Where to Start With a Kitchen Remodel in Vancouver, WA

Most kitchen remodels that go badly were started in the wrong order: a range bought on sale, a countertop chosen from a photo, and only then a call to a contractor who has to make it all fit. The sequence below is the one a remodeler works through anyway. Doing it yourself first saves time and makes every estimate you receive easier to compare.

Step 1: Write down why you are remodeling

Be specific. "The kitchen is dated" does not tell anyone what to fix. "Two of us cannot cook at once, there is nowhere to put groceries down, and the dishwasher door blocks the walkway" does. Sort your list into three groups:

• Function problems: layout, storage, counter space, traffic through the room, poor lighting.
• Condition problems: failing cabinets, water damage, worn flooring, old wiring or plumbing.
• Appearance: finishes and style you no longer like.

The mix tells you the scope. Appearance alone points to a refresh. Function problems usually mean moving things, and that changes the budget, the permits and the schedule. Also decide how long you expect to stay in the house, because remodeling to sell and remodeling to stay lead to different choices.

Step 2: Choose a scope level

There are four broad levels: a cosmetic refresh, a pull-and-replace in the same layout, a full gut with a new layout, and an expansion. Each one is a different project with different permit needs, and they are compared side by side in kitchen remodel levels explained. Pick the lowest level that actually solves the problems on your list. If the layout is the problem, new doors on the same boxes will not fix it. If the layout works, there is rarely a good reason to pay for moving plumbing.

Step 3: Set a budget range, not a number

At this stage you need a range you are comfortable with and a ceiling you will not cross. JDI publishes planning ranges through its kitchen cost calculator. They are planning ranges before sales tax, not quotes:

What each tier means, and what moves a project up or down inside a range, is covered in kitchen remodel cost in Vancouver, WA. Two things to settle now: Washington charges sales tax on the whole remodeling contract, labor included, so decide whether your ceiling is before or after tax. And hold part of the budget back as contingency, especially in an older house where nobody knows what is inside the walls until they are open. If you plan to borrow, talk to your lender before you fix the ceiling, not after.

Step 4: Learn three facts about your house

These take an evening and change the conversation with every contractor.

• Which jurisdiction you are in. A Vancouver mailing address does not settle it. Inside city limits, the City of Vancouver issues building, plumbing, mechanical and electrical permits. In unincorporated Clark County, the county issues building, plumbing and mechanical permits and the Washington Department of Labor & Industries handles electrical.
• The year the house was built. Homes built before 1978 fall under lead-safe renovation rules when a contractor disturbs paint, and older flooring, adhesives and wall textures have to be checked for asbestos before demolition. See kitchen remodeling by home era.
• Any private rules. A homeowners association or condo association may require approval of its own. The city does not check this for you.

Step 5: Measure and photograph the room

You are not producing construction drawings. You are giving a designer enough to have a useful first conversation. Sketch the room on graph paper and record:

• The length of each wall, and the ceiling height.
• Every window and door: width, height, distance from the nearest corner, and which way the door swings.
• Where the sink, range, refrigerator and dishwasher sit now.
• Where the gas line, the range hood duct, heat registers and the electrical panel are.
• Soffits, posts, chimneys or bump-outs.

Then photograph each wall straight on, the ceiling, the floor at every doorway, inside the sink cabinet, the electrical panel with its door open, and the rooms on the other side of each kitchen wall. If there is a crawl space or basement below, a photo of the framing and pipes under the kitchen is worth more than any of the others.

Step 6: Decide who to talk to

There are three common ways to run a kitchen remodel: a design-build firm that designs and builds under one contract, a general contractor working from plans you bring, or an independent kitchen designer plus a contractor. Whichever route you choose, verify each company's Washington contractor registration before the first meeting, and use the same written scope with everyone so the numbers can be compared. How to choose a kitchen remodeler gives the vetting sequence.

Step 7: Know when permits enter

Permits are decided by the scope, so they come up as soon as the layout is settled, not at the end. In the City of Vancouver, painting and similar finish work is exempt from a building permit, and so is replacing kitchen cabinets when no electrical or plumbing has to be modified. Adding or removing a wall requires a residential building permit. Electrical work needs an electrical permit unless it is on the city's short exempt list, and moving a sink is not exempt plumbing work.

The full table is in do you need a permit to remodel a kitchen. The practical point for planning is that a permitted project needs scaled plans and a review by the city before work starts, and the city does not publish a target review time for residential remodels. Build that unknown into your expectations and read how long a kitchen remodel takes before you promise anyone a finished kitchen by a holiday.

One-page starting checklist

1. List your function, condition and appearance problems, in priority order.
2. Decide how long you expect to stay in the house.
3. Pick a scope level that solves the top problems.
4. Set a budget range, a hard ceiling and a contingency, and decide whether the ceiling includes sales tax.
5. Confirm whether your address is in the City of Vancouver or unincorporated Clark County.
6. Find the year built, and ask your HOA or condo association what it requires.
7. Sketch and measure the room; photograph walls, ceiling, floor, panel, sink cabinet and the space below.
8. Collect photos of kitchens you like, and note what you like in each one.
9. Write an appliance wish list with sizes, but buy nothing yet.
10. Decide where a temporary kitchen could go.
11. Shortlist two or three registered remodelers and give each the same information.

For the order of construction itself, see our kitchen remodel steps guide.

How JDI handles the first step

JDI Construction starts with a free in-home consultation, then provides an itemized plan and a 3D design layout so you can see the layout before anything is ordered. Design and construction are handled by one team, and permits are pulled and managed for you. If your checklist is done, the next step is to look at our Vancouver kitchen remodeling page or run your numbers through the calculator.