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Accessible bathrooms in South Jersey

Cost vs. Value's 2025 Philadelphia market, the closest to Camden County, priced a universal-design bathroom at $45,7491, against $42,1832 nationally. The local factor is mobility: 24%3 of Camden County residents sixty-five and older report serious difficulty walking or climbing stairs, a real problem in bi-levels and colonials where the only full bath is a flight up.

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Updated October 12, 2026

Illustration of the lower-level bathroom of a 1960s Cherry Hill bi-level rebuilt for aging in place, with the old half bath beside the laundry enlarged into a curbless shower room with a fold-down bench, grab bars by the toilet and a wider door to the family room.
Illustration

Universal design, priced across the river

Philadelphia's 2025 Cost vs. Value page prices a universal-design bath, with a curbless shower, a wider door and controls within reach, plus a midrange bathroom addition for houses that need a new bath on the main floor.

Philadelphia marketU.S. average
Universal-design bathroom remodel, job cost$45,7491$42,1832
Universal-design bathroom remodel, resale value$25,9251$25,8122
Universal-design bathroom remodel, cost recouped at resale57%161%2
Bathroom addition, midrange, job cost$63,1201$60,6454

Agents in this market expect to get back a smaller share of the universal-design job than the national survey does. Building a new bath costs more than reworking one, so first see whether a downstairs half bath or laundry can be enlarged.

Residents who find stairs hard

The Census Bureau asks whether walking or climbing stairs is seriously difficult. Among residents sixty-five and older, Camden County's rate runs higher than Burlington County's.

Camden CountyBurlington County
Residents 65 and older with serious difficulty walking or climbing stairs, share24%319%3
Residents 65 and older with serious difficulty walking or climbing stairs20,185316,0643

Stairs are exactly what the question measures. In a split-level or bi-level, where every room is a half flight from the next, a bath at the entry level often matters more than the finishes.

Owners past sixty-five

Census tenure data records the age of whoever heads each owner-occupied home. Burlington County's owners skew a little older, but in both counties close to a third are sixty-five or older.

Camden CountyBurlington County
Owner-occupied homes headed by someone 65 or older31%532%5
Owner-occupied homes headed by someone 75 or older12%513%5

Many of these owners bought decades ago, and the bath they use every day may still be the builder's original. Planning the change before a fall is cheaper and calmer than planning it after one.

Twins, rowhouses and detached houses

Building-type counts show a larger share of single-family attached homes in Camden County than statewide: the twins and rowhouses of Camden, Gloucester City and Collingswood, beside the detached houses of the suburbs.

Camden CountyNew Jersey
Homes that are single-family attached (twins, rowhouses, townhouses)17%610%6
Homes that are single-family detached55%653%6

An attached house is narrow, so the bath can rarely grow sideways. Look to the back of the first floor, where a pantry or enclosed porch can sometimes become a small accessible bath.

The bathroom you're starting from

Most Camden County bathrooms were built before 1980, many in the postwar years when a tub across the end wall was the standard layout.

Camden CountyBurlington County
Homes built before 198071%755%7
Homes built 1950–196931%725%7

The ADA standards set a circular wheelchair turning space at 60 inches in diameter, and a clear floor space at 30 by 48 inches.8 Few postwar baths have that much open floor, so the usual trade is giving up the tub for a curbless shower.

Permits

Every New Jersey town enforces the same code through its own construction office, such as Cherry Hill's Department of Code Enforcement and Inspections. A like-for-like toilet or faucet swap is ordinary maintenance, and in a detached house only the owner or a master plumber may do it. Lowering the floor for a curbless shower, moving a drain or widening a doorway is permit work, though in a one- or two-family house much of it can go in as minor work that starts once the office has been notified.

  • New Jersey's construction code is the same statewide, with no separate local requirements; municipally employed, state-licensed construction officials and inspectors enforce it, and the owner or the owner's agent, such as the contractor, is responsible for getting the permits.9
  • In Cherry Hill, the township's Department of Code Enforcement and Inspections makes sure all construction work in the township meets the New Jersey Uniform Construction Code and issues construction permits.10
  • Replacing a plumbing fixture with a similar one, without changing the piping arrangement, counts as ordinary maintenance, as does replacing faucets, valves, traps or a dishwasher.11
  • In a detached single-family home, only the homeowner working on their own home or a New Jersey licensed master plumber may replace plumbing fixtures as ordinary maintenance; a home improvement contractor registration alone doesn't allow it under the state's master plumber licensing law.12
  • Under New Jersey's Uniform Construction Code it is unlawful to renovate, alter, repair or enlarge a building without first applying to the construction official, or to the subcode official when only one trade is involved, and getting a permit.11
  • In one- and two-family homes, minor work includes renovations that don't alter primary structural members, adding fixtures where the water and drain lines don't need to be enlarged, and up to five new outlets on existing circuits.13
  • Minor work still needs a permit, but it can start once the local code office has been notified; each trade then gets one final inspection of what is visible, within three business days of the request.14

Checked October 12, 2026

Before you hire

In New Jersey, ask for the company's home improvement contractor business registration number and confirm it's active with the Division of Consumer Affairs, because registering takes proof of at least $500,00026 per occurrence in liability insurance.

