ᐅ Installation of floor-to-ceiling window and Juliet balcony, old building, 4th floor

Dear florists,

Today, I received financing approval for the purchase of a condominium unit on the 4th floor of an old building dating back to 1910 (which means the exterior walls are probably very thick), and I hope to finalize the purchase in the next few weeks. I would like to install a floor-to-ceiling window, more precisely a double balcony door with a French balcony, in one of the rooms. On the 5th floor directly above, there is already a window of this exact type, so it should be possible.

Is it feasible to carry out this work entirely from inside the apartment, without scaffolding (which would probably be very expensive)? Does anyone have an approximate cost estimate for this? Possibly also including scaffolding, in case there is no other option.

Many thanks,
Simon

Hello, I don’t have any experience with renovating a condominium, but for our floor-to-ceiling windows on the upper floor, the company did not need scaffolding. They installed them normally from the inside.

Are you even allowed to change the window? To my knowledge, windows are part of the common property, and any modification requires the consent of all parties involved.

Simon2 schrieb:
On the 5th floor there is an identical window installed directly above, so it should be possible.

Aha, then maybe ask them there (?)

Simon2 schrieb:
Today I got the financing approved for purchasing a condominium on the 4th floor of an old building from 1910 (so the exterior walls are probably very thick)

A building from 1910 likely means 25 cm (10 inches) thick walls on the 4th floor. With a late 19th-century style and a French balcony, you’d need some luck if there is no historic preservation restriction involved. Is it perhaps less problematic on the 5th floor because that might already be the attic level?

I agree with the assessment that the homeowners’ association meeting should be consulted.

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Thanks Niri for the information, that already helps me a lot. How much did the installation cost for you?

Of course, I will discuss the renovation with the other owners; if I understand the condominium declaration correctly, usually even the property manager has the authority to make decisions regarding any construction work affecting common property.

Regarding the heritage preservation status: from which document should it be clear whether the building is listed? The apartment above is actually in the attic, but the relevant wall there is also a normal exterior wall, not a sloping roof or similar.

In Bavaria, for example, there is a database of all listed buildings maintained by the State Office for Monument Preservation. I imagine that similar databases exist in every federal state.