13 percent shown.

Aurora

A stop-start history that left very little in the middle

Most municipalities we work in have a continuous housing spectrum. Aurora does not. It grew to 2,107 people by 1888, then declined and reverted to agriculture as industry left around the turn of the twentieth century, and did not resume meaningful growth until after the Second World War, accelerating from the early 2000s. The result is a small but genuinely Victorian core beside a large 2000s subdivision belt with comparatively little in between, and those two stocks need completely different approaches. Yonge Street at Wellington Street, originally Machell’s Corners, is the historic downtown. Hillary House is one of Canada’s better examples of Gothic Revival, the Aurora Cultural Centre occupies a renovated 1910 school, and the Aurora Armoury is nearby. Northeast Old Aurora was designated a heritage conservation district, which we confirm with the Town before planning exterior work there. Economic activity has shifted east toward Highway 404 and away from the historic core.

Aurora renovation splits between the Victorian core and the 2000s belt

Two stocks, almost nothing between

A Victorian core and a 2000s subdivision belt. A renovation in one is a different trade problem from the same renovation in the other, from framing and services to what the permit process involves.

Northeast Old Aurora heritage district

A designated heritage conservation district. Where your property sits inside it we confirm the designating bylaw and requirements with the Town before planning exterior changes.

2000s stock at first-cycle age

On the subdivision side, original kitchens, bathrooms and basements from the early 2000s are now due, and headroom and structure are rarely the constraint.

62,057 Aurora residents, 2021 census

21,506 Occupied private dwellings

11.9% Growth in the five years to 2021

1910 The school the Aurora Cultural Centre occupies

Renovation services in Aurora

The work we are called in for most across Aurora's Victorian core and its newer neighbourhoods.

$10 to $30 per sq ft

Tile Installation

Membrane and slope built before a single tile goes on, floor or wall.

$200 to $1,200 per linear ft

Custom Cabinets

Custom or semi-custom cabinetry built to the room, or refacing sound boxes.

$1.80 to $4.50 per sq ft

Interior Painting

Filling, sanding and priming before colour, with the prep stated in the quote.

$1.50 to $3.50 per sq ft

Drywall Repair and Installation

Board hung, taped and finished flat, with repairs priced at the cause.

$300 to $900 per window

Window Replacement

Replacement in the existing opening needs no permit; a new opening does.

$130 to $1,800 per door

Door Installation

Openings checked for plumb, level and twist before anything is ordered.

Which Aurora stock your house belongs to

Four checks specific to an Aurora address.

Which of the two stocks you are in

Victorian core or 2000s belt. That determines framing type, service condition, headroom, whether heritage review applies and what a realistic scope looks like, and it is the first thing we establish.

Heritage district status, confirmed with the Town

Northeast Old Aurora is a designated heritage conservation district. We confirm the designating bylaw and the requirements for your address with the Town of Aurora rather than relying on a secondary source.

On older housing, what is behind the plaster

In a genuinely Victorian building, knob-and-tube wiring, undersized supply plumbing and original framing are realistic possibilities. Those are budget lines, and we would rather find them at the site visit.

On newer housing, what is at end of first cycle

Early-2000s kitchens, bathrooms and basement finishes are now due. Where the layout still works, refacing and new counters frequently beat a full rebuild, and we will say so.

Our Process

The Aurora renovation process

1

Free site visit

We measure, check headroom, drains, framing and panel capacity, and confirm the permit office for your Aurora address.

2

Itemized written quote

Scope, materials, permit and engineering allowances, payment schedule and dates, with HST at 13 percent shown.

3

Permits and build

Drawings and engineering where the scope needs them, permit filed, then structure, rough-ins and finishes with inspections booked.

4

Deficiency list and walkthrough

A written deficiency list worked to completion, then a walkthrough with you before final payment.

Aurora client feedback

We had a great experience with the team from the initial estimate to the final walkthrough. Communication was clear, the schedule was well managed, and the results look fantastic.

We hired the team for a bathroom renovation in our Toronto home. They handled the demolition, tile work, and finishing details professionally and kept the work area organized.

Renovator Toronto managed our condo renovation efficiently and respected the building rules throughout the project. The workmanship was clean, and the project stayed well organized.

Aurora renovation, answered

Who issues the building permit in Aurora?

The Town of Aurora, which is a separate municipality from Toronto with its own building department and zoning bylaw. Toronto's Multiplex By-law, secondary suite provisions and Basement Flooding Protection Subsidy do not apply here.

Why is Aurora housing so split between old and new?

Because growth stopped. Aurora reached 2,107 people by 1888, then declined and reverted to agriculture as industry left around the turn of the twentieth century, and did not resume meaningful growth until after the Second World War, accelerating from the early 2000s. That leaves a Victorian core, a 2000s belt and little in between.

Can I renovate a heritage property in Aurora?

Yes, and the process is different. Northeast Old Aurora is a designated heritage conservation district, so for a property inside it we confirm the designating bylaw and requirements with the Town and sequence any heritage review ahead of construction.

Does renovating an older Aurora house cost more?

Usually, and for specific reasons rather than as a general rule. Knob-and-tube wiring, undersized supply plumbing, original framing and out-of-square openings each add real work, and in a heritage district the review step adds time. We price those from what we find at the site visit rather than as a percentage uplift.