Builders in Bellville for Family Homes, Hillside Properties and Apartments
Bellville grew up around a railway stop on the line to Stellenbosch, about 25 km from the city centre, and was later named after Charles Bell, the Cape’s Surveyor-General. Today it is a city within the city: a busy CBD with hospitals, campuses and shops, Tyger Valley and the Tyger Waterfront across the N1, and a ring of residential suburbs that climb into the Tygerberg hills. Boston, Oakdale, Oakglen, Kempenville, Bloemhof, Eversdal, Kenridge and Welgemoed all sit within a short drive of each other, and each has a different kind of house.
Because a Boston semi and a Welgemoed hillside house need very different work, we price nothing in Bellville before seeing it. Around The House Building Services handles renovations, extensions, roofing, waterproofing, plastering, painting and paving here, and you can ask for a site visit on our quote page.
What Our Builders in Bellville Do
Typical Bellville jobs include:
- Home renovations: kitchens, bathrooms, open-plan conversions and full makeovers of older houses.
- Extensions and additions: a main bedroom suite at the back, a garden flat for a student or a parent, or a covered braai area.
- Roofing and waterproofing: slipped tiles on 1960s roofs, rusted valleys, and flat roof and parapet waterproofing on later additions.
- Plastering and painting: cracks around old steel window frames, re-plastering and exterior painting.
- Paving and walls: driveways, patios, boundary walls and retaining walls on sloping plots.
Renovating Older Homes in Boston, Oakdale and Kenridge
The older parts of Bellville, such as Boston near the CBD and the oak-lined streets of Kenridge, are full of solid family homes that were built decades ago and have had only cosmetic updates since. Boston in particular has become popular with young families who buy an older house within walking distance of schools and Jack Muller Park, then renovate it in stages.
When we open up houses of this age, the same issues tend to appear: tired plumbing, original roof timbers and fixings that need attention, steel window frames that have rusted and cracked the plaster around them, and damp at the base of walls where garden beds or paving have been built up over the old damp-proof course. We check for these at the site visit and price them separately, so you can decide what to fix now and what can wait. If you are still working out a budget, our house renovation cost guide gives realistic 2026 Cape Town figures.
Bellville Building Contractors for Hillside Homes in Welgemoed and Eversdal
Higher up, towards the Tygerberg Nature Reserve and the Durbanville border, the plots get bigger and steeper. Welgemoed and Eversdal have large homes with big gardens, pools and entertainment areas, and many were built in the 1970s and 1980s. Renovations here are often about modernising: opening the kitchen to the patio, adding a covered entertainment area, redoing the bathrooms and reworking the outside of the house.
On the steeper Welgemoed and Eversdal plots, the pool terrace or the garden often sits on a retaining wall that was built decades ago with no weep holes. When one of those starts to lean, it needs an engineer’s design before it is rebuilt, and we build to that design. Hairline cracks on these houses are often just old plaster, but our article on cracks in walls explains which ones deserve a closer look.
Roofing and Waterproofing by Bellville Builders
Bellville gets its rain in winter, often driven by north-westerly fronts, and many houses here have concrete or clay tile roofs that are now old enough to need work. Common problems we find are slipped or cracked tiles, perished underlay, rusted valleys and flashings, and ridge cement that has cracked and let water in. Flat-roofed additions and parapet walls, which are common on 1970s and 1980s houses, are another frequent source of leaks.
We repair what can be repaired and only recommend a full re-roof when it makes sense. Our guide on why roof leaks keep coming back explains why patch jobs often fail, and it is worth reading before you accept any roofing quote.
Extensions and Building Plans: Builders in Bellville
In Boston, Oakdale and Bloemhof the plots are usually big enough to extend outwards rather than up, which keeps costs down and avoids the structural checks a second storey needs. Opening a lounge into the kitchen is the other common request, and on these older roofs the dividing wall often carries ceiling load, so it gets propped and a beam goes in to an engineer’s specification.
Any new room needs building plans approved by the City of Cape Town, drawn by your architect or draughtsman (we build, we do not draw). The home extension cost guide covers typical prices per square metre.
Sectional Title Renovations in Tyger Valley and Central Bellville
Around Tyger Valley, the Tyger Waterfront and the CBD there are many apartment blocks and townhouse complexes. Many of these units are bought as investments near the hospitals and campuses, so the work is often a bathroom or kitchen refit between tenants. The body corporate has to approve it first, and lifts and passages are shared, so we confirm working hours and delivery times with the managing agent before booking the start date.
Bellville Builders: Common Questions
Do you work in all the Bellville suburbs?
Yes, from Boston, Oakdale and Kempenville near the CBD up to Eversdal, Kenridge, Welgemoed and the Tyger Valley complexes.
Is it worth renovating an older house in Boston, Bellville?
Often, yes, because the plots and the location hold their value. The deciding factor is usually what the roof, plumbing and damp-proofing need, so get those priced before you plan finishes.
Do I need plans to extend my house in Bellville?
In most cases, yes. Bellville falls under the City of Cape Town, and any new room, second storey or structural change needs approved plans. We will tell you at the site visit whether your project needs them and work with your architect or draughtsman.
Can I stay in my Bellville home while you renovate?
Usually, yes. On a bathroom or kitchen job we plan the order of work so the room is out of use for as short a time as possible. A large extension that opens up the back of the house is harder to live through.
How do I book Bellville builders for a site visit?
Call 021 784 2663 or fill in the quote form. Photos of the problem help us plan the site visit.
Other areas we cover near Bellville
Bellville borders several suburbs we also work in: Durbanville up the hill, Parow and Goodwood along Voortrekker Road, and Brackenfell to the east. The rest are listed on our areas we serve page.