Kitchens
Cabinets, counters, appliances, plumbing and electrical, from a refresh that keeps the layout to a gut where walls and plumbing move.
Residential
Whole-home remodels in Kitsap County
Renovations that change more than one room: layout, structure, mechanical systems and finishes, planned and sequenced as a single project.
Who this is for
This service is for owners of a house that has the right location but the wrong layout, systems or condition. Typical jobs combine several rooms and trades: a kitchen and baths, a reworked floor plan, new mechanical systems, windows and siding. If you are changing more than one major room, or opening walls to move plumbing, wiring or structure, this is the service. A single room belongs under kitchens or bathrooms.
What's included
- A site visit and a written scope that separates what is being changed from what stays
- A recommendation to test for lead paint and asbestos in older homes before demolition
- Structural changes, including beams and new openings, with engineering where the work needs it
- Updates to electrical, plumbing, and heating and ventilation
- Insulation, windows and air sealing that meet the Washington State Energy Code for the work being done
- Kitchens, bathrooms, flooring, trim, paint and finish carpentry
- A plan for living in the house or moving out, and for protecting the rooms that are not being touched
- A final walkthrough, a punch list, and a clean handover
How the work runs
Step 1: Site visit and scope
We walk the house with you, note what is original and what has been changed, and write the scope room by room.
Step 2: Feasibility and budget
Where walls, structure or systems move, we work out what is possible and what it costs before you commit to a design.
Step 3: Drawings and permit
Plans for the permit and for pricing, with the application sent to the authority for your address.
Step 4: Demolition and rough-in
Protection of the living areas, selective demolition, then framing, plumbing, electrical and mechanical rough-in with inspections.
Step 5: Finishes and closeout
Insulation and drywall, then flooring, cabinets, tile and paint, followed by a walkthrough and punch list.
On the Kitsap Peninsula
A whole-home remodel on the peninsula starts with the age of the house. Older neighborhoods in Bremerton and Port Orchard often have mid-century homes with original wiring and plumbing and little wall insulation, while newer subdivisions in Silverdale and Poulsbo more often need layout and finish updates than new systems. Houses built before 1978 may contain lead-based paint, and older flooring, plaster and pipe wrap can contain asbestos, which changes how demolition is planned.
Crawlspaces and wet winters mean we look at moisture, ventilation and drainage anywhere the work opens a floor or an exterior wall. The Washington State Energy Code applies to the work being done, which can bring insulation, windows or air sealing into the scope.
On Bainbridge Island and in the cities, the permit authority is the city; elsewhere it is Kitsap County. A project that adds bedrooms may also need Kitsap Public Health District review of the septic system, so we ask about it before the design is final.
Permit guides
The office that issues the permit depends on the parcel. Start with the authority that covers yours.
What it costs
We price whole-home remodels from plans and a site visit. The scope changes too much from house to house for a price band to mean anything, so the Estimate Desk does not model them. For single rooms, see kitchens and bathrooms, which do have planning bands.
The cost drivers are how much of the house is touched, whether the layout and structure move, the condition of the existing wiring, plumbing and framing, hazardous materials found at demolition, the energy-code upgrades the work triggers, and the finish level. We separate the lines so you can decide room by room, and we hold a contingency line for what is behind the walls.
Questions about this work
Can we live in the house during a whole-home remodel?
Sometimes. It depends on the scope and on which systems stay in service. A kitchen and bath remodel is hard to live through; a project that works one floor at a time is easier. We talk through it at the site visit and plan protection for the rooms that stay in use.
How do I decide between a remodel and building new?
Compare what you would keep: the location, the foundation, and the structure. If most of the cost would go into rebuilding walls, systems and the envelope anyway, new construction can be worth pricing. We are glad to price both so you can see the difference.
What happens if you find something unexpected behind the walls?
We hold a contingency line for it in the estimate. When we find something, we show you, explain what it means for the work, and agree on how to handle it before we continue.
Will a remodel trigger energy-code upgrades?
It can. The Washington State Energy Code applies to the work being done, so opening walls or replacing windows may bring insulation or air sealing into the scope. We flag it in the estimate so it is not a surprise.
Do I need drawings before I hire a contractor?
Not to start. For a permit and a firm price you will need them, and we work with your designer or architect to produce them. A builder's input during design helps keep the plan inside the budget.
How do you handle a house built before 1978?
We raise testing for lead paint and asbestos before demolition begins, and we plan how that work is done and protected. Painted surfaces from before 1978 are presumed to contain lead, which changes how scraping and sanding are done.
Can a whole-home remodel be done in phases?
Yes. Phasing can spread the cost and the disruption over time. We set the order so the work done first does not get torn up by the work done second, such as getting mechanical and electrical done before finishes.
Talk with us about whole-home remodels
Call Ian Laughlin at (206) 226-1988, or send the details and we will set up a site visit.