Do I need approval from my Chicago condo board before renovating?

Almost every meaningful renovation inside a Chicago condominium requires written board approval before the unit owner can file with the Department of Buildings. The legal anchor is the Illinois Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605, particularly Section 18.4 (board powers) and Section 27 (alteration restrictions in declarations), layered with the building's recorded declaration, by-laws, and house rules. CDOB will accept a permit application without seeing the board approval, but most associations require the approved plans to be the same set submitted to the city, and unit owners who skip the board step regularly get hit with cease-and-desist letters and code-violation referrals from the property manager.

Typical board approval packets include: a current certificate of insurance from the general contractor naming the association and management company as additional insured (usually $1M general liability minimum, $2M aggregate, with workers' comp); proof the GC holds a current City of Chicago BACP general contractor license (verifiable in the BACP license-lookup portal); stamped or sealed scope drawings depending on whether structural or plumbing work is involved; an explicit hours-of-work acknowledgment (most North Side high-rises restrict construction to 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays, with Lakeview, Streeterville, and Gold Coast buildings often more restrictive); an elevator-protection plan with reservation fees; and a construction escrow or move-in deposit ranging from $2,500 to $25,000 depending on building tier.

Lakeview, Gold Coast, Streeterville, River North, and Lincoln Park high-rises enforce these requirements strictly because of shared-system risk: a leak from a unit-owner plumbing alteration cascades through multiple floors and the association's master policy has a deductible the unit owner ultimately pays. Many newer luxury buildings also require a third-party engineer review of any alteration touching wet walls, party walls, or HVAC tie-ins to building systems.

Procedurally, plan on two to six weeks for board review (some boards meet monthly), then file with CDOB. Standard Plan Review for a unit interior typically takes four to eight weeks. Plumbing must be pulled by a licensed plumber on a separate permit; electrical pulled by the GC's licensed electrician. Final inspection sign-off and a certificate of work completion are usually required by the association before move-back-in.