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Ask Baily about your Chicago remodel. One vetted CDOB-registered Chicago builder who knows landmarks, TIF, and the ADU Pilot.

Angi blast-emails your renovation to twelve strangers. Baily routes it to one Chicago builder who knows CDOB permit tracks, which blocks are landmarked, and how the ADU Pilot actually works.

Chicago — joining waitlist

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Chicago, IL market, 2026

Chicago remodeling market overview

$7-12B

Market size

$55K-135K

Median kitchen

$30K-85K

Median bathroom

6-18 weeks

Permit timeline

How AskBaily compares to Angi and Thumbtack

The math, as arithmetic

12

strangers Angi sells one lead to.

1

licensed Los Angeles builder Baily hands your project to. Named, verifiable, CSLB #1105249.

5–10

follow-up calls a lead typically fields, in the first 48 hours.

Every other marketplace sells your kitchen remodel to a dozen strangers and calls that “choice.” Baily picks up where they cash out.

Chicago partner

We are accepting Chicago builder applications.

We vet one general contractor per city — licensed, insured, with a track record in Chicago, IL. If you are a Chicago GC who wants exclusive routing from Baily, apply at /for-pros.

What Baily scopes in Chicago

High-ticket remodels, scoped for Chicago, IL.

Kitchen Remodeling

Scoped for Chicago, IL costs and permits

Bathroom Remodeling

Scoped for Chicago, IL costs and permits

Full Home Renovation

Scoped for Chicago, IL costs and permits

Basement Finish

Scoped for Chicago, IL costs and permits

Tuckpointing

Scoped for Chicago, IL costs and permits

Adu Pilot Construction

Scoped for Chicago, IL costs and permits

Two Flat Conversion

Scoped for Chicago, IL costs and permits

Greystone Restoration

Scoped for Chicago, IL costs and permits

Landmark Exterior

Scoped for Chicago, IL costs and permits

Service × Chicago spoke pages are coming in a later release.

How the math actually runs

Their way. Our way.

Angi, Thumbtack, Houzz, HomeAdvisor. One pattern: your project gets sold to many strangers. AskBaily runs the other direction.

Who sees your project / Them

3–8 contractors, simultaneously

AskBaily

1 licensed LA builder

Who scopes the job / Them

You, via a category form

AskBaily

Baily + NP Line Design GC

Photo intake / Them

Upload to a form, wait for a callback

AskBaily

Gemini multimodal, analyzed in-chat

Permits and Title 24 / Them

Not considered until the call

AskBaily

LADBS + Title 24 2025 in the scoping

Wildfire rebuild and insurance / Them

Same generic intake as a kitchen refresh

AskBaily

Specialist flow — SB 1103, Xactimate, IICRC

Your info / Them

Your data is the product

AskBaily

Stays with one builder, not resold

Follow-up calls / Them

5–10 over the next 48 hours

AskBaily

1, from Netanel's team

SMS / iMessage continuity / Them

Restart from scratch

AskBaily

Same Baily, same conversation

Every column on the left is documented — FTC v. HomeAdvisor (2023, $7.2M), Angi’s own lead-share terms, Thumbtack’s pay-per-contact schedule. We cite them so you don’t have to.

Chicago, IL rules Baily knows

Local regulation, already in the scope.

Chicago Department of Buildings (CDOB) runs three permit tracks: Standard Plan Review (full drawings, 12-26 weeks, required for structural/additions), Easy Permit Process (minor interior-only, 2-4 weeks), and Express Permit (HVAC/plumbing like-for-like, 1-2 weeks). Self-Certified Inspection Program lets Illinois-licensed architects bypass plan review on qualifying scopes — faster but the architect assumes liability for code compliance.

Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) licenses Roofing Contractors at the state level under the Illinois Roofing Industry Licensing Act — mandatory for any roofing scope, unlicensed roofing is a Class A misdemeanor. Illinois has NO state-level general contractor license — GCs register with Chicago BACP. Verify both BACP GC registration and IDFPR roofer license before signing a contract that includes roofing.

Chicago Lead Safe Ordinance + federal EPA RRP rule require lead-safe certified firms on pre-1978 buildings for any dust-generating work. Cook County Lead Poisoning Prevention program layers additional inspection requirements. Chicago's housing stock is ~70% pre-1978 — this applies to nearly every renovation. Non-certified work is an inspection fail and a Cook County Health Department citation.

