A whole home remodel on Davis Islands runs $75,000 to $150,000 for a selective renovation and $150,000 to $300,000 for a complete gut, with most projects taking 8 weeks to 7 months from first walkthrough to final inspection.
CraftLine is a licensed design build contractor handling complete home remodels across Davis Islands. One contract, one project manager, one crew that handles design, permits, and the build from start to finish. Below is what a whole home remodel actually costs here, how long it takes, and what makes Davis Islands homes different to work on.
What a Whole Home Remodel Costs in Davis Islands
| Whole home scope | Typical investment | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Selective remodel | $75,000 to $150,000 | Kitchen, two baths, flooring, paint, and updated fixtures throughout |
| Complete renovation | $150,000 to $300,000 | Gut renovation, new systems, reworked floor plan, every room touched |
| Per square foot | $95 to $250 / sq ft | Range depends on how much is structural vs. finish-level work |
These ranges hold for most homes in the area. What moves your number is square footage, how much is structural (moving walls, raising ceilings, re-plumbing) versus finish-level, and the materials you pick. Run your own estimate with our free Tampa Bay remodeling cost calculator, or read the full Tampa whole home renovation guide for line-item detail.
Where the Money Actually Goes on a Full Gut
Most contractors will quote you a total and stop there. Here is the same number broken into the pieces we price separately, based on a roughly 2,400 square foot Davis Islands house taken back to the studs. Treat every figure as a range, not a quote. Your written scope after the walkthrough is the quote.
| Line item | Range |
|---|---|
| Design, engineering, and City of Tampa permit fees | $8,000 to $16,000 |
| Demolition, containment, and debris disposal | $6,000 to $11,000 |
| Kitchen, cabinets through appliances | $35,000 to $60,000 |
| Primary bath | $22,000 to $38,000 |
| Two secondary baths | $26,000 to $44,000 |
| Whole house rewire, new panel, 200 amp service | $14,000 to $24,000 |
| Supply and drain repipe | $10,000 to $18,000 |
| HVAC equipment and duct replacement | $11,000 to $19,000 |
| Impact rated windows and exterior doors | $18,000 to $34,000 |
| Flooring, interior doors, trim, and paint | $20,000 to $34,000 |
| Complete renovation total | $170,000 to $298,000 |
Working on Davis Islands Homes
Davis Islands is a pair of man-made islands off South Tampa, dredged up out of Hillsborough Bay and built starting in the 1920s. That origin still drives the construction problems. The land is fill, the grades are low, and a lot of the original houses sit close to base flood elevation with a crawl space or a slab only a step or two above the yard.
The original homes are 1920s Mediterranean Revival, Spanish Colonial, and bungalow styles, many now historic, sitting alongside mid-century infill and modern luxury rebuilds on waterfront and canal lots. Home values here run well past $850,000, so renovations are about protecting and increasing real value. The 1920s homes often hide original wiring, cast-iron plumbing, and plaster walls that need updating, while waterfront lots bring flood-zone elevation rules into every structural decision. This is detailed work, and it is the kind we do best.
Practically, that means three things on almost every island gut we price. Plaster over wood lath does not come off cleanly, so demolition and containment cost more than in a drywall house. Cast iron drains that have sat under a slab since the 1920s are past their service life, so we camera them before writing the scope instead of finding them at week six. And cloth-insulated branch wiring cannot be spliced into safely, so a partial rewire here usually turns into a full one.
The FEMA 50 Percent Rule Decides Your Scope Here
This is what separates a Davis Islands remodel from the same job three miles inland, and it is worth understanding before you settle on a floor plan.
The City of Tampa’s own hurricane recovery guidance states that if your property sits in a flood hazard area (Flood Zone AE, Coastal A, or VE), you may be required by FEMA and State of Florida requirements, as the city applies them, to rebuild to Florida Building Code flood-resistant construction standards. The city ties that requirement to whether the work counts as a substantial improvement or repair of substantial damage, which it describes as improvements or repairs exceeding 50 percent of the structure’s depreciated value before the damage, as listed on the Hillsborough County Property Appraiser’s records for your property. Hillsborough County uses the same 50 percent threshold in its own construction code for unincorporated areas.
Two things follow. The number that matters is not what your house is worth, it is what the structure alone is worth on the appraiser’s listing. On Davis Islands most of the value is in the dirt, so the building figure runs lower than owners expect and a full gut crosses the line sooner than they expect. And other Tampa Bay cities set their own thresholds, so a percentage from a St. Petersburg or Pinellas contractor’s website does not govern your island project. We pull the appraiser’s structure value and price the scope against it before design starts, then tell you which path fits: stay under the threshold with a phased scope, or accept the trigger and design the flood-resistant construction in from day one.
