Bathroom remodeling in Henrico County
Cost vs. Value doesn't price Henrico on its own; its 2024 figure for the Richmond market is $25,0041 for a midrange bathroom remodel, against $25,2512 nationally. What sets a Henrico job apart is the age of the house around it: 21%3 of the county's homes went up between 1950 and 1969, more than the metro's 17%3, so many bathrooms here are original postwar rooms with old tile, old pipes and little space to spare.
Calls are recorded. One independent company that handles bathroom remodels in the Henrico County area answers.
Updated October 11, 2026
What the job costs in the Richmond market
Henrico has no Cost vs. Value page of its own. These are the report's Richmond-market prices from 2024, the newest edition that covers Richmond, set beside the national averages from the same year.
| Measure | Richmond market | U.S. average |
|---|---|---|
| Midrange bathroom remodel, job cost | $25,0041 | $25,2512 |
| Upscale bathroom remodel, job cost | $78,1651 | $78,8402 |
| Universal-design bathroom remodel, job cost | $40,4011 | $40,7502 |
Use these as a starting range for the region, not a Henrico quote. In a county house from the 1950s, the drain under the floor and the condition of the supply lines will move the final price more than your choice of tile.
When Henrico's houses were built
Census counts by year built show Henrico grew in two big waves: the postwar decades and the 1980s and 1990s.
| Measure | Henrico County | Richmond metro |
|---|---|---|
| Homes built 1950–1969 | 21%3 | 17%3 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 41%3 | 44%3 |
| Homes built 1980–1999 | 33%3 | – |
Those two waves call for different bathroom plans. A room from the 1950s or 1960s may still have its first tile, tub and galvanized supply pipe; one from the 1980s or 1990s is more likely to need new finishes and a better fan than new plumbing.
What Henrico homes are worth
The median owner-occupied home in Henrico is worth a little more than the median across the Richmond metro.
Houses, townhouses and apartments
Census counts by building type show Henrico has more townhouses and apartment buildings than Chesterfield, its neighbor across the James.
| Measure | Henrico County | Chesterfield County |
|---|---|---|
| Single-family detached homes | 63%5 | 78%5 |
| Single-family attached homes (townhouses and similar) | 11%5 | 6%5 |
| Homes in buildings with five or more units | 20%5 | 12%5 |
If you live in a townhouse or condominium, the bathroom may share a wall, a drain stack or a ceiling with a neighbor. Check the association's rules on contractors and work hours, and ask how the crew will keep noise and water from reaching next door.
Henrico's permit fee formula
Henrico prices permits for work on an existing one- or two-family home by the job's estimated cost, using a published formula.
| Measure | Henrico County |
|---|---|
| Permit fee for the first $5,000 of estimated cost (existing one- or two-family home) | $1006 |
| Added permit fee per additional $1,000 of estimated cost, or fraction | $66 |
| State levy added to the permit fee | 2%6 |
A bathroom that needs building, plumbing and electrical work can mean more than one permit, each with its own fee. Ask the contractor which permits they will pull and whether the fees are already in the quote.
Permits
These rules come from Henrico County's Department of Building Construction and Inspections; the City of Richmond's rules on our metro guide don't apply in the county. Retiling, a new vanity cabinet and swapping a toilet or faucet on the existing pipes count as ordinary repairs. Adding a fixture, moving a drain or supply line, or changing wiring needs a permit. Homeowners may apply for their own permits, and interior alterations can often be reviewed and issued at the Permit Center the same day.