Commission on Chicago Landmarks (CCL) reviews work on ~400 individually landmarked buildings and ~60 landmark districts (Old Town Triangle, Pullman, Wicker Park, Astor Street, Gold Coast, among others). Any visible exterior alteration requires a Permit Review Certificate before CDOB will issue. Typical CCL review: 4-12 weeks. Interior Landmark designation applies to a handful of buildings (Chicago Theatre, Rookery Building lobby) — interior work on those needs review.

Chicago has 178+ Tax Increment Financing (TIF) districts. Residential TIF grants (SBIF, Neighborhood Improvement Program) can offset 30-75% of qualifying facade, tuckpointing, and window-replacement costs in specific wards. Grant programs change annually — verify current eligibility through DPD before scoping. Approval takes 8-16 weeks and must be pre-permit, not retroactive.

Chicago ADU Pilot Ordinance (2021) permits conversion and new-construction accessory dwelling units in five designated zones: Northwest, Northeast, Southwest, Southeast, and West Pilot Areas. Outside those zones, ADUs are prohibited. Coach houses (rear detached) and basement conversions have distinct rule sets. CDOB Standard Plan Review + BACP GC license + possible HPO consultation required. Pilot is under review for citywide expansion.

Chicago Building Code requires wall insulation R-value 21 (2x6 framing) or R-20+5 (2x4 with continuous exterior), ceiling R-49 — higher than IRC national minimum. Cold-climate requirement drives framing depth choices on any Chicago addition or gut. Tuckpointing is a specialty trade with separate licensing — critical on Chicago's brick-heavy pre-1940 housing stock which represents ~40% of the residential market.

Illinois Prevailing Wage Act (820 ILCS 130) requires prevailing-wage rates on public-funded projects including TIF-assisted work, schools, and municipal. Chicago has strong union labor presence — non-union GCs can work residential freely but typically cannot bid commercial-adjacent or multifamily 5+ unit. Verify your scope's wage posture before signing — a wage violation on a TIF-backed job triggers clawback.

Chicago neighborhoods

Chicago neighborhoods — coming soon.

Lincoln ParkOld TownGold CoastStreetervilleRiver NorthLakeviewWrigleyvilleNorth CenterRoscoe VillageUptownAndersonvilleEdgewaterRogers ParkRavenswoodLincoln SquareAlbany ParkIrving ParkAvondaleLogan SquareBucktownWicker ParkUkrainian VillageHumboldt ParkPortage ParkJefferson ParkNorwood ParkEdison ParkDunningBelmont CraginThe LoopWest LoopFulton MarketSouth LoopNear North SideLittle ItalyUniversity VillagePilsenLittle VillageEast Garfield ParkWest Garfield ParkAustinLawndaleChinatownBridgeportBack of the YardsMcKinley ParkBrighton ParkEnglewoodHyde ParkKenwoodBronzevilleSouth ShoreChathamPullmanBeverlyMorgan ParkMount GreenwoodHegewischSouth ChicagoEast SideOak ParkEvanston

Chicago neighborhood sub-pages are planned for a later release. Chat with Baily now for a Chicago, IL scope regardless of neighborhood.

Origin

Who is Baily?

Baily is named after Francis Baily — an English stockbroker who retired at 51, became an astronomer, and in 1836 described something on the edge of a solar eclipse that nobody had properly articulated before: a string of bright beads of sunlight breaking through the valleys along the moon’s rim.

He wasn’t the first to see them. Edmond Halley saw them in 1715 and barely noticed. Baily’s contribution was clarity — describing exactly what was happening, in plain language, so vividly that the whole field of astronomy paid attention. The phenomenon is still called Baily’s beads.

That’s what we wanted our AI to do. Every inbound call and text has signal in it — a homeowner’s real question, a timeline, a budget, a hesitation that means “yes but.” Baily listens to every one, 24/7, and finds the beads of light.

Baily was a businessman before he was a scientist. That’s our vibe too.

Questions LA homeowners actually ask

Nearby markets

Cities Baily also scopes.

Compare
AskBaily vs Angi in Chicago

One vetted local builder — or twelve strangers bidding on your brief. See how the two models stack up for Chicago renovations.

