Do I need a permit to remodel
my kitchen or bath?
Usually yes, and it is not the headache people expect. Here is where the county draws the line, how long a permit takes in New Hanover, Brunswick and Pender counties, and what we do so you never deal with the permit office yourself.
If the plumbing or the wiring moves, you need a permit.
North Carolina draws the line at what changes behind the walls, not at how nice the new kitchen is. Swap cabinets for cabinets and a faucet for a faucet, and the state calls it a repair. Move the sink, run a new circuit for the range, or open a wall, and the county wants to look before the drywall goes back up.
Jay tells you which side of the line your project is on at the first walk-through. It goes in your written price, with the permit fee, before any work starts.
There is one more trigger: the state sets a cost threshold, and a project above it needs a permit even when nothing moves. Most full kitchens cross it. Most single baths do not.
Cosmetic is a repair. Moving things is a remodel. The county permits remodels.
A permit is the county checking the work you cannot see once it is finished: the drain under the new shower, the wire behind the new range, the header over the opening. When you sell, the buyer's inspector and the county's record should tell the same story.
When something moves or gets added.
- Moving or adding a sink, shower, tub or toilet
- A new circuit, a bigger panel, or an outlet where there was none
- Taking out or opening a wall, until we know it carries no load
- A new gas line, or a range switched to gas
- A bump-out, an addition, or a new window
- Any job above the state cost threshold, even with nothing moved
When it goes back where it was.
- New cabinets and counters in the same layout
- Tile, flooring, trim and paint
- A new faucet, toilet, vanity or sink in the same spot, same size
- Light fixtures, switches and outlets swapped like for like
- A dishwasher or range in the same spot, same fuel
- New doors and windows in the same openings
How long it takes.
The permit is rarely what sets the pace of a kitchen or bath. Cabinets and tile are. Here is the county's part of the schedule.
Apply
We file the application online the day you sign. New Hanover County uses its COAST portal, Pender County its PORT portal, and Brunswick County files online too.
Review
A kitchen or bath with no structural change usually comes back in days, not weeks. If a wall moves, the county reviews the drawings, and state law caps that first review at 15 business days.
Rough-in inspection
Plumbing and electrical get checked before the walls close, and insulation if an outside wall was opened. Inspections are requested online or by phone and usually land the next business day.
Final
When the room is finished, the inspector signs off and the permit closes. That record stays with the house, and you get a copy with your photos.
Where your permit comes from. Inside Wilmington city limits and across most of New Hanover County, the county's Permits and Inspections office issues the permit, and the city checks zoning and the historic districts. The beach towns each have their own rules on who issues what. We file with the right office for your address.
New Hanover County
Permits and Inspections, COAST portal, 230 Government Center Drive, Wilmington.Brunswick County
Code Administration, online application. Some towns issue their own permits.Pender County
Inspections and Permitting, PORT portal, offices in Hampstead and Burgaw. Inspections called in before 2 p.m. are scheduled the next business day.Three things coastal homeowners get surprised by.
None of them is a problem when it is checked first. Jay checks all three before he prices the job.
The flood zone math
If your house sits in a flood zone, the county compares the cost of the work to the value of the house, not the land. Cross the line and the whole house has to meet today's flood rules, which can mean raising it. Some towns add projects together over several years. Jay checks your zone and the math first, so a kitchen never turns into a house lift by surprise.
Your HOA or condo signs first
Associations usually have to approve changes to plumbing stacks, exterior vents, windows and anything on a shared wall before the county sees the application. We ask for that approval at the start, so the permit is never waiting on it.
Historic districts
Inside Wilmington's historic districts, anything that changes the outside of the house, a new window or a vent through the wall, needs a Certificate of Appropriateness from the city before the county permit. We build it into the schedule.
We pull it. We meet the inspector.
You never call the county.
We pull the permit
Filed under our license, NC GC #109476, with the drawings the county wants, the day you sign.
We schedule the inspections
Rough-in and final, timed to the work, so the crew is never standing around waiting on the county.
We meet the inspector
Jay or the crew lead is on site for every inspection. You do not have to take the morning off.
You get the record
The closed permit and the before, during and after photos, for your files and for the next buyer.
Straight answers.
What homeowners ask Jay about permits before a kitchen or bath.
Can I skip the permit if the contractor says it is fine?
You can, and we will not. Plumbing and wiring that were never inspected show up when you sell, when you file an insurance claim, and when the next owner opens the wall. The permit costs a fraction of any of those.
Does a permit make the job take longer?
Rarely. A kitchen or bath with no structural change usually comes back from the county in days, and the inspections are scheduled around the work. Cabinet and tile lead times set the pace, not the permit office.
Who pays the permit fee?
It is inside your written price. No separate bill from the county and no surprise at the end.
Do I need drawings?
If a wall comes out or the layout changes, yes, and we provide them. For a like-for-like kitchen or bath in the same layout, usually not.
What if the old work was never permitted?
It happens in older houses, and the inspector will notice. We tell you what we found, what the county will want corrected, and the price, before anything is covered back up.
Do I have to be home for the inspections?
No. Jay or the crew lead meets the inspector. You get the result the same day.
What areas do you serve?
New Hanover, Brunswick and Pender counties and all of Topsail Island, including Wilmington, Wrightsville Beach, Carolina Beach, Kure Beach, Leland, Southport, Oak Island, Hampstead, Surf City and Topsail Beach. Our office is at 311 Judges Rd, Suite 13-E in Wilmington.
Let's walk your
kitchen or bath.
Call or text Jay or Brian. We answer the same business day, Jay walks the room with you, and you get one written price with the permit already in it.