Service area Larimer County
Home remodeling in Loveland, planned for the house and the block it sits on
Loveland's railroad grid, its boom-era subdivisions and its newer edges each call for a different kind of remodel.
Loveland within the Front Range service area
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Overview
Remodeling Loveland homes
Remodeling For Less provides home remodeling in Loveland for homeowners planning a kitchen, a bathroom, a finished basement, a more open main floor or a whole-house update. Every project is framed first as a refresh, a reconfiguration or a full remodel, so the scope matches the house before anyone talks finishes.
Loveland was founded in 1877 along the Colorado Central Railroad and incorporated in 1881. It grew for decades on sugar beets and cherries, then quickly after Hewlett-Packard opened a plant in 1960. That arc left three distinct kinds of houses, and the right plan depends on which one you're standing in.
Areas and neighborhoods in Loveland
- West 4th Street Historic District
- West 5th Street Historic District
The housing
Three generations of Loveland houses
A 2010 survey of historic residences, prepared for the city with a state preservation grant, and the city's own history show how housing spread outward from the railroad grid.
The original grid, 1870s to the late 1940s
Loveland's older streets form a grid split into east and west halves by the railroad tracks along Railroad Avenue, with numbered streets running north toward what's now Eisenhower Boulevard. The survey of homes in that core found Late Victorian, Edwardian, Foursquare and Craftsman houses built from the 1870s to the late 1940s. North-south streets once carried letters; by 1906, A Street had become Lincoln Avenue. Remodeling them tends to mean tight kitchens, a stair that limits the layout, and old wiring that's worth replacing while the walls are open.
Subdivisions from the 1960s and 1970s
The 1960s and 1970s were decades of unprecedented growth. The population went from 9,734 in 1960 to 16,220 in 1970 and nearly doubled again by 1980, as new subdivisions filled with modern homes. Those houses are now past the half-century mark. If yours still has its original bathrooms, a closed-off kitchen or a paneled basement, expect them to show their age together, often alongside an electrical panel sized for a different era of appliances and a furnace nearing the end of its life.
Newer neighborhoods on former farmland
Growth continued into the 1990s, and the city expanded outward in all directions from its historic center as farmland gave way to subdivisions. Houses on the city's edges are younger, and the usual projects are finishing a basement, reworking a builder kitchen or replacing finishes across the main floor. Structure is rarely the obstacle in these homes; rules and drainage are. Check for HOA covenants before changing anything outside, and look at how the lot drains before planning below-grade bedrooms.
Local factors
Loveland rules, rivers and utilities that affect a remodel
The city Building Division
Loveland's Building Division, part of Development Services, requires a permit for new construction, additions and alterations. Its residential list includes basement finishes, interior remodels, HVAC and demolition, and a state asbestos report is required for demos. You can do your own work on a primary residence with a homeowner affidavit, while a city contractor license is required for structural, mechanical, electrical or plumbing work in rental homes. At last check, the city listed plan review at 20 to 30 working days per round.
Landmark Alteration Approval
The Loveland Historic Register, started in 2002, now includes four historic districts, among them West 4th Street and West 5th Street, plus individual landmarks. Any exterior change to a designated property needs a Landmark Alteration Approval, and the city won't issue a building permit until it's done. Interior remodeling is exempt unless doors or windows are affected. If your home is designated, you can tap incentives such as a permit fee waiver and a zero-interest Landmark Rehabilitation Loan. Ask the historic preservation liaison early.
The Big Thompson and a city-owned utility
On Sept. 12, 2013, flood water covered more than three square miles of Loveland and closed every bridge over the Big Thompson River. Near the river corridor, ask about floodplain status before planning a basement. Loveland also runs its own electric utility, established in 1925. Its rebates, delivered through Efficiency Works, include one for upgrading a service panel to 200 amps as part of a heat pump project, which matters when a remodel adds circuits. Program details change, so confirm them before you commit.
If this, then that
Matching a Loveland house to the right level of work
| If | Then |
|---|---|
| If your house is on the older grid near downtown | Plan a reconfiguration inside the footprint and replace wiring while walls are open. |
| If it's a 1960s or 1970s house with original baths | Pair a bathroom remodel with a look at the electrical panel. |
| If the property is on the Loveland Historic Register | Keep changes interior where you can; new windows or doors trigger alteration review. |
| If you're adding a heat pump during the remodel | Check the utility's panel-upgrade rebate before the service gets sized. |
Services in Loveland
Loveland projects by service
Three services come up again and again in Loveland's older and middle-aged houses.
Bathroom remodeling
In boom-era houses, bathroom remodeling often starts with a hall bath that has served since the first owner. Original tile, a tub-shower combination and a small vanity are simple to replace. Moving the toilet or opening a wall for a bigger shower brings new plumbing and a permit. In grid-era homes, adding a second bath usually means borrowing space from a bedroom or closet.
Kitchen remodeling
To remodel the kitchen in a Foursquare or Craftsman house, work with the room you have, because early kitchens were small and often tucked at the back. In a 1970s house, the fix may be the wall between kitchen and dining room. Either way, plan electrical early, since modern appliances ask more of the panel than the original service expected.
Open floor plans
If your house from the growth decades has separate living, dining and kitchen rooms, creating an open floor plan means finding out which walls carry the roof or floor above, then sizing a beam. Ducts and plumbing inside those walls get rerouted too, and that's where schedules slip. It's full-remodel territory, it needs a permit, and it's worth doing alongside the kitchen work.
Planning checklist
Loveland remodel checklist
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Questions
Remodeling questions from Loveland homeowners
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Yes. The Building Division lists interior remodels, basement finishes, HVAC work and demolition among residential projects that need a permit, and changing plans after approval requires a request to amend. Demolition also needs a state asbestos report. If you're unsure whether a small job qualifies, ask the Building Division before opening walls.
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On the home that's your primary residence, yes, with a homeowner affidavit. The city requires a Loveland contractor's license for structural, mechanical, electrical or plumbing work in rental homes, multifamily buildings and non-residential buildings, so the rules shift if the house is a rental. The Building Division can confirm whether a contractor's license is valid.
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The city publishes its current plan review estimate on its permitting FAQ, and at last check it was 20 to 30 working days per round of review. Plans that need corrections go through another round, so complete drawings save time. Order long-lead items like cabinets once you know the permit timing.
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No. Historic designation isn't meant to freeze a building. Interior remodeling is exempt from alteration review unless doors or windows change, and exterior work gets reviewed against the Secretary of the Interior's Standards. Designated owners may also qualify for tax credits, State Historical Fund grants, a permit fee waiver and a zero-interest loan.
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It depends on where you live. The 2013 flood covered more than three square miles of the city along the Big Thompson. Away from the river, basement questions are the ordinary ones: grading, gutters and window wells. Near it, check floodplain status first, since that affects whether finished space below grade makes sense.
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The bottom line
The bottom line
A Loveland remodel starts with knowing which Loveland you're in: the railroad grid, the subdivisions of the Hewlett-Packard years or the newer edges. Check historic and floodplain status, look at the utility's rebates if electrical work is involved, and leave room for plan review. Then settle on a refresh, a reconfiguration or a full remodel. Call [Phone] to talk through your Loveland house.
Talk through your Loveland project
Start with the room and what isn't working. The scope follows from there.
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