Ask Baily about your Chicago remodel and you will not be passed around. Chicago has the most complex historic-district overlay in the Midwest, one of the oldest masonry housing stocks in North America, and a freeze-thaw climate that punishes bad detailing the way no Sunbelt market does. Sites like Angi still route a Wicker Park two-flat gut renovation to a dozen contractors without knowing whether any of them have ever tuckpointed a pre-1950 common-brick party wall, filed with the Commission on Chicago Landmarks or coordinated an ice-dam remediation on a slope-roof Lakeview greystone. Baily holds that context. We introduce one Baily-vetted Chicago builder who holds City of Chicago Business Affairs and Consumer Protection (BACP) general-contractor registration, who engages IDFPR-licensed roofers and plumbers for regulated scope, who has presented before a Landmark District permit-review committee, and who has sized a whole-home renovation to the 2022 Chicago Building Code and Chicago Energy Conservation Code. One pro per homeowner. No twelve-strangers quote spray, no re-explaining your kitchen scope every week. The builder we introduce is the builder who signs the final inspection with you.

The Chicago remodel market in 2026

Chicago's renovation market is one of the largest by unit count in the United States, with particularly deep activity in two-flat, three-flat, greystone, bungalow and brownstone stock. The Chicago Department of Buildings issued approximately 71,000 construction permits in fiscal year 2023, with residential alteration and repair permits the largest single category [verify — Chicago Department of Buildings 2023 permit activity]. At the project level, a mid-range Chicago kitchen renovation typically runs US$45,000 to US$110,000 supplied and installed, with designer kitchens in Lincoln Park, Gold Coast and River North regularly passing US$200,000 once custom millwork, natural stone and Wolf or Sub-Zero packages are included (Houzz US Kitchen Trends Study 2024 Chicago metro, Chicago Association of REALTORS market reports Q4 2023 [verify]). Bathroom renovations sit between US$22,000 and US$55,000 for a primary bath. Whole-home refurbishments on four-bedroom Chicago single-family or two-flat properties commonly run US$180,000 to US$500,000, with Lincoln Park, Gold Coast and East Lakeview gut renovations regularly exceeding US$1 million.

The housing stock is unusually deep in pre-1945 masonry. Chicago workers' cottage and two-flat stock from the 1880s-1910s dominates Pilsen, Logan Square, Humboldt Park and parts of Wicker Park. Greystone and brownstone stock from the 1890s-1920s defines Lincoln Park, Lakeview, Old Town and parts of Hyde Park. Chicago bungalow stock from the 1910s-1930s forms the "Bungalow Belt" across the Northwest and Southwest sides. Post-war stock and mid-century condominium towers fill much of Edgewater, Rogers Park and the Gold Coast. Per Illinois REALTORS residential market statistics, more than 45 percent of Chicago's housing stock predates 1940 [verify — Illinois REALTORS 2023 Residential Market Statistics]. Renovating homeowners divide between long-tenure bungalow and two-flat owners undertaking once-in-a-generation refurbishments, mid-career upgraders in Lincoln Park, Wicker Park and Logan Square investing in whole-home gut renovations, and Gold Coast and River North condo owners coordinating unit scope with HOA architectural committees. The 2026 trend favours kitchen-and-great-room reconfigurations on two-flat and three-flat stock, garden-level in-law conversions under the city's 2021 ADU pilot programme, masonry tuckpointing and chimney rebuild packages, and envelope-and-mechanical energy upgrades driven by the 2022 Chicago Energy Conservation Code.

What homeowners need to know about Chicago regulations

City of Chicago BACP General Contractor Registration and IDFPR roofer licensing. Chicago requires general contractors to register with the Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection (BACP) before pulling permits. Roofing contractors must hold an active Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) Roofing Contractor licence under the Illinois Roofing Industry Licensing Act. Plumbers and electricians are separately licensed through IDFPR and the City of Chicago. Unlicensed home-improvement work is prosecutable under Illinois and Chicago consumer-protection statutes. Baily verifies BACP registration, IDFPR roofer licensing, workers' compensation and general liability on every partner before the first homeowner introduction.

