Interwar apartments, and what they hide
Cremorne holds some of the most intact interwar apartment stock on the North Shore — solid masonry blocks through the streets around Military Road and the Orpheum, many of them well maintained and still carrying their original layouts.
The bathrooms in these buildings are small, often beautifully detailed, and structurally quite unlike a modern apartment. Masonry walls rather than stud framing. Services that may be original, or patched several times over ninety years. Drainage that predates every standard currently in force.
That makes them rewarding to renovate and genuinely unpredictable to quote. A price for one of these should be explicit about how discoveries are handled — because on a building of that age, there will be some.
What to keep and what to renew
The instinct to preserve period character is a good one, applied selectively.
Worth keeping where sound: original terrazzo floors, a deep cast-iron bath, leadlight or patterned glass, and the proportions of the room itself. These are the things that cannot be bought back.
Not worth keeping, ever: original waterproofing, original wiring, original drainage. None of it meets current requirements and all of it is invisible once the room is finished. The waterproofing page explains why the membrane is the one stage where the old way is simply worse.
The middle path most owners land on is period proportion and finish — tile format, tapware, a generous mirror — with entirely modern layout, services and waterproofing behind it.
Strata, and the older blocks
Nearly every apartment job here needs owners corporation approval, and the well-maintained older buildings often have the most thorough by-laws. Permitted hours, common area protection, notice to neighbours, and a formal process for anything touching waterproofing.
None of that is an obstacle. It is a timeline, and it belongs at the front of the program. The strata guide covers what an application should contain.
Cremorne Point and the houses
The harbourside houses toward Cremorne Point are a different proposition — typically Federation or interwar on suspended timber floors, where drainage can move and a real layout change is affordable.
The constraint shifts to access. The streets running down toward the point are narrow and steep, parking is limited, and material often has to be carried a distance. That is real labour on every delivery and it belongs in the quote rather than arriving later as a variation. The same applies across the harbourside streets of Mosman.
What it costs
Cremorne apartment bathrooms mostly sit in the $18,000–$28,000 band, with the older masonry buildings running above it where services need substantial renewal. Houses with a layout change generally run $25,000–$40,000 and up. See the 2026 cost bands.
Nearby
We also work in Neutral Bay, Mosman and North Sydney, plus Cammeray.
Call 02 4602 1201 or send the room details through.
Frequently asked questions
What is different about renovating an Art Deco apartment bathroom?
The building is usually solid masonry rather than stud framing, services are often original or heavily patched, and the room is small by modern standards. It is very workable, but what is behind the tiles is genuinely unpredictable until they come off — so the variation clause matters more here than almost anywhere.
Should I keep period features?
Where they are sound and characterful, frequently yes — original terrazzo, a deep cast-iron bath, or a leadlight window can be worth designing around. What should not be preserved is original waterproofing, original wiring or original drainage. Keep the character, renew everything that keeps the room dry and safe.
Do Cremorne buildings have strict by-laws?
Many do, particularly the older and better-maintained blocks. Expect permitted work hours, requirements around lift and common area protection, and a formal approval process for anything affecting waterproofing. Start that conversation before you design rather than after.
Is Cremorne Point harder to work in?
Access is the constraint rather than the building. The streets running down to the point are narrow and steep, parking is limited, and material frequently has to be carried. That adds labour to every delivery and should be priced from the site rather than assumed.