- Henrico County requires a permit for alterations that add or remove walls or change the water supply, drain or vent piping or the electric wiring, and for the first-time installation of bathtubs, showers, sinks, toilets, exhaust fans and light fixtures.7
- Henrico counts replacing plumbing fixtures without altering the water supply, drainage or vent systems, and replacing switches, receptacles, light fixtures and ceiling fans in a house, townhouse or condominium, as ordinary repairs that need no permit.8
- Henrico needs no permit for installing or replacing floor finishes, replacement cabinetry or trim, or paint and wallpaper, and lists ceramic tile and new or existing kitchen cabinets among projects that don't require one.8
- Henrico notes that work exempt from a permit may still have to meet the Uniform Statewide Building Code's requirements for health, safety, accessibility, energy and water conservation.8
- Henrico accepts permit applications from a homeowner or the homeowner's authorized agent with an Owner's Statement of Responsibility, or from a licensed contractor with a valid Virginia contractor number.9
- Henrico takes permit applications online at any time through Build Henrico, and its Permit Center offers walk-in help Monday through Friday from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm.9
- Henrico can review and issue interior alteration and sub-trade (electrical, mechanical and plumbing) permits the same day on a walk-through basis if all required plans and documents are in by 3:00 PM; properties without public utilities can't use walk-through review because the Virginia Department of Health must review them.9
Checked October 11, 2026
Talk to a pro who handles bathroom remodels in Henrico County
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Bathrooms in Henrico's postwar houses
Henrico put up 21%3 of the homes standing there today during the 1950s and 1960s, and 41%3 predate 1980. Houses from those years often have a single hall bath with the tub against an outside wall, so a remodel usually works inside the room you already have rather than borrowing space from a closet or bedroom.
Old paint and old floors deserve a question before demolition. EPA's lead renovation rule requires anyone paid to disturb painted surfaces in a home built before 1978 to be lead-safe certified, and the EPA says about three-quarters of U.S. homes built before 1978 still contain some lead-based paint.10 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.11 Ask whether the crew is lead-safe certified and whether the old floor tile and its glue will be tested before anyone scrapes it up.
The pipes are the other question in a house this age. 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.12 Henrico's 2025 water quality report points residents to the Henrico Water Service Inventory Map to look up the material of their water service line.13 If the house still has galvanized lines inside the walls, have them priced while the room is open.
Henrico's 2025 water quality report says its water comes from the county's own treatment facility and from the City of Richmond's plant, which supplies Henrico about 13 million gallons a day, and that both draw surface water from the James River.13 The report gives no hardness reading, so if you're weighing a softener or a particular shower valve, ask the county utility for a current number. A house on a private well is its own case: Henrico Extension's 2026 clinic for private wells, springs and cisterns tests water for hardness, iron, manganese, lead, copper, pH, coliform bacteria and other items, at $70 per sample.14
Planning to stay in a one-bath house
In a ranch with one bathroom, that room is the one nobody can avoid, which makes it the first place to plan for safety. More than one in four adults 65 and older fall each year.15 The CDC's home fall-prevention checklist recommends grab bars in and beside the tub and next to the toilet, and a non-slip surface on tub and shower floors.16 The National Institute on Aging suggests non-skid surfaces wherever a floor can get wet and a light left on in the bathroom at night.17
Henrico's Moderate Housing Rehabilitation Program, administered for the county by project:HOMES, offers improvements of up to $45,000, including adaptability improvements, to low- or moderate-income homeowners who are elderly (62 or over) or disabled.18 project:HOMES, a Central Virginia nonprofit, lists accessibility upgrades such as wheelchair ramps and critical home repairs among its services for older adults and households at or below 60 to 80 percent of area median income, with a service area that includes Richmond, Henrico and Chesterfield.19 A short ramp to the front door may not need a permit at all: Henrico lists installing a temporary ramp no more than 30 inches above grade, with no footing required, among work that needs no permit.8 NAHB's Certified Aging-in-Place Specialist (CAPS) credential trains remodelers in home modifications for aging in place.20
What happens when you call
You call the number on this page. The call is recorded, and we connect you to one independent company that handles bathroom remodels in the Henrico County area. You talk with them directly about the project, the schedule and the price.
