If you live in Ellicott City, Clarksville, Fulton, or Columbia, chances are your backyard is full of potential. In Howard County, where spacious lots and upscale homes are the norm, more families are asking: Is it time to build an outdoor kitchen?

Outdoor kitchens in the exterior living spaces of Maryland; Virginia; and Washington, DC, homes continue to be increasingly popular, and every year, they become more elaborate and more suitable to year-round use. If you’re thinking about redoing your backyard kitchen or designing one this year, Design Builders is following six trends for you to keep your eye on in 2020.

Amidst the rush of picking out new tile and purchasing eco-friendly kit chen appliances, it’s often easy to forget one of the most important steps of remodeling a kitchen in Virginia or Maryland: obtaining permits.

Oftentimes, homeowners are surprised to learn that their full interior kitchen renovations require permitting, especially if they are doing something seemingly simple. However, the vast majority of kitchen renovations require not one, but three types of permits: building, electrical, and mechanical permits.

Featured DC Project: Factors to Consider When Building in the Palisades

The Palisades is a neighborhood in Washington, DC, and here at Design Builders we recently completed a backyard and kitchen renovation in that area that we’re excited to share with you! If you live in or near the Palisades and are thinking about undertaking a home improvement project, here are some details about that recent job to inspire you, as well as general reminders when looking to build in the area.

If you’ve been in the market for high-end outdoor kitchen items, it’s likely you’ve come across Danver Cabinets or Brown Jordan Outdoor Kitchens. However, you may not have realized that the companies are in a working partnership. We sat down with Mitchell Slater, president and founder of Danver Stainless Outdoor Kitchens, to explain what the pairing means for both companies and its history  and continuing benefits.