What a full kitchen remodel in Tice actually costs and how long it takes
A full kitchen remodeling project in Tice typically runs between $14,000 and $45,000, with most jobs landing around $18,000 to $28,000 for a complete gut-and-replace in one of the area’s 1950s-to-1970s concrete block homes. The work usually spans four to six weeks from the first day of demo to the final walkthrough, though post-Ian permit backlogs at Lee County’s building department can add a week or two to the front end if inspections aren’t pre-scheduled at permit application. Call us at (844) 638-7249 for a free written estimate that accounts for your home’s specific layout and existing conditions.
How we take a Tice kitchen from gutted to finished, one stage at a time
Every full kitchen remodeling job we run in Tice follows a clear, five-stage sequence. Knowing the order matters because it dictates when you make decisions and how long each phase will realistically take. Here is what to expect, start to finish.
Stage 1: Demolition and rough inspection prep (Days 1-3)
We start by capping the water and gas lines, disconnecting the electrical circuits that serve the kitchen, and taking everything down to the studs and subfloor. In Tice’s older CBS homes, this is also where we often uncover the first surprises: rotted bottom plates from decades of high-humidity exposure, abandoned knob-and-tube wiring buried in walls, or moisture-damaged drywall behind 1970s backsplash tile that never had a proper vapor barrier. We photograph everything and walk you through what we find before a single new stud goes in. You will decide by the end of this stage whether to relocate any plumbing drains or electrical outlets, because that decision changes the rough-in plan and the permit scope.
Stage 2: Rough-in framing, plumbing, and electrical (Days 4-10)
This is where the floor plan you chose becomes physical. We frame any new partition walls, move or add plumbing drain lines and supply stubs for the sink, dishwasher, and ice maker, and run new 20-amp small-appliance circuits and dedicated lines for the range, microwave, and disposal. In Tice, the county inspector will need to sign off on the rough-in before we close any walls, and we pre-schedule that inspection at permit submission so your job does not sit idle waiting on a county slot. You will finalize your cabinet layout, sink configuration, and appliance model numbers during this stage because the rough-in dimensions have to match what gets installed.
Stage 3: Drywall, paint, and flooring (Days 11-18)
Once the rough-in passes inspection, we hang, tape, and finish the drywall, prime and paint the walls and ceiling, and lay the finished flooring. If you chose tile flooring that runs under the cabinets, we install it now, before the cabinets go in. If you chose a floating floor like luxury vinyl plank, we typically install it after the cabinets to avoid pinning the floor under fixed cabinetry and creating buckling points. You will pick your grout color and trim profile here if those decisions aren’t already locked.
Stage 4: Cabinet, countertop, and backsplash installation (Days 19-28)
This is the phase where the kitchen starts to look like a kitchen. We set the base and wall cabinets, shim them level on floors that in Tice’s older homes are rarely perfectly flat, and then template for countertops. Stone countertops require a one- to two-week fabrication gap between templating and installation, so we use that window to install the backsplash tile, under-cabinet lighting, and cabinet hardware. Once the countertops go in, we drop the sink, hook up the faucet, and connect the dishwasher and disposal. You will be without a working kitchen for about three to four weeks total, and we recommend setting up a temporary cooking station with a microwave and mini-fridge before demo day.
Stage 5: Final trim, punch list, and final inspection (Days 29-35)
We install the light fixtures, outlet covers, toe kicks, and any remaining trim, then do a full systems test: every outlet hot, every drain running clear, every cabinet door adjusted. The county inspector comes back for the final sign-off, and we walk the job with you room by room. Anything not right gets fixed before we call the job complete. Every full kitchen remodel we do in Tice carries our 730-Day Done Right Promise, so if something surfaces after we leave, we make it right.
The options you will choose between on a full kitchen remodel
A full kitchen remodel is really a series of interconnected decisions about materials, layout, and finishes. Here are the key choices where your selections move the cost and determine how the kitchen holds up over time.
