Key takeaways
- What decides the timeline is how much the layout changes, how long cabinets take to arrive, and what turns up behind the walls. Square footage matters far less.
- Most of the calendar is spent before demo. According to the 2024 U.S. Houzz & Home Study, kitchen renovations averaged 9.6 months of planning and 5.1 months of building in 2023.
- Permits are part of the calendar. According to the City of McKinney, cabinets, countertops, tile, flooring and painting need no permit, but work that moves plumbing, electrical or walls does.
"How long is this going to take?" is the second question on almost every kitchen walkthrough we do in Anna, McKinney, Allen, Frisco and the rest of Collin County. It comes right after "how much?" and it deserves a real answer, not a shrug. Alanis Remodeling & Construction is a family-owned remodeling company in Anna, Texas, and we have been answering it since 1999.
What decides how long a kitchen remodel takes?
Three things set the length of a kitchen remodel more than anything else: how much the layout changes, how long the cabinets take to arrive, and what the crew finds once the old kitchen comes out. A kitchen that keeps its footprint and uses stock cabinets moves fastest. Moving a sink or a wall, or ordering custom cabinetry, adds weeks.
How much the layout changes. When the sink stays where the sink was and the stove stays on the same wall, the crew is replacing surfaces and cabinets rather than rerouting the house. The moment a sink moves, an island gets plumbed, or a wall comes out, the job picks up plumbing and electrical rough-in, plus the inspections that go with it, before the walls can close back up.
Cabinets. Cabinetry is almost always the longest single wait in a kitchen. Stock cabinets ship quickly. Semi-custom and custom cabinets are built to order, and that lead time is measured in weeks, not days. The smart move is to order cabinets before demo, so the wait happens while your old kitchen is still usable.
What is behind the walls. In an older home, the crew sometimes finds wiring that needs updating, plumbing that is not up to today's standards, or water damage under the old floor. None of that shows up until demo.
Want a real number for your kitchen instead of a rule of thumb? Request a free in-home estimate and the Alanis family will put your schedule in writing.
What happens in what order?
Every kitchen follows the same order of work: design and ordering, demo, rough plumbing and electrical, drywall and paint, cabinets, counters, then the finishing work. The longest waits happen before demo, while cabinets are built, and between cabinet install and counter install, while the counters are fabricated. That is why the Houzz numbers above show planning outlasting building.
| Stage | What happens | What stretches it |
|---|---|---|
| Design and selections | Layout, cabinets, counters, tile, fixtures and appliances are chosen and ordered | Custom cabinets, special order materials, late appliance choices |
| Demo and haul off | The old kitchen comes out | Usually the shortest stage |
| Rough plumbing and electrical | Anything that moves gets moved, then inspected | Layout changes, older wiring or plumbing, inspection scheduling |
| Drywall, texture and paint | Walls close up and get finished | Wall changes, repairs found during demo |
| Cabinet install | The kitchen starts to look like a kitchen again | Cabinets arriving late or damaged |
| Counter template and install | Counters are measured after cabinets are set, then fabricated | Fabrication time, special order stone |
| Finish work | Backsplash, fixtures, hardware, appliances, final walkthrough | Backordered fixtures or appliances |
Do I need a permit for a kitchen remodel in Collin County?
It depends on the city and on what is changing. Cosmetic work in the same layout is usually permit-free, while work that moves plumbing, electrical or walls needs a permit and inspections. Each Collin County city sets its own rules, so the same kitchen can be treated differently in McKinney than in Anna. Ask during the estimate and we tell you what applies.
According to the City of McKinney, painting, tiling, flooring, cabinets, countertops and similar finish work do not require a permit, and neither does replacing faucets or fixtures in the same location without altering the pipes. Moving pipes, adding circuits, or changing walls falls under a residential alteration permit.
Anna handles it through its own Development Services office. According to the City of Anna, a residential remodeling permit application includes two sets of plans, a scope of work, and the names of the electrical, plumbing and mechanical subcontractors.
Why should the schedule be in writing?
Because a number you heard on the driveway is not something you can hold anyone to. At Alanis Remodeling, your proposal includes the schedule, from start date to finish date, along with the full cost in writing before work starts. No hidden fees. The same family crew handles your kitchen from demo day to the final wipe-down.
That is the standard, not a favor. The Federal Trade Commission says a home improvement contract should include an estimated start and completion date, and the Texas Attorney General tells homeowners to insist on a written contract that states when the work will start and when it will be completed. If a bid does not have both dates on it, ask why.
When the crew that demoed your kitchen is the same crew setting your cabinets, nobody is waiting on a subcontractor finishing another job across town. Keeping that schedule is one of the main reasons clients pick us.
What slows a kitchen remodel down?
Most delays come from changes made after materials are ordered, special order items that ship late, and surprises behind the walls. The first two are avoidable with a settled design and early appliance choices.
- Changing the plan after cabinets are ordered. A layout change at that point means a reorder and a new wait.
- Appliances chosen late. Appliance dimensions decide cabinet sizes, so a late change can ripple through the whole layout.
- Special order materials. Tile, counters and fixtures that ship from far away can land late. Picking from what is available locally protects the calendar.
- Surprises behind the walls. More common in older homes, and the reason we look hard during the estimate.
- Permits and inspections. When plumbing, electrical or walls move, the city gets involved, and inspection days are part of the schedule.
When one of these comes up on your project, you hear about it from us, with the change explained, not from a surprise on the final bill.
What is different about remodeling a kitchen in Collin County?
Collin County is growing fast, and that shapes the work. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county's population grew 21.7 percent between April 2020 and July 2025, and the county issued 19,082 building permits in 2025 alone. That means two very different kinds of kitchens: brand new builder kitchens in Anna, Celina and Frisco that owners want to make their own, and 1980s and 1990s kitchens in older Plano, McKinney and Allen neighborhoods that are ready for a full update.
The newer homes rarely hide surprises, so the schedule is mostly about cabinets and counters. The older homes are where wiring, plumbing and floors from thirty years ago do not always meet today's code once they are opened up. Our crew works out of Anna and covers the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex and about 50 miles beyond, including McKinney, Allen, Plano, Frisco, Celina, Sherman and Denison.
Get your schedule in writing
Book a free in-home estimate. We look at your actual kitchen, talk through what you want, and come back with a proposal that puts the cost and the schedule in writing before demo day. Kim, one of our Google reviewers, put it this way: "What impressed us most was their ability to complete the project not only on time but also within our budget."
Start on the kitchen remodeling page, see finished kitchens in the project gallery, or request your free estimate and the Alanis family will schedule your walkthrough. Prefer to talk now? Call (214) 451-7499.
About the author
Angel Alanis is the project manager at Alanis Remodeling & Construction, the family company Jesus Alanis founded in Anna, Texas in 1999. He runs the schedule and the day to day communication on every kitchen, bathroom and whole-home remodel the family crew takes on across Collin County and the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Meet the family.