How to Customize a New-Build Apartment Before You Move In

The best time to customize a new-build apartment is before the developer finishes it. Changes to walls, plumbing and electricity are far easier to make on the plan, and far less disruptive, than after the keys are handed over, so decide early how you really live, adjust the layout to it, and plan the kitchen, storage and systems as one design.

By Maya Sheinberger | 22.05.25

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A developer's plan is written for an average family that doesn't exist. In Israel we call these homes "contractor apartments", and most of them look the same: a small kitchen, a guest toilet nobody needs, and a bedroom count that matters more for the sale than for daily life. Two of my projects in Tel Aviv show how much a new apartment can change when the design starts early.

Key takeaways

• Start the interior design before construction ends, while walls and pipes can still move.

• Trade rooms you don't need for space you use every day, like a bigger kitchen or a work corner.

• Plan storage as continuous joinery, not as separate pieces of furniture.

• Decide on smart home, lighting and underfloor heating at the planning stage.

• Order long-lead items early, so the contractor's schedule doesn't decide for you.

Why change a new apartment at all?

Because the plan should serve the people, not the brochure. As I put it when describing the E apartment: when you design a contractor apartment, you can't just dress it in a beautiful design. You have to change the plan so it truly works for the family. In a 120 sqm home in central Tel Aviv for a family with three teenagers, that meant a larger kitchen, joinery that runs through the whole apartment, and a home office in a place the developer never imagined.

The living room of the E apartment, with a light sofa, large black-framed glass doors and the kitchen behind it.

Which changes make the biggest difference?

Change	Example from my projects	Why it works
Give up a bedroom for the public space	C apartment: one bedroom of the original five-room layout became part of the living area	A small living space becomes the heart of the home
Turn the guest toilet into something useful	E: a work niche. C: a pantry	A second bathroom already serves guests
Enlarge the kitchen	E and C	The kitchen is the room most families use most
Give the mamad (the reinforced safe room built into every new Israeli apartment) a daily role	C: a walk-in closet	The safe room works every day
Plan the systems early	E: smart home and underfloor heating	Wiring and pipes go in once, in the right place

Case study: a bigger kitchen and a hidden home office

In the E apartment, we gave up the guest toilet and turned its place into a work niche in a deep olive green, with a dark veneer desk and built-in storage. The clients wanted a work area that is part of the public space but doesn't interrupt its flow, and the niche does exactly that.

The kitchen grew and opened to the living area. Tall cabinets in a dark finish with integrated handles sit next to smoked oak units, and the worktops are dark gray natural stone. The central island is both a work surface and a place where the whole family sits.

The E apartment kitchen, with a dark stone island, tall dark cabinets with built-in ovens and steel spotlights on a ceiling rail.

The joinery is the thread that ties the apartment together. It starts at the entrance as wall cladding behind the dining area, holds cabinets that open from both sides and hides the electrical cabinet. A smart electrical system controls the lighting, curtains and air conditioning at the touch of a button, and underfloor heating adds another layer of comfort. All of this needed precise planning at the very beginning of the project, so nothing came as a surprise later.

Case study: redesigning the plan before construction began

The C apartment is a 120 sqm new-build in Tel Aviv's Kochav HaTzafon neighborhood, with a 30 sqm balcony toward Yarkon Park. Every change was made before construction started, as part of the buyer's changes process. The clients, a couple in their 60s whose children have grown up and left home, cook, bake and host their children and grandchildren. The original public space was very small, and they dreamed of a kitchen that would be the center of the home.

So the plan changed. The original master bedroom and the wall beside it were removed, and the dining area took their place. The guest toilet became a pantry, the mamad became a walk-in closet, one bedroom was adapted for visiting grandchildren, and the remaining bedroom was enlarged into the parents' suite.

The C apartment kitchen island, with a built-in hob and black bar stools, beside wide glass doors to the balcony and the city view.

The kitchen became the dominant element of the home: two parallel units in graphite gray, with floor-to-ceiling cabinets that hold two fridges, a freezer, an oven and a microwave, and an island with a 3.8-meter stainless steel worktop, imported from Italy as one piece with the sink and hob built in.

How early should you start?

As early as you can. In the C apartment, planning took 12 months and construction 24. Because the whole design was ready in advance, we submitted the plans ahead of the contractor's schedule and ordered everything made abroad on time, without pressure from the contractor or the suppliers.

A bedroom in the E apartment, with a black ceiling fan and a dark wood dresser that continues into a desk by the window.

What to check before you sign off the plan

• Count the rooms you will really use, not the rooms that add to the price.

• Ask where the kitchen can grow, and whether a wall can come down.

• Check which room can become a study, a pantry or a closet.

• Plan sockets, lighting and air conditioning with the furniture layout in hand.

• Choose built-in joinery that hides the electrical cabinet, the AC and the clutter.

I wrote more about why to bring a designer into a new apartment in my post on five reasons to work with an interior designer, and about everyday planning ideas in smart design solutions for a beautiful, practical home.

Frequently asked questions

Can I change the layout of a new-build apartment in Israel?

Usually yes, through the developer's buyer changes process, as long as you submit the changes before that part of the building is built. Structural walls and the mamad have limits, so check them with the developer.

What are the most useful changes in a contractor apartment?

A larger kitchen, a work corner instead of a guest toilet, a pantry, continuous built-in storage and early planning of lighting, smart home and air conditioning.

When should I hire an interior designer for a new apartment?

Before construction, ideally as soon as you buy. In the C apartment, early planning let us change the whole layout before the walls were built.

Is it worth giving up a bedroom?

If you don't need it every day, often yes. In the C apartment, one bedroom of the original five-room layout became part of the living space, and the kitchen became the heart of the home.

Bought an apartment off-plan in Tel Aviv or central Israel? I'd love to hear about your project.

Maya Sheinberger is an interior designer with more than 17 years of experience. After five years at a leading architecture firm, she founded her independent studio in 2012. She holds a B.Des with honors from the College of Management. Her work has appeared in more than 150 publications in Israel and abroad, including eight Archilovers Best Project awards, and one of her apartments features in the book The New Minimalist Style.

Photography @itaybenitphotographer · Styling @maya_livnat_harush