Unit and House Bathrooms in Central Wollongong

What's in the middle of town

Walk-up units. North Wollongong and the streets around the CBD have plenty of three- and four-storey brick walk-ups from the sixties and seventies. Bathrooms tend to be small, with a bath and shower over, coloured tiles, and pipes set in the slab.

Newer apartment buildings. Around the city centre, the station and toward the beach, newer buildings have compact bathrooms, often with no window, and builder-grade finishes.

Older houses. West Wollongong, Mount Saint Thomas and the streets climbing toward the escarpment have weatherboard, fibro and brick houses, many on sloping blocks.

Student rentals. Heading toward Gwynneville and Keiraville, lots of houses and units are leased to students. See rental bathrooms.

Unit bathrooms

Strata first

Replacing a unit's bathroom waterproofing is generally a major renovation under NSW strata law, which normally needs a special resolution of the owners corporation. Get in touch with your strata manager early and find out whether the building has a renovation by-law. It saves weeks.

Working in the building

• Noisy work usually limited to set weekday hours
• Lift protection and bookings, where there's a lift
• Stairs in walk-ups, so everything's carried
• Parking for trades, which can be tight near the beach and in the CBD
• Waste removal through common areas

Making a small unit bathroom better

The waste positions stay where they are, so improvements come from:

• A walk-in shower where the bath was
• A fixed glass panel
• Floor-to-ceiling tiles in a light colour
• A wall-hung vanity and mirror cabinet
• Better lighting and a stronger fan

See small bathrooms.

Houses on the hill

Older homes in West Wollongong and toward the escarpment usually have:

• Timber floors on piers, sometimes with damp subfloors on sloping blocks
• Fibro linings in bathrooms and add-ons
• Old galvanised pipes
• No fan, or one that vents into the roof

These rooms generally need a full renovation: asbestos testing, floor repairs, new pipes, proper waterproofing and ventilation ducted outside. See full bathroom renovations.

Salt and humidity

Close to the beach, bathrooms cop salt air as well as humidity. Thin chrome pits, fan grilles rust and shower screen hardware stains. Choosing better tapware, stainless hardware and a fan that clears the room fast makes the new bathroom last. Near the escarpment, humidity and shade are the bigger problem, and ventilation matters even more.

Investment units

A fair share of city and North Wollongong units are owned by investors and leased to students, young workers or holiday visitors. For those, the brief is different: tough surfaces, tapware with easy-to-find parts, a fixed glass panel and a strong fan, all done in the gap between tenants. Getting strata approval and selections organised before the lease ends is what keeps the vacancy short. See rental bathrooms.

Heritage and approvals

Wollongong City Council has heritage items across the local government area, including in older parts of the city. Internal bathroom work in a non-heritage house is generally exempt development. If you're changing a window or an outside wall, or the house is listed, check first.

Costs in central Wollongong

As a 2026 guide:

• Unit bathroom: $16,000–$26,000
• House main bathroom: $21,000–$35,000
• Rental bathroom refresh (layout unchanged): $12,000–$22,000

Asbestos removal, floor repairs and strata costs are extra where they apply. See prices.

Nearby

We also work in Figtree, Corrimal, Thirroul, Dapto and Unanderra, plus Keiraville, Gwynneville, Towradgi and Mount Ousley.

Renovation work is carried out in partnership with Coastal Renovation Group, a licensed NSW builder. Licence and insurance details are provided on request.

Call 02 4214 4073 or send the bathroom details through.