The oldest part of Canberra, and the part with the widest spread of housing. We cover Kingston, Griffith and Manuka, Red Hill, Forrest, Deakin, Yarralumla and Narrabundah, for doors, painting, carpentry, gutters, apartment repairs and rental turnovers. Free quote. Fixed price. No surprises on the invoice.
Most of the Inner South was gazetted on 20 September 1928, and the first streets in Griffith, Forrest and Kingston were built out from 1926. That makes this the oldest residential part of Canberra, laid out in places to Walter Burley Griffin's plan, with garden-city blocks, mature street trees and houses now approaching a hundred years old.
The second half of the district is much newer. Between the 2001 and 2021 censuses the share of separate houses across South Canberra fell from 57.3% to 40.6%, while flats, units and apartments rose from 27.8% to 47.6%. Kingston alone sits at 90.5% apartments. The district population reached 31,592 at the 2021 census.
Those two halves need completely different work. A 1920s house in Forrest or Red Hill needs settled doors eased, old plaster cut out and patched, and original joinery repaired rather than replaced. A Kingston apartment needs fixings that hold in the wall you actually have, careful work in a small space, and a clear line about what is your lot and what is common property. We do both, and we do not quote one as though it were the other.
We are based in Torrens, so the Inner South is a short run across the Woden Valley. Deakin and Yarralumla border Curtin, and Red Hill backs onto Garran and O'Malley, all suburbs we work in every week.
Suburbs with their own page are linked, the rest are serviced exactly the same, with dedicated pages on the way. We do not list Barton, Parkes, Capital Hill or Fyshwick here because they are office, parliamentary and industrial land rather than housing.
Canberra's oldest and densest suburb. 90.5% apartments, from 1920s heritage flats to the Foreshore builds.
67.9% separate houses, most built after 1945. Embassies, The Lodge, and large established gardens.
Settled from 1926. Manuka shops sit inside the suburb, with 20 parks across nearly 12% of its area.
79.1% separate houses on 1920s garden-city streets, below the Red Hill ridge and nature park.
Mostly built 1926 to 1927 on blocks of 1,600 square metres and up. Heritage-listed precincts throughout.
65.1% separate houses. Government-built stock from the 1950s, much of it rebuilt since the 1980s.
Developed from 1947 as a workers suburb. 1950s fibro cottages and brick duplexes under mature street trees.
Repairs and maintenance for houses, apartments and rentals across the district. If your job is not listed, call and ask and we will tell you straight.
Inner South door work splits two ways. Pre-war houses have solid timber doors in frames that have moved for the better part of a century, so they need easing and re-hanging rather than replacing. Apartments and townhouses need locks, handles, strikers and sliding doors put back on their tracks.
Older Inner South plaster cracks along the same lines every year as the house moves with the seasons. We cut out the crack, fill and sand it, then paint. On apartment work we cover floors and finish edges cleanly, because there is nowhere to hide a rough cut in a small room.
Mouldy silicone and cracked grout in a shower, a bath edge or a bathroom floor, cut out and replaced. Older houses and apartments across the Inner South both need it, and with so many rentals in the area it is a common condition-report item to clear between tenancies.
Skirting, architraves, picture rails, built-in shelving and handrails. The 1920s and 1930s houses through Forrest, Griffith and Red Hill have joinery worth repairing rather than tearing out, and we work to what is already there.
Narrabundah, Red Hill and Griffith are full of mature deciduous street trees, which is why the autumn leaf drop here is heavier than in the newer districts. We clear the gutters, flush the downpipes, re-fix loose brackets and tell you what shape the run is in.
Kingston is 90.5% apartments, so most of our work there is inside a unit: shelving and TV brackets fixed properly into the right substrate, blinds and curtain rails, door and cupboard adjustments, silicone and hardware replacement. Anything on common property needs your body corporate to sign off first, and we will say so.
The Inner South carries one of the highest rental concentrations in the city. We handle exit-report items, make-good repairs, touch-up painting and fixture swaps between tenancies, worked through in one visit and billed once.
Old concrete, brick paving and paths under heavy tree cover go green on the shaded side through winter. We strip driveways, paths, courtyards and external walls back properly instead of rinsing them, which is worth doing before a sale or an inspection.
Wardrobes, beds, desks and storage assembled, levelled and anchored, and TV brackets fixed into something that will hold. Apartment walls vary from solid masonry to stud and plasterboard, so we check what is behind the lining before anything gets drilled.
The list that never quite gets done. A gate that drags, a tap washer, a sticking window, a light fitting swap, a fly screen that has torn. Give us the whole list when you call and our team works through it in one visit.
We work right across the capital and the Queanbeyan corridor. Each district has its own page with the suburbs we service and how to book.
The Inner South runs from the Kingston Foreshore across Manuka and Griffith to the Red Hill ridge, Deakin and Yarralumla. Our Torrens base is a short run south-west across the Woden Valley.
More about the area: South Canberra on Wikipedia
Google reviews from customers across Canberra.
"Steve did a great job repairing our bathroom door and replacing the wheels on our sliding glass door. He responded quickly, arrived on time and completed both jobs efficiently. He was friendly, professional and easy to deal with, and the cost was reasonable. I would happily recommend Steve to anyone looking for a reliable, skilled and professional handyman."
"Had Steve come around for some repairs in my unit. Honestly, it’s rare to find someone this reliable. He turned up on time, did exactly what I asked, and even spotted a couple of small things that needed fixing which he sorted on the spot."
"Steve did an excellent job. He was held up at previous job and kept me updated re estimated arrival. His work was a very high standard. Price was reasonable. Steve was easy to communicate with. Thank you Steve."
Kingston, Griffith and the Manuka precinct, Red Hill, Forrest, Deakin, Yarralumla and Narrabundah. We are based in Torrens, so the Inner South is a short run across the Woden Valley. Call 0424 705 056 to confirm your address.
Yes. Kingston in particular is 90.5% apartments at the 2021 census, and a lot of our work there is inside a unit: shelving, TV mounting, blinds, door and cupboard adjustments, minor repairs. Work inside your own lot is straightforward. Anything on common property, the building exterior, balconies or shared walls needs your body corporate or strata manager to approve it first, and we will tell you when that applies rather than starting and causing you a problem.
Yes, and it is a large part of what we do in this district. Griffith, Forrest and Red Hill were settled from about 1926, so those homes are approaching a century old. Doors out of square, plaster that cracks in the same spots, painted-over timber and timber windows that stick are all normal at that age. If your property is heritage listed, tell us upfront so the work stays inside what your listing allows.
There's no set figure, because the price depends on the job. Polytechnitis quotes each Inner South job individually and gives you a fixed price before anything is booked in. There's no call-out fee and no obligation.
Yes, and on an older house it is usually the sensible way to do it. Tell us the full list when you call. Our team works through as much as we can in a single visit and sends one invoice, which normally costs less than separate callouts.
Yes. Between-tenancy work is steady here: exit-report items, make-good repairs, patching and touch-up painting, fixture replacements. Send the report through and we will quote the list as a whole.
Yes. Public liability cover on every job, and we hold an ACT Working with Vulnerable People registration, which matters if you are booking on behalf of an older parent or for a family home.
No charge for the quote. No obligation. We'll call back the same day and book a time that suits you.
House or apartment, we're insured and we quote fixed prices before we start. Tell us your suburb and what needs doing.