- Cabinet construction: stock, semi-custom, or full custom. Stock cabinets ship in standard widths in a limited set of door styles and finishes and land at the lower end of the cost range. Semi-custom gives you more door profiles, finish colors, and interior organization options. Full custom cabinetry is built to your exact dimensions and material specs, which matters in Tice homes where 1950s kitchen footprints were often tight and oddly shaped, making off-the-shelf cabinet runs a poor fit without filler strips and wasted corner space.
- Countertop material: laminate, quartz, or natural stone. Laminate is the budget-friendly option and installs quickly. Quartz resists staining, never needs sealing, and has become the default mid-to-high-end choice for Tice kitchens we remodel. Natural stone like granite or soapstone brings a one-of-a-kind look but requires periodic sealing and can chip at the edges if the kids swing a cast-iron skillet into it.
- Flooring: porcelain tile, luxury vinyl plank, or engineered hardwood. Porcelain tile handles the humidity and occasional standing water tracked in from Tice’s rainy-season downpours better than wood-based products. Luxury vinyl plank is warmer underfoot and quieter, but slab moisture vapor can cause adhesion problems if the installer skips moisture testing on the concrete substrate. Engineered hardwood looks beautiful but needs careful humidity control in our climate.
- Sink and faucet configuration. A single-basin undermount sink paired with a pull-down faucet is the most-requested setup we install in Tice. Adding a secondary prep sink to an island, a pot-filler at the range, or a touchless faucet moves the plumbing rough-in scope and the fixture budget upward.
- Appliance package: standard, slide-in, or pro-style. A standard freestanding range and over-the-range microwave keep costs lower. A slide-in range with a separate wall-mounted hood and a counter-depth refrigerator raises the installed look. Pro-style ranges with high-BTU burners often require a larger gas line or a dedicated high-amp circuit, adding electrical or plumbing costs to the rough-in stage.
What full kitchen remodeling costs in Tice, FL
A full kitchen remodel in Tice runs $14,000 to $45,000. The spread is wide because no two 1960s CBS homes have the same set of existing conditions, and the scope of structural and system upgrades triggered by current Florida Building Code requirements varies from house to house. Here is what pushes a job toward the low or the high end of that range.
At the lower end, around $14,000 to $18,000, you are looking at a kitchen where the footprint stays the same, the sink and range don’t move, the electrical panel has enough capacity to add the required circuits without a service upgrade, and you choose stock cabinets, a laminate or entry-level quartz countertop, and a standard appliance package. The walls come open cleanly with no hidden rot or termite damage, and the county inspection process moves on schedule.
At the higher end, $35,000 to $45,000, the job typically involves moving plumbing drains, adding or removing a wall to open the kitchen to the living area, upgrading the electrical panel, and choosing semi-custom or custom cabinets with stone countertops and a pro-style appliance package. It also often includes the layered code-compliance upgrades that Tice homes regularly require: hurricane straps added to the roof structure, impact-rated windows installed where the kitchen bump-out meets an exterior wall, and whole-circuit GFCI and AFCI protection brought up to the current NEC standard adopted by Lee County.
Every estimate we write is a fixed-price, line-item document. It includes all labor, materials, permit fees, and the 730-Day Done Right Promise. What it does not include are change orders you initiate after the job starts (like upgrading the backsplash tile mid-install) or concealed conditions we could not have reasonably anticipated before the walls came open. We walk you through every line before you sign anything. Call (844) 638-7249 to schedule a free on-site estimate and get your exact number.
