Design
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Service area · Hamilton County
Design-Build Remodeler in Carmel, Indiana
Planning a kitchen, bath, basement or whole-home remodel in Carmel? 1874 Design Studio is a design-build remodeler. We handle your design, and our trusted trade professionals work alongside our design and project management teams through construction. We provide the structural engineer and the building permits. In Carmel, the City's Building Safety Office issues every building permit inside the city.
A division of Knapp Supply Co.Full-service remodelingStructural remodels & additionsDesign, selections & 3D renderings
Hamilton County
Remodeling in Carmel
Carmel had about 105,600 residents in the Census Bureau's estimate for July 1, 2025. It sits in Hamilton County and covers about 49 square miles of land. About a third of its homes were built before 1990, per Census Bureau survey estimates for 2020-2024. About three in four occupied homes are lived in by their owners, per Census Bureau survey estimates.
A few remodeling rules here are local. The Old Town Overlay District has its own design review, and a 2014 historic architecture survey rated properties. Floodplain rules apply to development in the City's Special Flood Hazard Area.
1874 Design Studio projectPermits and codes
Permits, zoning and housing in Carmel
For homes inside the city, Carmel's Building Safety Office issues remodel permits and inspects the work under the 2020 Indiana Residential Code. Depending on where your home sits, Old Town Overlay design review or floodplain rules may also apply. Demolishing a building the 2014 historic survey rated Outstanding, Notable or Contributing brings a demolition delay.
The Building Safety Office is part of the City's Department of Community Services. It issues all building permits in Carmel, which the City calls Improvement Location Permits. It also performs all building inspections. Every residential project must be designed and built to the 2020 Indiana Residential Code. That code is the 2018 International Residential Code plus the 2020 Indiana Amendments.
One permit typically covers a whole project. The Builder of Record named on it is responsible for all the work. The Builder of Record is also responsible for scheduling and completing every required inspection and for paying all fees. With that much resting on one name, it is worth knowing who will be Builder of Record on your permit. Not sure your project needs a permit? The City says it will help you decide.
Once the City assigns a permit number, plans are uploaded to ProjectDox, its online submittal system. The Department of Community Services then sends them to other departments and agencies for review. The plan reviewer decides which inspections your project needs. Carmel's 2026 fee schedule has separate residential permit categories for an addition, a remodel and a basement finish.
After footing or under-slab inspections pass, the permit placard must stay posted in a front window facing the street for the rest of construction. The rough-in inspection covers framing, electrical, plumbing, HVAC, house wrap and window flashing. Insulation cannot go in until it is approved. Foam is not approved for fire blocking in Indiana.
Local guide · Carmel
Old Town Overlay and historic review
Carmel's Unified Development Ordinance places seven overlay districts over the city's base zoning. In the Old Town Overlay District, any alteration, addition or new construction that needs a building permit is reviewed against the overlay's architectural rules. Where a C2 Mixed Use District lies inside the overlay, the C2 standards and procedures govern instead. Residential projects in the overlay go through Site Plan and Design Review.
The overlay has three sub-areas: Character, Historic Range Line Road and Main Street. Each has its own guidelines. In the Character Sub-Area, exterior additions and alterations must be clad in wood, brick, or lap, shake or shingle-style cement board. Their materials must be consistent with the main house. An alteration may not lower an existing roof's pitch by more than five degrees. The overlay's demolition rules count interior work as not demolition. That point is about demolition review, not building permits.
Carmel's Historic Preservation Commission was formed in December 2011. In 2014 the City Council adopted the City of Carmel and Clay Township Historic Architecture Survey. It rates properties Outstanding, Notable, Contributing or Non-Contributing. The survey rated a property Contributing if it was at least 40 years old but did not meet the criteria for the two higher ratings. The Commission's facade grant program encourages owners of historic properties identified in the 2014 survey to restore historic character seen from the public right-of-way.
Local guide · Carmel
When Carmel homes were built
The median Carmel home was built in 1998, per Census Bureau survey estimates for 2020-2024, give or take two years. Of roughly 40,900 housing units, about 43 percent were built from 1990 through 2009. About 22 percent were built before 1980. About 70 percent of all units are in one-unit detached structures.
Some of Carmel's older homes predate 1978. If yours does, we would coordinate and provide appropriate EPA services in that instance.
1874 Design Studio projectLocal guide · Carmel
Floodplain, sewer and utilities
The City says flooding is not a common occurrence in Carmel, but that much of Carmel has experienced significant flooding in the past. All development in the floodplain or floodway needs a permit. The City can issue building permits in floodplain areas. Building or earth-moving work in the floodway also needs a permit from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources. Carmel takes part in the FEMA Community Rating System and has a Floodplain Manager in the Department of Community Services.
Carmel's flood ordinance defines its Special Flood Hazard Area as land in the City with a 1 percent or greater chance of flooding in any year. That area includes FEMA's mapped Zones A, AE, A99 and VE. It also includes flood-prone land shown by other sources. These include Indiana DNR flood maps, past high-water marks, past flooded areas and flood-prone soils along a watercourse. In that area, the Flood Protection Grade is the base flood elevation plus two feet. In Zone A and Zone AE, this applies to new construction and substantial improvements of homes. For those, the lowest floor, basement included, must be at or above that grade.
A substantial improvement is any reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition or other improvement costing at least 50 percent of the structure's market value before construction starts. The term also covers homes with repetitive flood loss or substantial damage, whatever repair work is done. It does not include improvements made to correct existing violations of state or local health, sanitary or safety codes.