City of Tampa Permits, Not Hillsborough County
Davis Islands is inside Tampa city limits, so your permits run through the City of Tampa Construction Services Division, not the county building department that handles Town ‘N’ Country or Brandon. Applications and document uploads go through the city’s Accela Citizen Access portal, and Construction Services works out of 2555 E. Hanna Avenue with a permit line at 813-274-3100, option 1. The city issues separate records for remodeling, additions, roofing, and the electrical, plumbing, and mechanical trades, which is why a whole home job carries a stack of permits rather than one.
One trap worth naming: the city’s residential permit types apply to single family residences and duplexes only. A condominium has a residential occupancy but requires a commercial permit, which matters on the island’s condo buildings and catches owners who assumed a unit renovation was a simple residential pull.
Good news on the historic side. Davis Islands does not appear on the City of Tampa’s historic district maps, which list Hyde Park, Seminole Heights, Tampa Heights, and Ybor City locally and Hampton Terrace, West Tampa, and Palmetto Beach nationally. So a typical island remodel skips the Architectural Review Commission sign-off the same 1920s house would need two miles away in Hyde Park. Individually designated properties are the exception, confirmed by the city’s Architectural Review and Historic Preservation Division at 813-274-3100, option 3.
What a Complete Remodel Includes
- Design and 3D plans so you see the layout before we build
- A structure value check against the Property Appraiser record before scope is locked
- Permits and inspections pulled and managed for you
- Kitchen: cabinets, counters, appliances, lighting, plumbing
- Bathrooms: showers, tubs, vanities, tile, fixtures
- Flooring, interior paint, trim, and doors throughout
- Electrical and plumbing updates where the home needs them
- Impact window and exterior door packages where the budget supports them
- One fixed written scope and price, no moving target
What moves your final number most is the level of structural change. Moving kitchen and bath plumbing, taking down load-bearing walls, raising ceilings, and re-running electrical all add cost but also add the open, modern layout most homeowners are after. Finish choices, cabinets, counters, tile, and fixtures, are the other big lever, and that is the part you control directly.
How CraftLine Works
Every whole home remodel runs the same clear way, so there are no surprises:
- Walkthrough and quote. We come out, measure, listen to what you want, and put a real scope and price in writing.
- Design and selections. You see a 3D layout and pick finishes before anything is ordered or demolished.
- Permits and build. We pull every permit and one dedicated crew does the work, with your project manager on site.
- Walk and warranty. We finish with a punch-list walk and back the work with our written warranty.
You can see finished kitchens, baths, and full renovations on our project portfolio.
What Homeowners Say
CraftLine is a licensed, insured design build contractor and an active member of NARI Tampa Bay. Our work carries a 5.0 rating across 93 Google reviews.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does a whole home remodel cost here?
Most Davis Islands whole home projects land between $75,000 for a selective remodel and $300,000 for a full gut. Per square foot, plan on $95 to $250 depending on how much structural work is involved.
How long does a full home remodel take?
A selective remodel usually runs 8 to 14 weeks. A complete gut renovation runs 4 to 7 months, including design and permitting before any demolition starts. On flood zone properties, add time up front for the substantial improvement review.
Can we live in the house during the remodel?
For selective remodels, often yes, by phasing the work. For a full gut, most families move out for the active construction window. We will tell you straight which one fits your project.
Do I pull a City of Tampa permit or a Hillsborough County permit?
City of Tampa. Davis Islands is inside city limits, so the application goes to the city’s Construction Services Division through its Accela portal. We file it, upload the drawings, and schedule every inspection.
Will the 50 percent rule stop my remodel?
Not usually, but it will shape it. If the cost of work reaches 50 percent of the structure’s depreciated value, the city treats it as a substantial improvement and current flood-resistant construction standards apply to the building. We check the structure value first so the decision is made on paper, not halfway through demolition.
Do you work on historic 1920s Davis Islands homes and waterfront lots?
Yes. We restore and modernize 1920s Mediterranean and bungalow homes while keeping their character, and we handle waterfront lots where FEMA elevation and flood-resistant construction drive the design. Original wiring and plumbing get updated as part of the scope. Outside the walls we also handle fence installation on Davis Islands and paver driveways and pool decks, which on a waterfront lot come with their own City of Tampa permit questions.
Get a Real Number for Your Project
Want an exact price for your complete home remodel in Davis Islands? Schedule a free quote and we will walk the space, talk through your goals, and put a fixed scope and price in writing. Prefer to talk now? Call us at (813) 522-4359.
Related South Tampa work: Davis Islands kitchen remodeling, Davis Islands tile installation, South Tampa kitchen remodel costs, and our Tampa Bay kitchen remodel cost guide.