Commission on Chicago Landmarks — 50+ Landmark Districts. Chicago has more than 50 designated Chicago Landmark Districts, including East Village, Old Town Triangle, Mid-North District, Prairie Avenue, Pullman, Frederick C. Robie House, and large stretches of Astor Street, Jackson Park and Gold Coast. Any work affecting the exterior of a designated building — including window replacement, masonry repair, porch replacement, roof tile or material change — requires a Permit Review from Commission on Chicago Landmarks staff, with full Commission hearings for substantial exterior alterations. Expect staff-level review to add four to eight weeks to the permit timeline.

Masonry tuckpointing and pre-1950 party-wall detailing. Chicago's pre-1950 common-brick housing stock requires careful tuckpointing mortar specification. Portland-cement modern mortars applied to lime-mortared 1890s walls cause severe brick-face spalling within 10-20 years. The appropriate mortar specification under ASTM C270 Type N or Type O, properly colour-matched, is the correct standard for historic Chicago masonry. Chicago Building Code Chapter 14-50 addresses masonry work standards, and all tuckpointing requires a permit.

2022 Chicago Building Code and Chicago Energy Conservation Code. The 2022 Chicago Building Code modernised the long-standing Chicago Building Code and aligned it more closely with the International Building Code while preserving Chicago-specific amendments including the masonry party-wall standards. The Chicago Energy Conservation Code 2022 imposes above-baseline envelope, fenestration U-value and mechanical performance on renovations meeting defined alteration thresholds. Your builder must size scope against these triggers before design-lock.

Freeze-thaw detailing, ice-dam mitigation and basement waterproofing. Chicago's ASHRAE 99 percent heating design temperature is -4°F and annual freeze-thaw cycles routinely exceed 80. Slope roofs require ice-and-water shield extending a minimum of 24 inches inside the exterior wall line per Chicago Building Code §R905, ventilated attic design, and appropriate soffit-and-ridge venting. Basement waterproofing standards apply under Chicago Building Code §R406 and §R408. These are not incidental details — they decide whether a renovation lasts 30 years or five.

Renovation trends across Chicago's neighborhoods

Lincoln Park and Lakeview. Greystone and brownstone single-family and two-flat stock, partial Landmark District coverage in Mid-North District. Whole-home refurbishments, kitchen-and-great-room reconfigurations, primary-suite additions, garden-level in-law conversions and Landmarks-coordinated exterior masonry work.

Wicker Park and Bucktown. Workers' cottage, two-flat and frame single-family stock with East Village Landmark District coverage. Signature scopes are gut renovations on two-flat and three-flat properties, rear-addition primary-suite builds, basement-level rental-unit conversions, and Landmark exterior coordination in East Village.

Logan Square and Humboldt Park. Two-flat and three-flat stock, some greystone on the prime blocks. Kitchen and primary-bath gut renovations, garden-level in-law suites, rear deck rebuilds with Chicago Residential Porch ordinance compliance, and masonry tuckpointing packages.

Gold Coast and River North. Greystone single-family stock in Gold Coast with heavy Landmark District coverage on Astor Street and along Lake Shore Drive, and post-1970s condominium towers in River North. Single-family whole-home scopes, condo unit renovations coordinated with HOA architectural review, and six-figure kitchen and primary-bath renovations.

West Loop, Bucktown and River North lofts. Adaptive-reuse loft and new-construction condo stock. Loft gut renovations within structural constraints, unit-to-unit combinations where HOAs allow, and full-finish-grade kitchen and bath renovations.

Oak Park, Evanston, Hyde Park and Pilsen. Adjacent municipalities (Oak Park, Evanston) with distinct permit departments and Hyde Park with University of Chicago-area historic stock. Pilsen workers' cottage stock with growing Landmark District coverage. Mixed scope across all from bungalow kitchens to Evanston lakefront whole-home refurbishments.

How AskBaily operates in Chicago

In Chicago we pair each homeowner with one Baily-vetted builder holding City of Chicago BACP general-contractor registration, engaging IDFPR-licensed roofers, plumbers and electricians for regulated scope, with workers' compensation, general liability and clean BACP and IDFPR disciplinary history. Our partner scope covers kitchen renovations, bathroom renovations, whole-home gut renovations on two-flat, three-flat, greystone and bungalow stock, Landmarks-coordinated exterior work, masonry tuckpointing and pre-1950 party-wall restoration, ADU garden-level conversions under the city's pilot programme, and envelope-and-mechanical energy upgrades under the 2022 Chicago Energy Conservation Code. We are most differentiated against Angi on projects where quote-spray collapses — Landmark District exteriors, pre-1950 masonry restoration, two-flat and three-flat gut renovations and ice-dam-remediation-paired roof replacements. One pro per homeowner, one Chicago permit number, one builder accountable through final inspection. En español y po polsku disponible — Baily atiende consultas en US Spanish y en Polish, given Chicago's significant Hispanic (roughly 29 percent of city population) and Polish-heritage communities per US Census ACS 2022.