TriCo Regional Sewer Utility, formerly the Clay Township Regional Waste District, is a regional sewer district. It was created to address failed septic systems in an area Carmel annexed in 2004, and to support growth in western Clay Township. It now serves the western half of Clay Township, the eastern edge of Zionsville and developments in Marion County along 96th Street. Census Bureau estimates place all of Clay Township's population inside Carmel.
Services
Remodeling services for Carmel homes
In Carmel we design and build kitchens, bathrooms, basements, laundry rooms, mudrooms, home offices, whole-home renovations and home additions. Any of these that needs a permit goes through the City process described above.
Structural changes are part of our work when they belong to a home remodel.
Built-ins, fireplace remodels and custom on-your-lot new construction from our own plans are also part of our work.
Kitchen remodeling
A Carmel kitchen remodel can include a butler's pantry, a coffee bar or a pantry wall. Cabinetry options include WW Wood Products Shiloh, Eclipse and Aspect. Countertop options include MSI, Cambria and Cosentino. If your permit calls for a rough-in inspection, insulation stays out of the walls until the City approves it.
Bathroom remodeling
Bathroom remodels include tub-to-shower conversions and zero-entry showers. They also include accessibility and aging-in-place planning. Like every residential project in Carmel, a bathroom remodel must be designed and built to the 2020 Indiana Residential Code.
Whole-home renovations
A whole-home renovation in Carmel is typically covered by one permit for all of the work. The plan reviewer sets its inspections. If the home is in the Old Town Overlay, any permitted alteration also goes through the overlay's design review.
Basements, laundry, mudrooms and home offices
Basement projects are complete finishes or remodels, and egress and a bathroom are typical parts of one. We also remodel laundry rooms, mudrooms and home offices. For Carmel permits submitted on or after April 27, 2026, the insulation inspection checks basement walls. They need at least R-15 continuous or R-19 cavity insulation. For those permits, where under-slab plumbing is inspected, the inspector verifies the sump pit location.
Home additions
Additions can go inside or out: a primary suite, a family room, an in-law suite, a bump-out, a second story or a garage. Carmel's fee schedule gives additions their own residential permit category. In the Old Town Overlay's Character Sub-Area, additions follow the cladding rules above.
In flood Zone A or AE, an addition costing at least 50 percent of the home's pre-construction market value is a substantial improvement. That brings in the lowest-floor rule at the Flood Protection Grade.
Working with us
Working with 1874 Design Studio in Carmel
Our studio is in Muncie, about 56 miles by road from the Census Bureau's reference point for Carmel. We provide your design, the structural engineer and the building permits.
Our design work includes measurements, one to three design concepts, 3D renderings, curated selections and an all-inclusive total cost. If your project needs zoning review or HOA approval, we help with those materials.
Most of our clients live at home during a remodel. We protect the work site, run air scrubbers and clean up daily. Carmel requires the property owner or a representative to be present for inspections of an occupied home.
Installation work carries a one-year workmanship warranty, and the products you select carry their manufacturers' warranties. To talk through your Carmel project, call the studio at (765) 288-1874.
Design. Discover. Deliver. Difference.
Discover
Explore material selections, including name brands and boutique lines, with guidance on finishes.
Deliver
Review the project details and proposed total cost.
Difference
Design, project management and trade professionals come together for the build.
Other communities we serve
1874 Design Studio also works with homeowners in these communities.
All service areasCarmel remodeling questions
Who issues remodeling permits in Carmel, Indiana?
The City of Carmel's Building Safety Office issues all building permits inside the city, called Improvement Location Permits. It also does the inspections. If you can't tell whether your project needs a permit, the City offers to help you find out.
Do I need to be home for inspections during a Carmel remodel?
Yes, you or someone representing you. For an occupied house, Carmel requires the owner or someone representing the owner to be there when the inspector arrives.
Does the Old Town Overlay have extra rules for remodeling?
Yes, for homes inside the overlay. Permitted alterations, additions and new construction there are checked against the overlay's architectural rules. Residential work goes through Site Plan and Design Review. Where a C2 Mixed Use District sits within the overlay, C2 standards and procedures apply instead.
Do floodplain rules affect a basement remodel in Carmel?
Only for a home in the Special Flood Hazard Area, which Carmel's flood ordinance defines to include FEMA-mapped zones and other flood-prone land. In Zone A or AE, this applies to new construction and substantial improvements. For those, the lowest floor, including a basement, must be at or above base flood elevation plus two feet. A substantial improvement is work costing at least half the home's market value before construction, or a home with repetitive flood loss or substantial damage. Work to correct existing health, sanitary or safety code violations does not count. Any floodplain development needs a permit, and floodway work also needs an Indiana DNR permit.
What does Carmel's historic survey mean for a remodel?
Owners of buildings the 2014 survey rated Outstanding, Notable or Contributing fall under a 2017 demolition delay ordinance. They wait 60 days between applying for a demolition permit and receiving it. The director of the Department of Community Services can extend that period to 90 days. The delay applies to a permit to demolish the structure.
How far is 1874 Design Studio from Carmel?
About 56 miles by road, measured from our Muncie studio to the Census Bureau's internal point for Carmel. Road distance to a particular Carmel address will differ.
Do you offer design services for Carmel homes?
Yes, as part of design-build. Our design work covers measurements, one to three design concepts, 3D renderings, curated selections and an all-inclusive total cost. During construction, our trusted trade professionals work alongside our design and project management teams.
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(765) 288-1874420 S Ohio Ave, Suite 1874Muncie, IN 47302