Service area
Home Remodeling Contractor in the Bronx
In the Bronx, MMA Construction & Remodeling takes on kitchen, bathroom, basement and whole-home interior remodels, plus flooring, drywall and interior painting. About 61% of the borough's homes are in buildings with 20 or more units, so we plan apartment projects around the building's alteration rules, and house projects around older systems and the address's flood and landmark status.
- Co-op and condo apartments as well as one- and two-family houses
- Scope and schedule written to the building's alteration agreement
- Flood-map lookup for east Bronx addresses before ground-level work
Services
Remodeling services in the Bronx
Choose a service to see how we approach it in a Bronx apartment or house. Basement work applies to houses; kitchens, baths and finishes apply to both.
- Kitchen remodeling · The Bronx Bronx kitchen remodeling for apartments and houses Co-op and condo kitchens planned around the alteration agreement
- Bathroom remodeling · The Bronx Bathroom remodeling in the Bronx, apartment or house Apartment bathrooms scheduled to the building's alteration agreement
- Whole-home renovation · The Bronx Home renovation in the Bronx, planned around the house you own Multi-room interiors for Bronx houses, not large apartment buildings
Also in the Bronx
Process
How we run projects in the Bronx
Written scope, written proposal, permits identified up front, and one project lead from start to finish.
Conversation
You describe the home and what you want to change. We ask about budget range and timing so expectations are clear early.
Site visit and scope
We look at the space, the structure of the house and any HOA, co-op or condo rules that apply, then write a scope of work.
Design and selections
Layout, materials and fixtures are agreed in writing before work is priced in full.
Written proposal
A written price and schedule for the agreed scope. Permits and any approvals are identified at this stage.
Build
One project lead coordinates the trades and keeps you updated. Some regulated work may require appropriately licensed specialty contractors.
Walkthrough
We review the finished work with you and resolve anything outstanding.
The Bronx
What shapes a remodel here
The building often sets the rules
Most Bronx homes are apartments, and in a co-op or condo the alteration agreement typically governs work hours, the building's insurance requirements and board sign-off before anyone discusses a permit. Some buildings also restrict moving plumbing, which can settle a kitchen or bathroom layout in a Bronx apartment in advance. We ask for the agreement and the managing agent's requirements at the first conversation, then write a scope and schedule the board can review. Elevator bookings, protection for common hallways and debris removal times go into that plan.
Houses are a minority, but not everywhere
Across the borough, roughly 20% of units sit in one- or two-family buildings, but in Throgs Neck-Schuylerville the share is 68.9% and in the Pelham Bay-Country Club-City Island area it is 53.1%. Riverdale is the reverse case: most of its tax lots hold houses, while most of its units sit in large buildings. In a Bronx house the work usually centers on fixture moves, older pipes and wiring, and how the basement may legally be used. With 32.5% of units built in 1939 or earlier, lead-safe handling of disturbed paint belongs in many house scopes.
Flood exposure and large renovations
A 2017 City Planning presentation, using the 2015 preliminary maps, placed 60% of the borough's floodplain residents and nearly 80% of its floodplain buildings in Community District 10, around Throgs Neck and Co-op City. Under a DOB rule, an alteration in a special flood hazard area that costs at least half the structure's market value counts as a substantial improvement, and each alteration application has to state whether it is one. For a whole-home interior there, we settle that with a design professional before the scope is final. Across parts of Riverdale, Spuyten Duyvil and Fieldston mapped as natural area NA-2, tree removal and regrading have their own rules, so staging avoids both.
Local evidence
Housing, permits and local rules in the Bronx
Research notes with sources, for planning. Not a permit determination for any property.
What the housing stock looks like
| Measure | Share of housing units |
|---|---|
| Single-family detached | 6.1% |
| Single-family attached | 4.9% |
| Two-unit buildings | 9.0% |
| Buildings with 20–49 units | 26.5% |
| Buildings with 50+ units | 34.4% |
| Built 1939 or earlier | 32.5% |
| Built before 1980 (approx.) | 76.2% |
About one in five Bronx units is in a one- or two-family building, while about 61% are in buildings with 20 or more units.
What that means for a remodel
- Houses: for owners of one- and two-family houses, the planning questions are fixture moves, older pipes and wiring, and basement use. See home renovation for Bronx houses.
