Methodology

• Source: City of Chicago Building Permits dataset (Socrata id ydr8-5enu), queried via its public API.
• Filter: permit_type = 'PERMIT - RENOVATION/ALTERATION', issued in the last 365 days (5310 permits). Then the work description is matched for KITCHEN or BATH, for residential terms (residential, dwelling, unit, condo, flat, etc.), and must not mention commercial terms (office, tenant, retail, restaurant, etc.). Result: 190 permits.
• Medians and middle-50% ranges (25th–75th percentile) are calculated over permits with a reported cost above $0.
• Keyword matching is imperfect. Some permits are misclassified, and the City of Chicago is the only area covered (no suburbs).
• Submitted project costs are reviewed by hand before publication.

Real projects

Labor and install only. These are labor and install prices only. Finish materials the homeowner bought (cabinets, countertops, tile, fixtures, flooring, appliances) are not included, and they often add as much as or more than the labor.

• Typical finish materials (client-paid): the contractor supplied typical averages across his recent projects, not per-job receipts: about $55,000 per kitchen (cabinetry, appliances, countertops, light fixtures, cabinet pulls) and about $12,000 per bathroom (tile, vanity, mirrors, light fixtures, plumbing fixtures, accessories). Cards show these labeled "typical, not job-specific". KB-02 shows "not applicable" because it's mostly a repipe.
• All-in estimate = labor/install price + typical finishes. Kitchen: median $23,000 + $55,000 ≈ $78,000. Kitchen + bath jobs: job total + $55,000 + $12,000 per bath (KB-09 counted as 2 baths, KB-10 as 1). No bath-only labor median exists, so bath shows only the $12,000 per-bath figure. These are estimates, not quotes.
• Known per-job finish amounts: where invoices explicitly priced a finish item (KB-02 shower glass $2,550; KB-09 closet doors $1,800; KB-10 $8,987.80 across shower glass, a cabinetry deposit and window material), cards list them. They are a partial floor only, and most were already inside the GC's final price. Items where material and labor weren't separable are not listed.
• Source: 10 recent sold kitchen/bath jobs, labeled contractor-sold prices from one Chicago-area GC, 2025-2026. These are prices sold to clients (they include the GC's overhead and profit), not subcontractor costs.
• Privacy: totals rounded to the nearest $500 and trade amounts to $100. Locations generalized (e.g. "North suburb"). Client, address, and company details removed, and scope descriptions rewritten.
• Final total = original contract + change orders, and it's authoritative. Where line items sum higher because of options or credits (KB-06, KB-07, KB-08), totals win.
• KB-10: an optional ~$10,500 add-on is excluded from its total and all comparisons.
• KB-02: mostly a whole-home repipe, so it's excluded from kitchen/bath medians and labeled on its card.
• Kitchen median covers kitchen-only jobs (n=7). Most are suburban, while the permit data is City of Chicago only.