How to check a contractor's license in New Jersey

Talk to a pro who handles accessible bathrooms in South Jersey

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Where Camden County residents can get help

New Jersey's JACC program is state-funded and serves residents 60 and older who need a nursing-home level of care, meaning help with at least three daily activities such as bathing or toileting; its services can include environmental accessibility adaptations, or home modifications.15 In Camden County, the Division of Senior & Disabled Services administers JACC, which provides in-home services to residents 60 or older who need a nursing-facility level of care and are at risk of nursing-home placement.16 For 2026, JACC limits monthly income to 365 percent of the federal poverty level ($4,855 for one person, $6,582 for a married couple) and countable assets to $40,000 or $60,000, and caps services at $1,156 a month plus care management.15

Camden County's Division of Senior & Disabled Services/ADRC in Blackwood provides information and assistance and advocacy for the county's aging and disabled residents, and distributes federal Older Americans Act funds to the local agencies that serve them.17 If you aren't sure which program fits, that office in Blackwood is the place to start.

Cherry Hill's housing rehabilitation page lists Habitat for Humanity of South Central NJ's home repair program for income-qualified Cherry Hill homeowners, offered at no cost and covering roof repairs, plumbing, heating and cooling, weatherization, accessibility modifications, ramp installation and fall prevention.18 Other towns may have similar partners, so ask your municipal housing office what it lists.

A veteran may be able to add the VA's housing grant on top. The VA's Home Improvements and Structural Alterations (HISA) benefit pays for medically necessary changes to a veteran's or servicemember's primary residence, including use of essential bathroom facilities such as roll-in showers and lowering sinks and counters.19

Fitting the room into a South Jersey house

More than one in four adults 65 and older fall each year.20 Under the ADA standards a doorway needs a clear width of at least 32 inches, measured between the face of the door and the stop with the door open 90 degrees.8 Most postwar hall-bath doors are narrower, and widening one means new framing and patched wall on both sides.

In a bi-level, the lower floor usually holds the family room, the laundry and sometimes a half bath at grade. Turning that half bath into a full one with a curbless shower can spare an owner the stairs altogether. NAHB's Certified Aging-in-Place Specialist (CAPS) credential trains remodelers in home modifications for aging in place.21

In residential units covered by the ADA standards, a transfer shower may go without a seat as long as the walls are reinforced so one can be installed later.8 Ask for blocking behind every wall where a bar might be wanted later, because adding it after the tile is set means opening the wall again. If you have fallen, the NIA notes, your doctor might suggest that an occupational therapist, physical therapist or nurse visit your home to assess its safety and advise you about changes.22

Under the old tile

Baths from the fifties and sixties often sit on a thick mortar bed, so a flush shower entry means breaking it out and resetting the drain lower. The EPA notes that lead can collect inside galvanized pipe and later reach drinking water, and that solder made before 1986 contained high levels of lead.23

The EPA lists vinyl floor tile, vinyl sheet backing and flooring adhesives among products that may contain asbestos, which is released mainly when the material is disturbed.24 The EPA advises having an accredited asbestos professional inspect before a remodel that could disturb suspect materials, and not sanding or power-stripping suspect flooring yourself.25

What happens when you call

The number on this page puts you through, on a recorded line, to one independent company that handles accessible bathroom remodels in the South Jersey area. The layout, the fixtures and the price are settled between you and that company.

That company pays us for the call. It costs you nothing, and nobody from our side phones or texts you afterward. How we make money

After you're connected

Before you sign, look up the company's state registration yourself. New Jersey's Contractors' Business Registration Act requires every home improvement contractor business, from a sole proprietorship up, to register with the Division of Consumer Affairs every year before selling or making home improvements, unless the law exempts it.26 The Division of Consumer Affairs' License Verification System is a real-time lookup; its Business Search finds home improvement contractor businesses by business name, license number or city and lists each one's registration number, license type, status and city.27 Check a New Jersey license

A New Jersey home improvement contract for more than $500, and any change to its terms, must be in writing and signed by all parties, and must list the contractor business's legal name, business address and registration number, include a copy of its liability insurance certificate with the insurer's phone number, and state the total price including any finance charges.28 If JACC or another program is paying part of the cost, get the scope in writing so the care manager and the company work from the same list.

Questions people ask

What does an accessible bathroom cost in South Jersey?

Philadelphia's 2025 Cost vs. Value figure for a universal-design bath is $45,7491. Cost vs. Value's universal-design bath job removes the tub for a curbless, tiled walk-in shower with an adjustable showerhead, fold-out seat, thermostatic mixing valve and glass door, puts in a comfort-height toilet with a bidet-type seat, and rearranges storage so it can be reached from a seated position.29 Grab bars and a hand shower on their own are a far smaller job.

