Where we work · Kansas

Kitchen Remodeling in Leawood, KS

If you take one thing from this page, take this: Leawood does not work the way its neighbours do. Checking a Leawood contractor against the Johnson County register is checking the wrong list.

The city licenses its own

Overland Park, Olathe and Shawnee all defer to Johnson County for contractor licensing. Leawood does not. It issues its own business and occupational licences, including a contractor category with subcategories covering general building, residential, electrical, plumbing, mechanical, roofing and wood framing among others. Licensing runs through the City Clerk, and the city operates its own public search for confirming that a business is properly licensed to work here.

This is the single most common mistake made about remodeling in this metro, and it is an easy one to make — three of the four Johnson County cities on this site behave one way and this one does not.

Published turnaround times

Leawood publishes average processing times by permit type, which is unusually transparent. Residential interior remodeling and residential remodel permits are both listed at two to three days. Miscellaneous electrical, plumbing and heating or air conditioning permits are listed at one to two days. An outdoor kitchen, by contrast, is listed at one to two weeks.

Building permits and business licensing are handled by different desks, on 913-663-9165 and 913-663-9123 respectively.

How old the housing is, and why it matters

Of roughly 13,845 housing units here, 23.6% were built before 1970. A further 10.3% went up between 1970 and 1979, so somewhere between 23.6% and 33.9% predate 1978 — the year that decides whether federal lead-safe rules apply to your project.

That matters because work disturbing paint in a pre-1978 home must be done by a firm certified under the EPA's Renovation, Repair and Painting rule. It narrows who can take the job and changes how the site is contained. Owner occupancy here runs at 91.0%; the rule does not generally apply to owners working on their own home, but it does apply to rental property.

Housing figures: American Community Survey 2024 5-year estimates, tables B25034, B25077 and B25003. Median home value here is $658,800 — context for scale, not a guide to what a remodel should cost.

Who licenses a remodeler here

City of Leawood

In this area contractors are licensed by the City of Leawood itself. Leawood is the exception among its neighbours: it issues its own contractor licences rather than deferring to the county, under its own business-licence categories.

Before you hire anyone — us included — you can check any firm against the Access Leawood licensed-business search (913-663-9123). We publish that link because it is the fastest way to separate a licensed outfit from a doorstep quote.

Services

Common questions

Where do I check whether a Leawood contractor is licensed?

Through the city's own licensed-business search. Not the Johnson County register — Leawood issues its own contractor licences rather than deferring to the county the way Overland Park, Olathe and Shawnee do.

How long does a remodel permit take here?

The city lists residential interior remodeling and residential remodel permits at two to three days on average, and miscellaneous electrical, plumbing or HVAC permits at one to two days.

Pricing a kitchen here?

We quote from this city’s own rules — the ones on this page.

Request a free estimate (816) 555-0188