About Trevor
Building a home or renovation is more than just business for me — it’s a relationship built on trust, vision, and skill. On the Mornington Peninsula, the weather, country feel, and the lifestyle all shape how a home needs to work.
At Timber Tegrity, Master Builder Trevor Madsen brings decades of building experience, clear communication, and genuine care to every project — from heritage restorations to modern coastal extensions, and even just maintaining holiday houses by the bay.
A Conversation with Trevor
Q: You began your career in joinery and furniture making. How did that shape the builder you are today?
A: Starting an apprenticeship in joinery and antique restoration, taught me, it’s all in the details. You cannot rush working with precision. That early work gave me a respect for materials and learning to be precise.
After spending 4 years working for a builder restoring heritage houses around South Yarra, I got hooked on carpentry, and at 23 became a master builder. Since then, I’ve carried that passion into building and renovation.
All my life, every project has something interesting about it, the story of how something is put together, can sometimes be as interesting as the result.
Q: Many homeowners don’t see what’s hidden behind the walls of older homes. What have you learned about working with those unseen challenges?
A: Renovation of old houses is not for every builder. Older houses can hold a lot of surprises.
Sometimes I pull up a board and find water damage, or a wall that isn’t square, or wiring from the 1960’s or earlier. I’ve learned to expect the unexpected and then explain what’s happening in plain language.
We can solve almost any issue with an old house. While we can’t say we’ve seen it all, there’s very little that surprises us now.
Q: People describe you as a problem-solver. What does that look like on site day to day?
A: There aren’t really problems as such, just challenges.
To me, everything is just a part of a job waiting for a solution. Sometimes, it’s as simple as changing a structural design element to take advantage on modern construction techniques to keep on budget.
If there is a better, more efficient way to do a job, I want to know about it. Efficiency with time and materials is critical in construction.
Q: How do you help clients make decisions when projects start to change mid-build?
A: The key is communication. If a change is going to add cost, time, or not really add value to the project, I’d rather say it straight away. And not every change is about money.
Mediating client visions and ideas is an important part of my job, once clients know I’m genuinely interested in the finished project, they can better make informed choices.
Building is easier when the builder is on your side because it really is a team effort.
Q: Timber Tegrity has long-term clients who come back again and again. What do you think keeps those relationships strong?
A: Trust and being reliable. I’ve worked with some families through two or three homes now.
They know I’ll pick up the phone, give sound advice, and we can be relied upon to get the job done — it’s about doing the kind of work, that makes someone call you again ten years later.
That means more to me than any advertisement or asking for Google reviews.
Q: Trevor, you may be the face of Timber Tegrity, but there’s more than one person involved isn’t there?
A: Yes, of course, some of these are big projects that a single person couldn’t do by themselves. But, because I’ve got really good staff, some who have been with me for over a decade, they understand how to work with clients if I’m not there, and, we’ve developed the skills needed to see a project from start to finish.
Because we can handle the tiling, painting, plastering on some jobs, it means no one is held up waiting for trades. We use the external trades where needed or on the larger projects, but the multi skilled approach has worked really well for us.
My sons are involved too from time to time, and finding their stride and niche in the building industry too, whether it’s hands on or the paperwork side of things.
It also makes it very practical when we’re doing maintenance projects which we do between larger jobs and it’s been good to offer master builder experience across the board.
Q: On the subject of your website, there are a lot of images on your website, they’re not all your personal photos are they?
A: No. But all the Project Page images are mine, or client photos or professional photos which my clients have allowed me to use to highight our work.
My web developer suggested we try something different and new, so that the website could be found in AI chats, because more less people are using search engines, and going straight to ChatGPT for answers, so I said go for it. Some people love the thought of using AI, and some people don’t like it, but I’m pretty happy with the outcome because building is really a visual thing.
To make it very clear, all the images that are ‘concept only’ are clearly identified, on the page, and on each image, so there is no mistake, but there was alot of thought in creating this and lots of research behind each of the suburbs.
I asked my web developer for clarification on this, and she has written an article about the use of concept images and AI in work. I’m not an expert in this area, but I trust her judgement and we’ll see how it goes.
Q: You’ve made the Peninsula your home base. What do you enjoy most about building here?
A: I love the mix of country feel and still being driving distance to Melbourne — every project sits in a different pocket along the coast .
The weather keeps you humble too; you must build for rain, salt air, wind, and sunshine. Most of all, I like helping people settle into homes that work for the way they live here — relaxed, practical, and connected to the outdoors.
That’s what good building should do: make life smoother and a little more beautiful every day.