What Tice homes specifically do to a kitchen remodel
Tice’s housing stock is almost entirely modest concrete block homes built between the 1950s and 1970s, and those homes carry a specific set of conditions that directly shape how a full kitchen remodeling job goes here. First, most still have their original wood-truss roofs without modern hurricane tie-downs, and opening a kitchen ceiling for new recessed lighting or to relocate a vent stack often triggers a requirement to retrofit the nearby truss connections before the inspector will sign off on the rough-in. That is not code overreach. It is Lee County applying the current Florida Building Code to any portion of the structure exposed during permitted work. Second, the original jalousie or single-pane aluminum windows in many Tice kitchens do not meet impact-resistance standards, and if your remodel changes the window opening size or location, you will need to upgrade to impact-rated windows as part of the permit scope.
Because Tice is unincorporated Lee County rather than a municipality, all permits flow through the county building department in Fort Myers. Post-Ian inspection queues have stretched longer than pre-storm norms, and we have learned to pre-schedule every inspection at the point of permit application so work does not stall mid-phase waiting on a county inspector. That is a local scheduling reality that out-of-area contractors often learn the hard way. We also contend with Tice’s high water table and heavy seasonal rain. Slab moisture testing before flooring goes down is not optional here. We run calcium chloride tests on every concrete substrate and hold off on flooring until the readings are within the manufacturer’s tolerance, because skipping that step in Tice’s humidity zone means callbacks for warped planks or lifted tile within a year.
When homeowners in Tice plan a full kitchen gut, they often pair it with other projects that make sense to do while the house is already opened up and the permit is active. Many take the opportunity to address a Full Bathroom Remodeling in Tice at the same time or add a Walk-In Showers & Shower Remodeling in Tice to a guest bath that has been waiting for an upgrade. It is a practical way to consolidate permitting, inspections, and the disruption of having a crew on site.
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Frequently asked about full kitchen remodeling in Tice
Plan on four to six weeks from demolition to final inspection. The variables that stretch the timeline are permit backlogs at Lee County’s building department, the scope of any surprise structural or electrical upgrades uncovered during demo, and the fabrication lead time on stone countertops, which typically runs one to two weeks between templating and installation. We pre-schedule inspections at permit submission to keep the job moving without county-related delays.
Yes. In unincorporated Lee County, any kitchen remodel that involves relocating plumbing drains, adding or moving electrical circuits, altering load-bearing walls, or changing window or door openings requires a county building permit and rough-in and final inspections. We pull all permits, schedule the inspections, and walk the job through to final sign-off. Skipping permits on a full gut job in Tice creates real problems at resale and with your homeowners insurance.
Keeping the plumbing and electrical rough-in points where they are is one of the single biggest cost savers on a full kitchen remodel. Moving a sink drain five feet involves cutting into the concrete slab to relocate the drain line, which adds excavation, concrete patching, and an additional plumbing inspection. By keeping the sink and range in their original positions, you avoid those costs while still getting a completely transformed kitchen with new cabinets, countertops, flooring, and fixtures.
A full kitchen remodel in Tice typically costs between $14,000 and $45,000. The final number depends on whether you move plumbing or walls, the grade of cabinets and countertops you choose, the condition of the existing electrical panel and rough framing, and whether the permit triggers hurricane-retrofit or impact-window requirements. Call (844) 638-7249 for a free, fixed-price estimate that spells out every line item.
Every full kitchen remodeling job we complete in Tice is covered by our 730-Day Done Right Promise. If something is not right, we make it right, period. That sits on top of the manufacturer warranties on your cabinets, countertops, appliances, and fixtures, and it runs for two full years from the day the job is finished. You get it in writing as part of your contract.
Get a free estimate for your Tice kitchen remodel
If you are planning a full kitchen remodel in Tice, let us walk the space with you, measure everything, and write a detailed, fixed-price estimate that accounts for your home’s existing conditions and your material choices. There is no cost and no obligation for the estimate. Call (844) 638-7249 to schedule a time. When you call, you will speak with a live person who can answer questions about timeline, permitting, and what to expect before the first day of demo.
Written by Derek Hollenbeck, Owner at Groundwork Construction Co., serving Tice and Lee County with full-scope kitchen remodeling backed by the 730-Day Done Right Promise.