What we do

Historic Home Kitchen Remodel

Older homes are the reason this metro has a lead-safe conversation at all, and where you verify a contractor's certification depends on which state you are in.

The rule, plainly

Work that disturbs painted surfaces in a home built before 1978 must be carried out by a firm certified under the EPA's Renovation, Repair and Painting rule, using contained work practices. A kitchen remodel in an older house disturbs paint almost by definition — demolition, cabinet removal, and any sanding all qualify.

Verification differs by state

Kansas operates its own EPA-authorised programme. Missouri does not; the EPA administers the rule there directly. Same metro, same rule, two different places to check that a firm is certified. That is worth getting right before work begins rather than afterwards.

The exemption that catches people out

The rule generally does not apply to homeowners doing the work themselves in their own home. It does apply if the property is rented out in whole or in part, if a childcare setting operates there, or if the home is being renovated for resale. A landlord doing their own work in a pre-1978 rental is inside the rule, not outside it.

Historic districts are a separate question

Some neighbourhoods sit within locally designated historic districts, which can carry their own review requirements. Whether interior kitchen work triggers that review is a question for the relevant city preservation office, and one we put to that office rather than answer generically — the answer varies and the cost of guessing wrong is a stop-work notice.