Remodeling a high-rise condo in Chicago starts with your building, not with demolition. Before work begins you will usually need your association’s written approval, a signed remodeling agreement, certificates of insurance and, for most work beyond paint and finishes, a City of Chicago permit. The project then runs inside the building’s rules: set work hours, reserved freight elevator time, scheduled water shut-offs and firm limits on what can change in the concrete and the shared plumbing.
This guide walks through each step as of November 2026. Rules vary by association, so treat the building requirements below as common ones to confirm with your management office, and confirm the city requirements for your own scope. If you are planning high-rise condo remodeling in Chicago, these are the questions to settle first.
Start With the Building Rules
Your building’s remodeling requirements live in its declaration, bylaws and rules and regulations. Under the Illinois Condominium Property Act, a condo board may adopt rules covering the details of how the property is used, and it may levy reasonable fines for violations after notice and an opportunity to be heard. Ask management for the current remodeling packet before you finalize a design, not after. For the approval step itself, see our guide to getting condo board approval for a Chicago remodel.
The key document goes by different names. Some Chicago buildings call it a construction or remodeling agreement; others pair their rules with a remodeling indemnity agreement. Whatever the title, you usually sign it before work starts. In one downtown building’s published rules, for example, owners are responsible for their contractors’ actions and for any damage to the building or to other units.
What an Approval Package Often Includes
Requirements vary, but a typical package asks for some combination of:
- Detailed plans and specifications for the work.
- Your contractor’s licenses and certificates of insurance.
- The signed remodeling or indemnity agreement.
- A refundable damage deposit, returned after a final inspection of the common areas.
- Copies of city permits, or written confirmation that none is required.
That same building’s rules, revised in June 2024, show how specific this can get. The board may send plans to outside engineers or architects at the owner’s expense. Management holds a pre-construction meeting with the general contractor and sets an inspection schedule. Building staff inspect plumbing, electrical work and flooring underlayment before anything is closed up, and management can stop work that deviates from the approved plans.
Ask management how often the board or its reviewer meets and what a complete submission looks like. A missing item can mean waiting for the next review.
Certificates of Insurance
Buildings commonly require certificates of insurance from the general contractor, and often from subcontractors, covering the association and its management company. In one downtown building, for example, the certificates must name the association and its managing agent and meet set minimums for general liability and workers’ compensation. Ask for the exact wording before your contractor orders the certificate.
Check your own coverage too. The Condominium Property Act says the association’s property insurance need not cover improvements and betterments installed by unit owners, a category that includes fixtures, appliances and built-in cabinets. Speak with your insurance agent about your unit policy before the new kitchen or bath goes in.
Chicago Permits for Interior Condo Work
The City of Chicago requires a building permit for most construction, rehabilitation and repair work. The Department of Buildings’ list of work that does not require a permit is narrow. Painting, wallpapering, tiling, carpeting and installing cabinets or countertops are exempt only when there are no plumbing or electrical connections. Several other exemptions apply only to residential buildings up to 4 stories, which rules out a high-rise.
A nonstructural kitchen or bath remodel inside one unit may qualify for the city’s Express Permit Program for nonstructural interior alterations. As of November 2026, its rules for work inside a single residential unit include:
- Size: up to 2,000 square feet of nonstructural remodeling.
- Layout: adding, removing or reconfiguring walls or doorways (other than for closets) requires drawings prepared by an Illinois-licensed architect or structural engineer. Without those changes, the scaled floor plans may be drawn by the contractor.
- Plumbing: added water demand is capped at 5 water supply fixture units, and the city counts a new private bathroom as 4.
- Condo approval: for work on condominium property, the application must include an approval letter signed by an authorized representative of the association, such as the property manager or an officer.
- Contractors: a licensed general contractor (owners may act as their own in some cases), plus a licensed electrical contractor and a licensed plumbing contractor for that work.
- Alarms: the permit requires smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors throughout the unit, and in most cases they must be hardwired.
Structural work is not eligible for this Express Permit type. The city’s main process for applications that require architectural plans is its Standard Plan Review program, and some projects qualify for its Self-Certified program instead. Two separate permits also matter in a high-rise. Under the city’s terms for work on existing buildings, any work affecting the sprinkler system needs a Chicago Fire Department permit, and any work affecting the fire alarm system needs its own Department of Buildings permit.
If you are combining two Chicago condos, the rules tighten: Express Permit work in more than one unit is limited to 500 square feet and requires drawings from a licensed architect or structural engineer, and the Express Permit does not authorize a new opening of more than 1 inch in a wall or floor between units. Plan on a different permit path for the opening that joins them, and confirm it with the Department of Buildings.
Codes are changing as well. Chicago’s Phase 3 code updates, including amendments to the Building Code and Building Rehabilitation Code, become mandatory for permit applications started on or after December 1, 2026. Confirm current requirements with the Department of Buildings or your contractor before you apply.
Concrete Slabs, Risers and What Can Move
Concrete Slabs
In a high-rise, the floor under your unit is typically a concrete slab, part of a structure everyone shares. The city’s Express Permit terms treat a new floor opening larger than 1 square foot as structural work. They also do not authorize any new opening or penetration over 1 inch in diameter in a floor or wall that separates your unit from another unit or a shared corridor. Any new opening must be firestopped or otherwise protected as the Chicago Building Code requires.