Does Camden County help pay for bathroom changes?

For some older residents it can. In Camden County, the Division of Senior & Disabled Services administers JACC, which provides in-home services to residents 60 or older who need a nursing-facility level of care and are at risk of nursing-home placement.16 Ask the county's Division of Senior & Disabled Services whether you qualify.

Who may replace the toilet in my house?

In a detached single-family home, only the homeowner working on their own home or a New Jersey licensed master plumber may replace plumbing fixtures as ordinary maintenance; a home improvement contractor registration alone doesn't allow it under the state's master plumber licensing law.12 Ask on the call who will handle the plumbing. New Jersey's State Board of Examiners of Master Plumbers licenses master plumbers, who must renew their licenses every two years, and investigates plumbers who break the state's consumer protection laws.30

Do I need a permit for a curbless shower?

Lowering the floor or moving the drain is permit work. Under New Jersey's Uniform Construction Code it is unlawful to renovate, alter, repair or enlarge a building without first applying to the construction official, or to the subcode official when only one trade is involved, and getting a permit.11 In one- and two-family homes, minor work includes renovations that don't alter primary structural members, adding fixtures where the water and drain lines don't need to be enlarged, and up to five new outlets on existing circuits.13

Sources

Page updated October 12, 2026. How we source our numbers

  1. Zonda / Journal of Light Construction, Cost vs. Value 2025, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Released 2025. Philadelphia, PA (Cost vs. Value market). Industry source.
  2. Zonda / Journal of Light Construction, Cost vs. Value 2025, national. Released 2025. United States. Industry source.
  3. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year, table S1810. Released January 29, 2026. Camden County, New Jersey, Burlington County, New Jersey.
  4. Zonda / Journal of Light Construction, Cost vs. Value Report 2025, Virginia Beach, VA. Released 2025. United States. Industry source.
  5. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year, table B25007. Released January 29, 2026. Camden County, New Jersey, Burlington County, New Jersey.
  6. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year, table B25024. Released January 29, 2026. Camden County, New Jersey, New Jersey.
  7. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year, table B25034. Released January 29, 2026. Camden County, New Jersey, Burlington County, New Jersey.
  8. U.S. Access Board, 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design. Released 2010. Source page, Source page, Source page.
  9. New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, Division of Codes and Standards, The New Jersey State Uniform Construction Code: General Information. Released May 2006. View source.
  10. Township of Cherry Hill, Building Inspection & Code. No publication date. View source.
  11. New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, Division of Codes and Standards, N.J.A.C. 5:23-2, Uniform Construction Code: Administration and Enforcement. Released August 17, 2026. View source.
  12. New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, Construction Code Communicator, Vol. 22, No. 3 (Fall 2010): Ordinary Maintenance – Plumbing Fixture Replacements. Released 2010. View source.
  13. New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, Division of Codes and Standards, Significant Changes to Minor Work and Ordinary Maintenance. Released March 5, 2018. View source.
  14. New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, Division of Codes and Standards, Construction Code Communicator, Vol. 35 No. 3, Fall 2023: Minor Work… or Not?!. Released 2023. View source.
  15. New Jersey Department of Human Services, Division of Aging Services, Jersey Assistance for Community Caregiving (JACC). Released September 28, 2026. View source.
  16. Camden County, NJ, Senior & Disabled Services: In-Home Services. No publication date. View source.
  17. Camden County, NJ, Senior Services Referrals and Information. No publication date. View source.
  18. Township of Cherry Hill, Housing Rehabilitation. No publication date. View source.
  19. U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Home Improvements and Structural Alterations (HISA). Released February 12, 2025. View source.
  20. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Facts About Older Adult Falls. Released September 4, 2026. View source.
  21. National Association of Home Builders, Certified Aging-in-Place Specialist (CAPS). No publication date. View source. Industry source.
  22. National Institute on Aging, Preventing Falls at Home: Room by Room. Released September 12, 2022. View source.
  23. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Sources of Lead in Drinking Water. Released August 2017. View source.
  24. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Learn About Asbestos. Released July 13, 2026. View source.
  25. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Protect Your Family from Exposures to Asbestos. Released June 25, 2026. View source.
  26. New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs, Home Improvement Contractor Business: Frequently Asked Questions. Released March 3, 2025. View source.
  27. New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs, License Verification System. No publication date. View source.
  28. New Jersey Legislature, P.L.2023, c.237 (Home Improvement and Home Elevation Contractor Licensing Act; amendments to the Contractors' Business Registration Act). Released January 8, 2024. View source.
  29. Zonda / Journal of Light Construction, Cost vs. Value project description: Bath Remodel | Universal Design. Released September 18, 2025. View source. Industry source.
  30. New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs, State Board of Examiners of Master Plumbers. Released December 4, 2023. View source.
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