Open Floor Plan Remodel in Dallas, TX

Ask Dallas homeowners which wall they would remove first and most point to the one between the kitchen and the living room. Many 1950s to 1970s ranch houses were built with a closed kitchen, a separate dining room and a den. Removing that wall is a structural job first and a design job second.

What an Open Floor Plan Remodel in Dallas Includes

An open concept project with us covers everything from the engineering to the last strip of trim:

• Structural assessment and design: a structural engineer's review and beam specification.
• Temporary shoring and wall removal, with dust containment for the rest of the house.
• Beam installation: flush or dropped, with posts and footings as specified.
• Utility reroutes: ducts, plumbing vents and drains, and electrical circuits moved by licensed trades.
• Patching and flooring: ceiling and wall patches that look original, with flooring woven in or replaced across the joined rooms.
• Kitchen and living-room finishes designed for the new combined space.

Before work starts you get the engineer's letter, a drawing of the new opening and a line-item price. A non-bearing partition drops the engineering, beam and footing lines from that list, which is why we confirm what the wall carries first.

How Do You Know a Wall Is Load-Bearing?

You know for certain only after a structural engineer has looked, but some clues are worth checking first.

Walls that run perpendicular to the ceiling joists and sit near the center of the house are the usual suspects. Up in the attic, check whether ceiling joists lap or join directly above the wall, or whether roof braces come down onto it. Many older ranch houses have rafters and ceiling joists rather than engineered trusses, and those often depend on a central wall. Houses with trusses may have few bearing walls inside, but even then a wall can carry a point load. Our article on removing a load-bearing wall for an open kitchen covers the signs in more depth.

Load-Bearing Wall Removal in Dallas: Engineer, Beam and Footings

Removing a bearing wall means replacing what it did. The structural engineer sizes a beam to carry the load across the new opening and specifies how that load reaches the ground.

The beam may be laminated veneer lumber, glulam or steel, depending on span and load. A flush beam sits in the ceiling plane, with joists hung from it in metal hangers, for a smooth ceiling. A dropped beam hangs below the ceiling and is simpler to install. Either way, the beam ends bear on posts, and those posts concentrate the load. On a slab foundation, that usually means cutting the slab and pouring a new footing pad under each post if the existing concrete is not thick enough. On pier-and-beam, new piers or blocking may go under the posts. On Dallas expansive clay, getting that footing right matters, because the soil moves with the seasons.

Temporary shoring walls on both sides carry the ceiling until the beam is in.

What Lives Inside the Wall Between Kitchen and Living Room

Interior walls are rarely empty. Before demolition we check for:

• HVAC: return-air grilles, supply ducts running up to the attic, and thermostat wiring.
• Plumbing: vent stacks from the kitchen sink, drains from a bath on the other side, and sometimes gas lines.
• Electrical: outlets, switches and circuits feeding other rooms.

Each has to be rerouted, and each belongs to a licensed trade: vents, drains and gas lines to a plumber licensed by the Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners (TSBPE), wiring to an electrician licensed by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR). Those reroutes go on the same permit set as the beam, and inside Dallas city limits they are filed by a city-registered contractor. When the sink wall backs up to a bathroom, some owners remodel both while the plumbing is open, the idea behind a kitchen and bath remodel.

How an Open Kitchen Remodel Runs, Step by Step

1. On-site assessment. Arian or Ax checks the wall, the attic and the foundation type, and talks through how you want the combined room to work.
2. Design and engineering. We draw the new layout and selections while the engineer sizes the beam, posts and footings.
3. Permits. We file the structural, plumbing and electrical permits with your city.
4. Shoring and demolition. Dust barriers and temporary shoring go up, the wall comes out and the utilities are exposed.
5. Structure, rough-in and install. The beam and footings go in and pass inspection, utilities are rerouted, then drywall, flooring, cabinets and finishes follow.
6. Walkthrough. You see the finished opening with us, small fixes get done, and the final structural inspection closes the permit.

What Happens to the Floor Where the Wall Came Out?

A bare strip is left where the wall's bottom plate sat, and the two rooms often have different floors at different heights. The cleanest fix is one continuous floor.

With hardwood on both sides, we weave matching boards into the gap and sand and refinish the whole area so it reads as one floor. The method is the same one described in saving original hardwood when the kitchen is redone. Old tile rarely matches, so tile floors are usually replaced across both rooms, often with leveling first. Once the rooms join, the living area becomes part of the kitchen's design, which is where a living room remodel with built-ins and lighting comes in.

Open Concept Kitchen Cost Factors in Dallas

The cost of opening a wall depends far more on what the wall is doing than on its length. The main drivers:

• Bearing or not. A non-bearing partition is mostly demolition and patching; a bearing wall adds engineering, a beam, posts and footings.
• Flush versus dropped beam. Flush beams take more attic and ceiling work.
• Slab cutting. New footings under posts mean cutting and pouring concrete.
• Utilities in the wall. Moving a vent stack, duct run or gas line adds trade work and permits.
• Flooring. Weaving in hardwood or replacing tile across both rooms is part of the real cost.

Permit fees vary by city and project value. Jaspector (2026) cites a $78.65 minimum for small City of Dallas residential structural permits, while another 2026 source lists $200 to $800 or more; suburbs set their own fees.

Where We Open Up Kitchens Around Lake Highlands

Closed kitchens are common across Dallas neighborhoods near our Lake Highlands base. The 1950s and 1960s ranches inside LBJ Freeway in Farmers Branch are strong candidates, and on Lake Ray Hubbard, owners in Rowlett and Rockwall often want kitchens that face the water.