Frequently asked questions — Chicago

How long does a permit take for a typical Chicago kitchen renovation? For an interior-only kitchen renovation that triggers plumbing, electrical or minor structural scope, the Chicago Department of Buildings Easy Permit Process can issue permits same-day to three weeks for qualifying scopes. Standard residential alteration permits run four to twelve weeks through Chicago E-Plan review. Commission on Chicago Landmarks Permit Review on designated properties adds four to eight weeks at staff level, longer for full Commission hearings. Two-flat and three-flat gut renovations with structural scope typically run eight to sixteen weeks.

What licenses and insurance do you verify on your partner builder? We verify City of Chicago BACP General Contractor registration, IDFPR Roofing Contractor licence for any roofing scope, Chicago plumber and electrician licence status for in-house trades, workers' compensation, minimum US$2 million general liability, BACP disciplinary history, IDFPR complaint history, and references on comparable Chicago projects. Subtrades — plumbing, electrical, HVAC — are separately verified before regulated scope hand-off.

How are payments structured in Chicago? Illinois residential contracts are subject to the Home Repair and Remodeling Act (815 ILCS 513), which requires a written contract for jobs over US$1,000 and caps initial payments. Progress draws tie to demolition, rough-in, drywall, finish and substantial completion. Retention of 5 to 10 percent is held through final inspection and the defects period. All amounts are in US dollars. Baily does not take homeowner funds — payments go directly to your builder against contract stages.

How do you handle my personal data? Illinois does not yet have a comprehensive state consumer privacy law equivalent to California's CCPA, though the Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) applies to biometric data. Baily applies CCPA-equivalent protections to all Illinois residents as a matter of policy. Your enquiry data is processed to match you to a builder and is never sold.

What language does Baily handle? English is the primary service language. Baily handles enquiries in US Spanish given that roughly 29 percent of Chicago residents are of Hispanic or Latino origin per US Census ACS 2022, and in Polish given Chicago's significant Polish-heritage population. Baily's natural-language layer also handles Mandarin, Ukrainian and Arabic for the city's other major community languages. Written contracts and city paperwork are issued in English; translated plain-language summaries are available on request.

How is a dispute resolved if something goes wrong? We encourage direct resolution first. If escalation is needed, IDFPR handles complaints against licensed roofers, plumbers and electricians. The Illinois Attorney General's Consumer Fraud Bureau covers broader consumer-protection matters. The City of Chicago BACP Consumer Services Division handles registered-contractor disputes. Cook County Circuit Court Small Claims Division handles matters up to US$10,000. Arbitration clauses under the Illinois Uniform Arbitration Act are common.

Press and podcast coverage

We are targeting launch coverage in Chicago Magazine, Chicago Home + Garden, Modern Luxury Interiors Chicago, Curbed Chicago, Crain's Chicago Business, and Block Club Chicago. Business-press angles sit with the Chicago Tribune real estate desk, Chicago Sun-Times homes coverage and Axios Chicago. Podcast targets include Chicago Real Estate Connect, The Chicago Architecture Biennial Podcast and Design Chicago. The Chicago story is specific: Angi and peers fan a two-flat gut renovation or Landmark District exterior project out to twelve contractors without knowing whether any of them have ever presented before Commission on Chicago Landmarks staff, specified Type N mortar for 1890s common brick, or coordinated IDFPR roofer licensing. AskBaily introduces one City of Chicago BACP-registered builder with verified Landmark, masonry and IDFPR track record before the first phone call. Launch timing pairs with Chicago chapter events of the National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI) and the Home Builders Association of Greater Chicago.

Authoritative guides

All guides →

Deeply-researched regulatory + cost pillars for this city — written for homeowners who want to hire one vetted GC, not twelve strangers.