How much does restumping cost in Hobart?

Restumping, also called reblocking, replaces the stumps under a raised timber floor and re-levels the floor on the new ones. Many Hobart weatherboard houses sit on stumps, often on sloping blocks where the stumps on the low side are tall. This guide gathers the published prices, explains what pushes a Hobart job up or down and shows where the engineering fits. We design and certify restumping; we don't sell it or do it.

Restumping cost in Hobart: quick facts

A house, national

$5,000–$20,000 (hipages)

Full house, national

About $10,000–$30,000 or more (LevelMaster)

Per stump

About $160–$700, by stump type and source

Partial re-level

$2,200–$5,600 for 5–10 stumps (What's The Damage)

Permits, engineering, soil

$1,200–$3,800 (What's The Damage)

Approval

Not low-risk repair work: ask a building surveyor

How much does restumping cost in Hobart?

Published guides put restumping a house at about $5,000–$20,000 (hipages) to $10,000–$30,000 or more (LevelMaster), with complex or two-storey jobs reaching $40,000; these are national figures, because we found no Hobart-specific price list. What's The Damage, a national cost guide updated in November 2026, splits the range by house size.

The overlap is the point: no single number is "the" price. The number of stumps, the subfloor height and what turns up once the old stumps come out decide where a quote lands.

How much does each type of stump cost?

Per stump, the national guides range from about $160 for treated hardwood to $700 or more, with concrete and galvanised steel in between.

First three rows: What's The Damage, national averages, GST included, supplied and installed (checked 3 November 2026). LevelMaster and hipages checked 8 October 2026.

What makes restumping in Hobart cost more or less?

Slope, subfloor height, access and what's found under the floor move a Hobart restumping price most.

• Steep blocks. On a slope the low-side stumps can be much taller, and tall stumps need bracing and larger footings.
• Low clearance. Tight subfloors are slow to work in. What's The Damage puts complex, low-clearance or two-storey jobs at $20,000–$40,000.
• Access. Narrow side paths and stairs mean materials and spoil go in and out by hand.
• Number of stumps. What's The Damage counts 15–25 stumps under a 2–3 bedroom weatherboard and 25–40 under a 3–4 bedroom house.
• The ground. Reactive clay affects the footing size under each stump, and Hobart's clays are documented as expansive in places such as Lindisfarne and Lenah Valley.
• Hidden extras. Rotten bearers or joists often turn up once the floor is open; What's The Damage gives $120–$340 per metre to replace them.
• Fees on bigger jobs. Building work of $20,000 or more attracts the training levy and the Building Administration Fee.

Steep blocks are common on both sides of the Derwent, from Sandy Bay to Howrah. Where a retaining wall holds up the ground under the house, the engineer checks the wall and the stumps together.

Do you need an engineer for restumping?

Usually, yes: an engineer works out why the floor moved, specifies the stump layout, footing sizes, bracing and tie-down for the site, and gives the building surveyor a Form 35 for the design. The first job is checking whether stumps are really the problem. A sagging floor can also come from a leaking pipe softening the ground, failed bearers, or poor drainage, and replacing stumps won't fix those. If walls are cracking as well, start with a crack and foundation report.

• Inspection and diagnosis of the floor, stumps, bearers and ground
• Site classification where footing sizes depend on the soil, see site classification and footings
• Stump and footing design, with bracing for tall stumps and tie-down for wind
• Form 35 for the building surveyor, and a Form 55 or as-built check if needed

Our restumping engineering is fixed-quoted per job. If the house has brick walls on strip footings rather than stumps, that's underpinning, not restumping: see underpinning cost in Hobart.

Does restumping need approval in Tasmania?

Replacing stumps isn't low-risk repair work in Tasmania: the Director's Determination specifically excludes replacing piers or stumps that support a building from Category 2 repairs (clause 2.0.1). That means a building surveyor should look at it before work starts. Major structural repairs to a house are notifiable work (clause 3.0.3), and a licensed building surveyor can assess some minor structural repairs as low risk after a documented risk assessment (clause 2.8.1). Confirm which applies with your building surveyor. Our building approvals guide explains the categories.

How do you compare restumping quotes?

Compare what each quote actually replaces, what it's built to and what it leaves out, not just the total.

• How many stumps are replaced, and how many only packed or re-levelled?
• Which stump type, what footing size, and is bracing included?
• Is the work to an engineer's design, and who arranges the building surveyor?
• What happens if bearers or joists are found rotten?
• Is making good included: doors re-hung, plaster cracks patched?
• At $20,000 or more, the Residential Building Work Contracts and Dispute Resolution Act 2016 covers the contract, with statutory warranties.

When to call a structural engineer

Call an engineer before you commit to restumping, so the quote prices the right job.

• Floors slope or bounce, or doors have started to bind
• Stumps are leaning, rotten or sunk, or have lost contact with the bearers
• The house is on a steep block with tall stumps on the low side
• Your building surveyor wants a design and a Form 35
• You have restumping quotes that price very different scopes