How it works

Yes, in both states. Oregon law generally requires anyone paid to do construction work on a home to be licensed by the Construction Contractors Board (CCB). In Washington, every construction contractor must register with the Department of Labor & Industries (L&I), and state law requires contractors to be bonded and insured.

For an Oregon job, search the CCB’s public license lookup at search.ccb.state.or.us; the CCB says the license number is the most accurate way to look one up. For a Washington job, use L&I’s “Verify a Contractor, Tradesperson or Business” tool at secure.lni.wa.gov/verify.

Usually, once the work goes past finishes. Portland Permitting & Development (PP&D) lists permits for moving, removing or adding walls, for added wiring, outlets or light fixtures, for new plumbing fixtures such as sinks and dishwashers, for work on the piping system and for gas piping. Installing cabinets and shelving needs no permit. PP&D offers a free 15-minute appointment for remodeling permit questions.

PP&D says homeowners can do their own plumbing work, though City Code limits that permit to a bona fide owner of a single-family home and weighs whether the owner lives there and is not remodeling to sell or rent. Electrical work is narrower: you must own and live in the home, the recorded owner cannot be an LLC, and one PP&D page adds that you cannot be planning to sell or rent within six months, while another says “in the near future”. Ask PP&D before you rely on either.

Yes, within a short window. The CCB says a property owner can cancel any initial contract for construction, improvement or repair of a residential structure by giving the contractor written notice of cancellation before midnight of the next business day.

It can, when the work disturbs paint. In Oregon, only contractors licensed by the CCB for Lead-Based Paint Renovation may bid or work on pre-1978 homes; the CCB’s threshold for interior work is six square feet of painted surface per room. In Washington, renovation, repair or painting work on pre-1978 homes needs RRP certification from the Department of Commerce.

No. Sending a request is free and does not commit you to hiring anyone. The remodeler offers a free consultation; any design or estimate fees after it are the remodeler’s terms, agreed with you.

An independent local remodeler who holds a current Oregon CCB license for an Oregon job, or a Washington L&I registration for a Washington job. Portland Kitchen Pros, operated by H. Mae LLC, passes your request to them and does not do, supervise or guarantee the work. You can check the license or registration yourself in the public CCB and L&I lookups.