Whole-home remodel design in Tampa
Older Tampa houses have good bones and bad layouts: small rooms, a kitchen at the back, one bathroom for everyone. A whole-home remodel rethinks the plan inside the walls you already have, which is often the best value in housing here.
When a whole-home redesign fits
- You just bought an older house and want to fix the layout before moving in
- Several rooms need to change at once and you want one coherent plan
- The house has been added onto badly over the years
- You want to stay in the neighborhood but the house doesn't work
- A flood-zone house that may need to meet current elevation rules
- Storm damage turned a repair into a chance to redo the plan
What the design covers
Existing-conditions drawings
The baseline the county, the builder and the design all work from.
New floor plan
Room sizes, flow and light reconsidered as a whole rather than one room at a time.
Structural changes
Beams and posts for removed walls, new openings in block, and any roof changes, sealed as the permit requires.
Kitchen and bath layouts
Elevations and plumbing locations for every wet room in the plan. See kitchen and bath design.
Exterior updates
New windows, doors, porches and finishes that bring the outside in line with the new interior.
Phasing
If you'll live in the house during construction, a plan for doing it in stages.
How a remodel design goes
- Measure and document. A full measured plan of the existing house, with structure, plumbing and electrical located.
- Flood and zoning check. Flood zone, substantial-improvement status, setbacks and whether any part of the work triggers upgrades to the rest of the house.
- Concept plans. New layouts drawn over the existing shell, with the walls that stay, the walls that go and what each option costs in structure.
- Construction and permit set. Demolition plans, new plans, structural, mechanical layout and finish schedules, sealed as required and prepared for submittal.
What affects the price
- Square footage of the house and how much of the plan changes.
- Number of structural changes, especially in block walls.
- Flood zone status and whether substantial-improvement rules apply.
- Whether exterior changes and additions are part of the scope.
- How many concept rounds before construction drawings.
You get a written scope and fee for the design work before anything is drawn.
Remodeling Tampa Bay's older houses
Tampa's housing stock runs from 1920s frame bungalows to 1950s and 1960s block ranches to 1980s subdivision homes, and each remodels differently. Bungalows hide old wiring and settled piers; block houses have bearing walls in inconvenient places and slabs that make plumbing moves expensive; 1980s houses often have cathedral ceilings and trusses that limit which walls can go. The measured survey at the start is what keeps the budget honest.
The substantial-improvement rule matters most on this kind of project. In a flood zone, if the cost of the remodel exceeds half the building's market value, the house generally has to be brought into compliance with current flood rules, which can mean elevating it. We run that math at the start, not at the permit counter.
Common questions
Is it cheaper to remodel or rebuild?
It depends on the house, the flood zone and how much you're changing. Once a remodel touches most of the structure, a rebuild can cost about the same and gives you a house that meets current wind and flood codes. We lay out both paths when it's close.
What is the 50 percent rule?
In FEMA flood zones, if improvements to a building cost 50 percent or more of its market value, the building must meet current floodplain rules. Each county tracks this over a set period. It affects what a remodel can include, so we check it first.
Can I live in the house during the work?
Often, in phases, if the plan is designed for it. A whole-home gut is usually easier to do empty.
Do you handle the permit?
We prepare the drawings for submittal and respond to plan review comments. Your contractor typically pulls the permit under their license.
Related services
- Kitchen and bath designLayouts, elevations and construction drawings for kitchens and bathrooms.
- Additions and second storiesRoom additions, second stories and garage conversions, drawn to fit the house and the lot.
- Permit drawingsDrawings prepared and sealed for Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas building permits.
Areas we serve
Whole-home remodel design across Tampa and these nearby communities: