Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam
Home Renovations in Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam
Whole interiors, main floors, basements and legal suites in Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam houses, condos and townhouses. We handle the permits and inspections with either city.
Winner, Best Kitchen Renovation over $200,000, and finalist, Residential Renovator of the Year, Georgie Awards 2026
Renovating Coquitlam Homes from Langley Township
Our office is on 232 Street in Langley Township, south of the Fraser River from Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam.
As your renovation contractor in Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam, we renovate houses, condos and townhouses with the same team and process as our home renovations in Langley. After a consultation about your home, the scope and your budget, you get a written proposal and choose a fixed price or open-book cost-plus for the build.
A kitchen renovation in Coquitlam needs a building permit if it removes or replaces drywall. New cabinets and floor finishes on their own need none. Our kitchen renovations cover cabinetry, countertops, appliance integration and range hood ventilation.
In a house built before 1990, a bathroom renovation in Coquitlam starts with asbestos testing, because the City wants the hazardous materials report before it issues the building or plumbing permit. A bathroom renovation in Port Coquitlam needs a building permit when it removes, adds or moves an interior wall. Our bathroom renovations include custom showers, freestanding tubs, heated floors and exhaust fans.
What We Renovate in Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam
- Home RenovationsMain floors and whole interiors, planned together.
- Basement RenovationsUnfinished basements turned into living space, with the building permit both cities require.
- Legal Basement SuitesSecondary suites built to the BC Building Code, with each city's building and plumbing permits and final inspection.
- Condo and Townhouse RenovationsKitchens, bathrooms or the whole unit in a condo or townhouse, planned around the strata's rules.
- Home AdditionsMore floor area for the house, sized to the floor area ratio and lot coverage your zone allows.
- Accessible and Aging-in-Place RenovationsZero-step entries, wider doorways and curbless showers for aging in place, from a CHBA Qualified Adaptiv Home Specialist.
Renovation Permits and Rules in Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam
Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam are separate cities with separate permits. Coquitlam takes building permit applications through its QFile portal, and Port Coquitlam books inspections through a MyPortCoquitlam account and sets its own fees, sprinkler rule and suite charges.
Building Permits for a Coquitlam Renovation
In Coquitlam you need a building permit for a renovation that removes or replaces drywall, alters insulation or ventilation, or moves a window or door, and to finish a basement, attic or garage, add floor area, or change the structure or the stairs. Replacing cabinets, floor finishes, roofing, or windows and doors in the same openings needs no permit. Electrical and gas permits come from Technical Safety BC.
City of Coquitlam, minor projects permit brochureCoquitlam Permit Times
The City puts the average time to first review of a residential permit application at 15 to 20 business days, and says it varies with application volumes. Other City departments review the application alongside the Plans Examiner, and their comments come back together.
City of Coquitlam, homeowner building projectsCoquitlam Permit Fees
Under Coquitlam's Fees and Charges Bylaw No. 5484, in force since January 1, 2026, a renovation valued between $50,001 and $500,000 pays $510.70 plus $13.70 for each $1,000 of estimated construction value, or $485.90 plus $13.20 where a registered professional is on the project. On a $200,000 renovation that comes to about $3,250. A plumbing permit starts at $79, which covers two fixtures.
City of Coquitlam, Fees and Charges Bylaw No. 5484Houses Built Before 1990 in Coquitlam
Before it issues a building or plumbing permit for work in a house built before 1990, the City requires documentation that the work area is clear of hazardous materials: an inspection report with lab results from a qualified person and, where they apply, a WorkSafeBC Notice of Project and a clearance letter with a waste manifest. Storm and sanitary services that are not PVC, and water services over 30 years old, will need replacing, and services may also need replacing when the permit's construction value is over $150,000.
City of Coquitlam, aged buildings guideBuilding Near a Slope in Coquitlam
Under Section 519 of Coquitlam's Zoning Bylaw, an addition or new building on or next to a slope steeper than 18 degrees (32%), or within 3 m of the slope's crest or toe at the side or 5 m at the front or back, needs a Slope Hazard Assessment by a professional engineer or geoscientist, accepted by the City's Building Official. Since 2022 the permit survey has had to show slope contours at 1 m intervals, and the City's QtheMap has a slope layer for checking your lot.
City of Coquitlam, building on or adjacent to slopesBuilding Permits for a Port Coquitlam Renovation
In Port Coquitlam you need a building permit to repair a house or its foundation, remove, add or move interior walls, finish a basement or other unfinished area, create a secondary suite, or build, cover or enclose a porch or sundeck. Your contractor needs a Port Coquitlam business licence before the permit is issued, and the permit fee doubles if work starts first. Technical Safety BC inspects the gas and electrical work.
City of Port Coquitlam, single-family and two-family permitsPort Coquitlam Permit Fees
Under Port Coquitlam's Fees and Charges Bylaw No. 4415, in effect since January 1, 2026, work valued between $50,000.01 and $500,000 pays 0.55% of its construction value plus $150 when you apply, and the same again when the permit is issued: $2,500 in all on a $200,000 renovation. The fee is reduced where an architect or engineer provides the design and field reviews.
City of Port Coquitlam, Fees and Charges Bylaw No. 4415Fire Sprinklers in Port Coquitlam
Port Coquitlam requires fire sprinklers in a house that is added to or altered under a building permit once the work over the most recent 24 months is worth more than $75,000 or 75% of the house's BC Assessment value before the work, whichever is higher. The permit is not issued until a sprinkler design drawing is submitted and the sprinkler fee paid.