- Co-ops and condos: in apartments, the building's alteration agreement usually controls working hours, insurance requirements and approvals, so get it before planning. The building may also restrict moving plumbing.
- Older paint: For paid work that disturbs paint in housing built before 1978, EPA lead-safe rules apply. NYC Local Law 1 of 2004 also requires owners of rental units in buildings built before 1960 to presume lead-based paint is present.
Permits and licensing
The Bronx is one of the five boroughs, so building permits come from the NYC Department of Buildings, not a local office. DOB lists painting, new cabinets and floor resurfacing as examples of work that doesn't need a permit; more complex kitchen and bathroom work may need plans filed by a licensed engineer or architect. Contractors doing home improvement work in the city need a license from the NYC Department of Consumer and Worker Protection.
Flood zones
Look up the address on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center, the official public source for FEMA flood hazard information, and see the city's NYC Flood Maps page for how FEMA's maps apply in New York City. Shoreline areas along the rivers and Long Island Sound include mapped flood hazard areas. Flood exposure affects whether a basement is worth finishing and which materials make sense.
Neighborhood data
Neighborhoods differ more than the borough average
| NTA | One- or two-family buildings | Buildings with 50+ units | Built 1939 or earlier | Built before 1980 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Riverdale-Spuyten Duyvil | 15.0% | 60.2% | 18.9% | 90.9% |
| Throgs Neck-Schuylerville | 68.9% | 5.1% | 30.3% | 80.5% |
| Pelham Bay-Country Club-City Island | 53.1% | 16.8% | 32.7% | 85.7% |
Borough-wide, about one in five units is in a one- or two-family building. In the east Bronx areas above, it's more than half. In Riverdale most units are in large buildings, even though city lot data shows most of its tax lots hold houses. If you own a house, start from your own area and building, not the borough average.
Landmark and special-district checks
The Landmarks Preservation Commission lists 13 historic districts in the Bronx, and it designates individual landmarks separately. LPC says to search the address on its Discover NYC Landmarks map. For a designated property, it says an LPC permit is needed before DOB can act on the DOB application. Separately, the Zoning Resolution maps the Special Natural Area District NA-2 over part of Riverdale, Spuyten Duyvil and Fieldston, where site changes such as tree removal or regrading have their own rules.
These checks depend on the exact address. Make them before you fix a scope, and confirm what applies with the agencies or a qualified professional.
Flood exposure is concentrated in the east Bronx
In a 2017 presentation, City Planning said Bronx Community District 10 (the Throgs Neck and Co-op City area) held 60% of the Bronx's floodplain population and nearly 80% of its floodplain buildings, based on 2015 preliminary flood maps. That is context, not a finding about any address: use the map lookups above.
For alterations in special flood hazard areas, a DOB rule treats work costing 50% or more of the structure's market value as a substantial improvement, and every alteration application must say whether the work is one. For a large interior renovation in a mapped area, settle that question with a design professional early.
Neighborhood pages and what this page covers
Three Bronx neighborhoods have their own planning pages because each has sourced, place-specific issues for a house owner. Riverdale covers historic districts, the NA-2 natural area and Fieldston's private streets. Throggs Neck covers cooperative land communities and flood checks for large renovations. City Island covers an older house stock, flood flags on about a third of house lots and the Special City Island District.
Pelham Bay and other neighborhoods are covered by this page. The city's statistical area combines Pelham Bay with Country Club and City Island, and no Pelham Bay-specific source changed the planning steps above. A neighborhood name doesn't change who issues permits: in every part of the Bronx that is NYC DOB. Country Club is covered here too. In city lot data for the Pelham Bay-Country Club-City Island statistical area, 375 of the 485 home lots flagged on FEMA's 2015 preliminary flood map are on City Island. The other 110 are in the area's mainland tracts, so a Country Club or Pelham Bay address still needs its own flood-map lookup. None of the mainland tracts' lots is tagged with a special zoning district or an LPC historic district.
Before you hire
Before you hire in the Bronx
Whoever you hire, check these before you sign. They apply to us too.
- License and complaints: New York City requires a DCWP Home Improvement Contractor license for work costing more than $200 on a residential building. Check it by calling 311 or with DCWP's license check, and ask 311 for a "Business Background Check".
- Written scope and contract: signed by both of you, with a copy before work starts. It should list what is included and excluded, each allowance in dollars, how changes are priced and approved, and who files which permits. DCWP advises paying no more than 25% upfront, never in cash.
