Planning Guide
Commercial Fit Out Checklist, Sydney
A practical, stage-by-stage checklist for Sydney business owners planning a commercial fit out — what to review, decide and confirm before construction starts, and what happens through to handover.
Most of the cost and timeline risk in a commercial fit out comes from decisions made — or missed — before construction ever starts: lease conditions, landlord approvals, and a scope that hasn't been properly priced. This checklist sets out the stages FRANCA FITOUTS works through with clients across commercial, office, retail and hospitality fit outs, so you know what to expect and what to prepare at each step.
The Checklist
Seven Stages of a Commercial Fit Out
Lease & Site Review
Before committing to a space, check the lease for make-good obligations, access and after-hours work conditions, and loading or lift access for materials. If you're taking on an existing fitout, understand what condition you'll eventually need to return it to — see our commercial make good page if that applies to you.
Define Scope, Budget & Timeline
Set out what the space needs to do for your business, a realistic budget range, and the timeline you're working to — including any hard deadline like a lease start date. This is the starting point for a proper design consultation.
Planning & Design
Develop the layout, finishes and construction requirements before anything is priced. Concept layouts and early budget estimates at this stage mean fewer costly changes once construction starts.
Compliance & Building Requirements
Identify structural, services and building-code constraints early, and confirm what sign-off your landlord or building management will require before works can start. These checks are easy to miss and expensive to fix later if they're found mid-build.
Detailed Proposal & Program
A proper proposal defines the full scope, an estimated cost and a construction program — not a rough per-square-metre guess. This is also the point to confirm who is managing trades, budget and communication through construction; see project management.
Construction & Site Coordination
Trades, materials and joinery are coordinated against the agreed program, with budget tracking and progress reporting so you know where the project stands at each stage — not only at the end.
Quality Review & Handover
Before handover, workmanship is inspected and final details resolved, so the space is delivered genuinely ready for use — and, if the lease eventually requires it, ready for a make good at the other end of the tenancy.
Sydney Service Area
This Checklist Applies Across Sydney
FRANCA FITOUTS works through this process with clients across the Eastern Suburbs and greater Sydney. See our areas we service page for the full list of regions, or view our projects to see completed fit outs from first consultation through to handover.
Common Questions
Commercial Fit Out Checklist — FAQ
How far in advance should I start planning a commercial fitout?
Start as early as possible — ideally while you're still negotiating the lease, since make-good clauses, access conditions and landlord approval requirements can affect both your budget and your timeline. Planning early gives more room for design, documentation and approvals before construction needs to begin.
What should I have ready before contacting a fitout company?
It helps to have a rough idea of your budget range, your required move-in date, a copy of the lease (or at least its make-good and access clauses), and a general sense of how the space needs to work for your business. FRANCA FITOUTS can help refine the rest through a design consultation.
What's the difference between a fitout and a make good?
A fitout builds out a space for a new tenant's use — layout, joinery, finishes and services. A make good is the reverse: removing an existing fitout and reinstating the space to the condition the lease requires at the end of a tenancy. Many businesses need both, at different points in the same lease.
Do I need my landlord's approval before starting a commercial fitout?
Most commercial leases require landlord or building management sign-off on fitout works, particularly anything affecting base-building services, structure or common areas. FRANCA FITOUTS coordinates this directly as part of the project rather than leaving it for the tenant to manage alone.
Can my business stay open or operating during the fitout?
It depends on the scope of works and the type of space. Staged works, after-hours scheduling or staying open in part of the space are often possible for retail and hospitality fitouts in particular — this is worth raising at the scope and program stage, before a proposal is finalised.
Ready When You Are
Planning a Fitout? Let's Build It Properly.
Talk to FRANCA FITOUTS about your next commercial, medical, dental, hospitality, retail or residential project.