City of Port Coquitlam, Building and Plumbing Bylaw No. 3710Asbestos Testing in Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam
WorkSafeBC says homeowners must have the house tested for asbestos by a qualified testing company or asbestos surveyor before renovation or demolition work begins, and must hire a qualified abatement contractor to remove any that is found. WorkSafeBC counts over 700,000 homes in BC built before 1990.
WorkSafeBC, asbestos and homeowners
Secondary Suites in Coquitlam
The City's 2021 suite brochure estimates that about 70% of Coquitlam's single-family homes contain a secondary suite. A suite counts as authorized only once its building and plumbing permits are issued and the City has done its final inspection, and a homeowner may not do a suite's plumbing: a ticketed plumber takes out the permit and does the work. Under the small-scale zoning adopted in June 2025, a suite, carriage house or garden cottage is one of up to four homes on an R-1, R-2 or R-3 lot, and Part 7 of the Zoning Bylaw asks for one parking space for a suite under 79 m², and none in a Transit-Oriented Area. On the utility bill, an authorized suite adds 40% to the water and sewer fees and an unauthorized one adds 100%. If you remove a suite instead, by taking out the stove or the locks between suite and house, it has to be reported by December 1 to change the next year's bill.
Legal Basement SuitesSecondary Suites in Port Coquitlam
Port Coquitlam allows secondary suites in its RS-1 to RS-4 zones. Under Zoning Bylaw No. 3630, a suite can take up no more than 40% of the floor area of the house it is in, and the house's floor area ratio rises from 0.50 to 0.60 to allow for it. The City bills a suite as a second dwelling unit, $964 for water and sewer in 2026. An owner can claim an exemption each year by December 31: half the suite levy when a parent or grandparent lives in the suite and the owner lives in the main home, or all of it when the suite is neither rented nor occupied that year. A detached accessory dwelling unit, the City's term for a coach house, laneway home or garden suite, is capped at 90 m², must be sprinklered and needs a $1,100 development permit before the building permit. BC Housing treats a standalone unit like this as a new home under the Homeowner Protection Act, so a licensed residential builder has to build it and home warranty insurance has to cover it. We build coach houses as new homes.
Home Additions in Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam
On a Coquitlam lot in the R-1 Small-Scale Residential zone, all buildings together can reach a floor area ratio of 0.65 with one or two homes on the lot, or 0.75 with three or four, and cover up to 50% of the lot, at no more than three storeys and 11 m. The City's additions guide notes that parts of the house sharing duct work, plumbing or structure with the addition may have to be upgraded too. In Port Coquitlam's RS zones, Zoning Bylaw No. 3630 allows a floor area ratio of 0.50, or 0.60 with a secondary suite, 50% lot coverage and 10.5 m over no more than three storeys, the basement included. An addition there also counts toward the 24-month sprinkler threshold.
Home AdditionsCoquitlam and Port Coquitlam Neighbourhoods
- Burke Mountain
- Westwood Plateau
- Maillardville
- Austin Heights
- Burquitlam
- Citadel Heights
- Mary Hill
- Oxford Heights
- Lincoln Park
Common Questions
Something else? Ask us directly.
Do I need a building permit to renovate a house in Coquitlam?
Yes, Coquitlam requires a building permit to renovate a house when the work removes or replaces drywall, alters insulation or ventilation, moves a window or door, changes the structure or the stairs, or finishes a basement, attic or garage. Replacing cabinets, floor finishes or roofing needs none. Plumbing permits come from the City and electrical permits from Technical Safety BC. On a ProStyle renovation, we apply for every permit and book the inspections.
How long does a building permit take in Coquitlam?
The City of Coquitlam puts the time to first review of a residential building permit application at 15 to 20 business days, and says it varies with application volumes. Applications filed online through Coquitlam QFile are pre-screened within three to five business days, and the permit is issued once the review is complete and the balance of the fee is paid. Port Coquitlam publishes no processing time and asks applicants to contact its Building Division for an estimate.
How much does a home renovation cost in Coquitlam?
The cost of a home renovation in Coquitlam depends on the scope, the finishes you pick and the age of the house. For a house built before 1990, the City wants a hazardous materials report before it issues a permit, and storm and sanitary services that are not PVC, or water services over 30 years old, need replacing. Coquitlam's 2026 permit fee on a $200,000 renovation is about $3,250. ProStyle prices each job in a written proposal, as a fixed price or open-book cost-plus.
What does Coquitlam require before renovating a house built before 1990?
Coquitlam requires documentation that the work area is clear of hazardous materials before it issues a building or plumbing permit for a house built before 1990: a hazardous materials inspection report with lab results, and where they apply, a WorkSafeBC Notice of Project and a clearance letter with a waste manifest. A qualified person has to carry out the inspection, the sampling and the asbestos survey.
When does a renovation in Port Coquitlam need fire sprinklers?
A renovation or addition in Port Coquitlam needs fire sprinklers once the permitted work on the house over the most recent 24 months is worth more than $75,000 or 75% of its BC Assessment value before the work, whichever is higher. The rule is in Port Coquitlam's Building and Plumbing Bylaw, and the building permit is not issued until a sprinkler design drawing is submitted.
How much does a secondary suite add to a utility bill in Coquitlam?
A secondary suite in Coquitlam adds a 40% surcharge to the home's standard water and sewer fees if the suite is authorized, and a 100% surcharge if it is not. On the 2026 single-family flat rates of $713 for water and $661 for sewer, the 40% surcharge comes to about $550 a year. In Port Coquitlam, a suite is billed as a second dwelling unit, $964 for water and sewer in 2026.
Tell Us About Your Project
We will get back to you within one to two business days.
- Phone
- 778-999-0772
- info@pro-style.ca
- Hours
- Monday to Friday, 8am to 5pm