- Insurance: ask for the contractor's certificate of insurance.
- Co-ops and condos: check the contractor's certificate of insurance against what your building's alteration agreement requires before the board sees the package.
Permits
Who issues building permits
Permits for the five boroughs are issued by NYC DOB. Listed plumbing work requires a Licensed Master Plumber, and contractors need a NYC DCWP home improvement license.
Talk through your remodel in the Bronx
Call or email us to talk it through and arrange a consultation.
Questions
Remodeling in the Bronx: questions
Do I need a general contractor for a Bronx co-op renovation?
I live in Pelham Bay or Country Club. Does my area need extra checks?
What should a Bronx co-op owner gather before asking for a proposal?
Blog
Planning articles
- Whole-home planning · Draft Renovating a two-family home: separate the two project briefs Two units mean two sets of rooms, decisions and occupants. Writing them down separately, with a third list for what the units share, keeps the scope readable for everyone who prices or plans it.
- Whole-home planning · Draft How to prepare a useful renovation photo brief A short, organized set of photos and captions explains how you use a room and what you want answered. It starts a conversation; it is not a survey or a condition report.
Sources
- B25024 Units in Structure, Bronx County, ACS 2024 1-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau via Census Reporter (2025 (ACS 2024 1-year release)). Accessed 2026-11-02.
- B25034 Year Structure Built, Bronx County, ACS 2024 1-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau via Census Reporter (2025 (ACS 2024 1-year release)). Accessed 2026-11-02.
- Renovating Kitchens & Bathrooms, NYC Department of Buildings. Accessed 2026-11-02.
- Do I Need a Permit?, NYC Department of Buildings. Accessed 2026-11-02.
- License Checklist: Home Improvement Contractor, NYC Department of Consumer and Worker Protection. Accessed 2026-11-02.
- NYC Flood Hazard Mapper, NYC Department of City Planning. Accessed 2026-11-02.
- FEMA Flood Map Service Center, Federal Emergency Management Agency. Accessed 2026-11-02.
- NYC Flood Maps, City of New York. Accessed 2026-11-02.
- Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting Program Rules, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Accessed 2026-11-02.
- Lead-Based Paint, NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development. Accessed 2026-11-02.
- 2020 Neighborhood Tabulation Areas (NTAs), NYC Department of City Planning via NYC Open Data (dataset (2020 NTA definitions)). Accessed 2026-11-08.
- 2020 Census Tracts to 2020 NTAs and CDTAs Equivalency, NYC Department of City Planning via NYC Open Data (rows updated 2021-09-20). Accessed 2026-11-08.
- B25024 Units in Structure and B25034 Year Structure Built, census tracts, ACS 2024 5-year (2020-2024), U.S. Census Bureau via Census Reporter API (ACS 2024 5-year release (acs2024_5yr)). Accessed 2026-11-08.
- Primary Land Use Tax Lot Output (PLUTO), version 26v2, NYC Department of City Planning via NYC Open Data (version 26v2 (rows updated 2026-08-24)). Accessed 2026-11-08.
- Historic Districts: Bronx, NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission. Accessed 2026-11-08.
- Landmark Status Letter, NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission (undated (notes a change effective 2023-03-06)). Accessed 2026-11-08.
- Zoning Resolution 105-94 Special Natural Area Districts Specified, NYC Department of City Planning / City Planning Commission (105-941 last amended 1977-06-23; 105-942 last amended 1975-05-21; 105-943 last amended 1977-12-01; PDF generated 2026-11-08). Accessed 2026-11-08.
- Flood Resilience Zoning Text Update: Throggs Neck Homeowners Association presentation, NYC Department of City Planning (2017-09-26). Accessed 2026-11-08.
- 1 RCNY 3606-01 Alteration applications; determinations of market value and substantial improvement (promulgated amendment), NYC Department of Buildings (amendment effective 2026-03-21 (original rule effective 2008-07-14)). Accessed 2026-11-08.
- Hiring a Home Improvement Contractor, NYC Department of Consumer and Worker Protection. Accessed 2026-11-09.
- Check License Status, NYC Department of Consumer and Worker Protection. Accessed 2026-11-09.
Planning a remodel in the Bronx?
Call or email us to talk it through and arrange a consultation.