That company pays us for the call. You don't pay us anything, and we never call or text you. How we make money
After you're connected
Before you sign anything, look the company up yourself. Virginia's Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation advises hiring only licensed contractors, and its License Lookup shows a license's status and any past disciplinary actions.21 In Henrico, a contractor who applies for your permit needs a valid Virginia contractor number, so ask which one will go on the application. Check a Virginia license
Questions people ask
How much does a bathroom remodel cost in Henrico County?
There's no Henrico-only figure. The 2024 Cost vs. Value report puts a midrange bathroom in the Richmond market at $25,0041 and an upscale one at $78,1651. Henrico's permit fees come on top and start at $1006 per permit, rising with the job's estimated cost.
Do I need a permit to redo a bathroom in Henrico?
It depends on what changes. Henrico counts replacing plumbing fixtures without altering the water supply, drainage or vent systems, and replacing switches, receptacles, light fixtures and ceiling fans in a house, townhouse or condominium, as ordinary repairs that need no permit.8 Henrico County requires a permit for alterations that add or remove walls or change the water supply, drain or vent piping or the electric wiring, and for the first-time installation of bathtubs, showers, sinks, toilets, exhaust fans and light fixtures.7
Can I pull my own bathroom permit in Henrico County?
Yes. Henrico accepts permit applications from a homeowner or the homeowner's authorized agent with an Owner's Statement of Responsibility, or from a licensed contractor with a valid Virginia contractor number.9 Henrico takes permit applications online at any time through Build Henrico, and its Permit Center offers walk-in help Monday through Friday from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm.9
What should I expect in an older Henrico bathroom?
Mostly surprises from age: 41%3 of Henrico homes predate 1980, so lead paint, vinyl floor tile with old adhesive and galvanized pipe can all turn up once the walls and floor are open. A careful contractor will say how they handle each one before you sign.
Sources
Page updated October 11, 2026. How we source our numbers
- Zonda / Journal of Light Construction, Cost vs. Value 2024, Richmond. Released 2024. Richmond. Industry source.
- Zonda / Journal of Light Construction, Cost vs. Value 2024, national. Released 2024. United States. Industry source.
- U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year, table B25034. Released January 29, 2026. Henrico County, Virginia, Richmond, VA metro.
- U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year, table B25077. Released January 29, 2026. Henrico County, Virginia, Richmond, VA metro.
- U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year, table B25024. Released January 29, 2026. Henrico County, Virginia.
- Henrico County Department of Building Construction and Inspections, Plumbing Permit. No publication date. Henrico County, Virginia.
- Henrico County Department of Building Construction and Inspections, Permit Center: When a Building Permit is Required. No publication date. View source.
- Henrico County Department of Building Construction and Inspections, Permit Center: When a Building Permit is Not Required. No publication date. View source.
- Henrico County Department of Building Construction and Inspections, Permit Center: Who, What, When & Where. No publication date. View source.
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting Program. Released June 17, 2026. View source.
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Learn About Asbestos. Released July 13, 2026. View source.
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Sources of Lead in Drinking Water. Released August 2017. View source.
- Henrico County Department of Public Utilities, 2025 Water Quality Report. Released May 26, 2026. View source.
- Henrico County (Virginia Cooperative Extension, Henrico office), Henrico Extension to offer water testing clinic for residents on private wells. Released May 2026. View source.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Facts About Older Adult Falls. Released September 4, 2026. View source.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, STEADI: Check for Safety, a home fall prevention checklist for older adults. No publication date. View source.
- National Institute on Aging, Preventing Falls at Home: Room by Room. Released September 12, 2022. View source.
- Henrico County Department of Community Revitalization, Homeowner Rehabilitation and Repair Assistance. No publication date. View source.
- project:HOMES, Get Help. No publication date. View source. Industry source.
- National Association of Home Builders, Certified Aging-in-Place Specialist (CAPS). No publication date. View source. Industry source.
- Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation, DPOR Consumer Guide: Hiring a Contractor. No publication date. View source.