Some concrete buildings use post-tensioned slabs, which contain tensioned steel tendons. STRUCTURE magazine advises reviewing the original plans and scanning the slab when planning a large slab cut-out, and seeking professional guidance before any slab or beam is touched. Some associations go further: one downtown building’s rules prohibit drilling or trenching into the slab and ban jackhammers outright.
The practical effect is simple. Keep kitchens and baths near their existing supply and drain lines where you can, and confirm any relocation with building engineering before the design is final.
Plumbing Risers and Water Shut-Offs
Risers carry water and waste for the units above and below yours, so buildings control them closely, and any shut-off touches your neighbors. One downtown building’s rules prohibit modifying water risers, waste lines or vent stacks, require individual shut-off valves on every new fixture, and schedule pipe freezes with the chief engineer at least a week in advance.
Ask early where your unit’s shut-off valves are, whether they hold, who is allowed to operate them and how much notice the building needs.
Sound, Floors and Your Neighbors Below
Hard flooring over concrete carries footsteps to the unit below, and many associations regulate it. A common requirement is an approved acoustic underlayment that meets a minimum sound rating, written as an Impact Insulation Class (IIC) number. Some buildings set a field rating, measured in the installed floor and ceiling assembly. The downtown building rules mentioned above require hard flooring outside bathrooms over an approved impact control membrane that reaches a minimum field IIC rating under the ASTM E1007 test method, and staff inspect the underlayment before it is covered.
Get the building’s flooring specification in writing before you choose a floor. The underlayment adds thickness, which affects transitions at doorways and where wood meets tile. Material choices matter for the long run too; see how long a high-end condo remodel lasts in Chicago.
Work Hours, Freight Elevators and Common Areas
Your building sets the hours when work can happen. In one downtown building’s rules, for example, work runs on weekdays, Saturday work is limited to painting and wallpapering, and nothing happens on Sundays or holidays. Ask for your building’s hours in writing, along with any limits on noisy work.
Materials, debris and crews move by service elevator, reserved in advance through management. Building rules commonly cover:
- Elevator time: reserved slots, sometimes billed by the hour.
- Protection: coverings for corridor floors and the unit door.
- Access: deliveries through the loading dock, with no tools or materials carried through the lobby.
- Debris: removed in sealed or covered containers, never down a garbage chute.
- Deposit: returned only after management inspects common areas, including the elevators.
What Drives a High-Rise Remodel Timeline
Every building is different, so treat any timeline as an estimate until approvals are in hand. These are the factors that move it:
- Board review: the schedule of the board or its reviewer, plus any outside engineering review.
- Permit path: work that needs licensed design drawings or a plan-based review adds steps before construction starts.
- Shorter working days: building hours limit productive time each day.
- Elevator access: deliveries and debris removal depend on open elevator slots.
- Building inspections: management may inspect plumbing, electrical work and underlayment before walls and floors close, on top of city inspections.
- Shut-offs and pipe freezes: these run on the building’s calendar, not yours.
- Discoveries: opening walls and floors can reveal conditions that need attention. Work involving asbestos may require a separate Asbestos Project Notification to the Chicago Department of Public Health.
- Design changes: some buildings can stop work that departs from approved plans, so a late change can mean a new review.
Settle design decisions before you submit, from the kitchen layout to designing around skyline views, so the approved plans match what gets built.
How a Project Manager Works With Your Building
A high-rise remodel has 3 parties to keep aligned: you, the crew and building management. Whoever runs your project should own the building side of it, including:
- Assembling and submitting the approval package.
- Confirming certificate of insurance wording with management.
- Attending the pre-construction meeting.
- Booking elevator time and scheduling shut-offs and pipe freezes.
- Calling for building and city inspections before work is closed up.
- Keeping you and management informed as the schedule moves.
Areté Renovators has been a Chicago design-build remodeling firm since 2002, with design and construction under one roof and an in-house interior design team. Each project is run by a Project Manager. Our Lakeshore East Design Studio is at 155 N Harbor Dr, Unit 1C8A-W, and our Irving Park Office is at 3821 W Montrose Avenue. Learn more about our approach to high-rise condo remodeling in Chicago.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need board approval to remodel my Chicago condo?
Very likely. Your declaration and rules say which work needs approval. And if your project goes through the city’s Express Permit Program, the application must include an association approval letter signed by an authorized representative, such as the property manager or an officer.
Do I need a city permit for a condo kitchen or bathroom remodel?
Usually, as of 2026. Painting, tiling and installing cabinets or countertops are exempt only without plumbing or electrical connections, and a kitchen or bath remodel usually involves at least one. Confirm your scope with the Department of Buildings or your contractor.
Can I move my kitchen or bathroom in a high-rise condo?
Sometimes. It depends on the slab, where the risers and drains run, and your building’s rules. New floor openings are tightly limited, so confirm any move with building engineering before the design is final.
Can I install hardwood or tile floors in my high-rise unit?
In many buildings, yes, over an approved acoustic underlayment that meets the building’s sound rating. Ask for the specification in writing before you choose a floor.
How long does board approval take?
It depends on your association. Ask management how often the board or its reviewer meets, what a complete package includes and whether outside engineering review is required.
Does my association’s insurance cover my new kitchen?
Not necessarily. Under the Illinois Condominium Property Act, the association’s policy need not cover improvements and betterments installed by unit owners. Talk to your insurance agent before work starts.
Planning a remodel in a Chicago high-rise? Contact Areté Renovators or call 773.683.3033 to schedule a consultation.
