How quick to do a partial renovation?

It's certainly customary to allow access to the apartment for evaluation by your crew before closing. Have your attorney include a rider to the contract that allows for x (3?) visits with adequate notice. Be sure to allow adequate time for any visits -- my architect once needed four hours to do measurements and it really annoyed the listing broker, who thought it would be an in-and-out thing.

Get a copy of the alteration agreement from the managing agent and review it so you'll know what to expect. If everybody (your architect, kitchen designer, decorator, etc.) is on the ball, you should be able to file the alteration agreement immediately after closing.

The three items you're proposing shouldn't raise any red flags so board approval should be quick, although summer always slows things down with people on vacation. Assuming you file the alteration agreement in July, plan for approval in September, and maybe you'll get lucky with August. Good luck.

Thanks for this. If we plan for approval in August/September, any thoughts on how long therafter to complete the work. Another 2 months?

The biggest piece of what you're doing is going to be the kitchen. Planning a kitchen renovation can take some time - you'll need to get your kitchen designer in to measure the space, and then figure out what layout you want. From the time you decide on your layout, it can take 6-8+ weeks to get your cabinets in after ordering, depending on where you order them from. While you're waiting for the cabinets, your contractor can do all the demo / electrical/ plumbing that you'll need. Once the cabinets are in, you'll need to have your countertop installed, and then your backsplash goes in last.

Painting will probably take about a week, depending on how much work they're doing (scraping, patching, etc.) and since I've never ripped up a floor before redoing one, I can't really say how long that would take, though we were out of our apartment for about a week waiting for our oil-based floors to cure before moving back in (though a few of those days were probably because the floors were done in two parts since we had furniture in already).

A great resource for you would be ths.gardenweb.com - if you're doing a kitchen reno, the forums are amazing.

Much appreciated. Thanks.

Oxymoronic,

The only thing you can do before closing is planning

Chances are great your new building will not approve your plans until at least two weeks after closing.

As far as the amount of time it will take I think 2 months is adequate but it depends on your kitchen. If you are going custom cabinets it will take longer then if you purchase already made cabinets

I would be happy to help if needed

You can reach me at primerenovations@mac.com

To view my work: www.primerenovationsnyc.com