Neighborhoods · Westmoreland
Remodeling a home in Westmoreland, Portland
Westmoreland is storybook Southeast Portland: English cottages and bungalows on flat, walkable blocks. The easy lots make it one of the friendlier places to add on.
The houses
Most of Westmoreland went up between the 1920s and the 1940s, and it shows in the housing stock: English cottages, Tudors, and tidy bungalows with arched doorways, coved ceilings, and real plaster. The blocks are flat and walkable, with Westmoreland Park and the Reed and Eastmoreland edges nearby. The houses are charming and, by Portland standards, modest in footprint, so the common project is adding usable space and a modern kitchen while keeping the cottage character intact.
The flat-lot advantage
Compared with the hillside neighborhoods, Westmoreland's level lots make additions and foundation work simpler and cheaper, which is a real advantage when you want to grow a small cottage. The constraint is usually size and setbacks rather than slope: fitting a primary suite or a bigger kitchen onto a compact lot without crowding it. A good design-build team will tell you early how much you can add before the addition overwhelms the house or the yard.
Where the money comes back
This is a neighborhood that rewards taste over square footage. Period-correct kitchen and bath work, restored details, and a well-proportioned addition read as enhancements to Westmoreland buyers, who are paying for charm and walkability. The misstep is a boxy addition that fights the cottage or maxes out the lot, which can cap resale instead of lifting it.
Planning a remodel in Westmoreland?
Whatever the scope, the right team starts with how your specific home and lot behave. Our guides to a luxury kitchen remodel, whole-home renovation, and bathroom remodel cover the work itself, and our cost guides show where the budget goes. Because Westmoreland is within the City of Portland, a contractor in the FIR (Field Issuance Remodel) program can shorten your permit timeline on qualifying work.
When you're ready, LUX Construction can walk your Westmoreland home and scope the work — reach them through our contact page, or see the rest of the neighborhoods we cover.
Frequently asked questions
- Is it easier to add on in Westmoreland than in the hills?
- Generally, yes. Flat lots keep foundation and access costs down, so an addition here usually runs more predictably than the same project on a West Hills or Mt. Tabor slope. Your limits are lot size and setbacks, not grade, which a designer can map before you commit.
- Can I keep the cottage character while modernizing?
- That's the whole game here, and it's very doable. Matching trim profiles, door styles, and proportions lets a new kitchen or addition read as original. It takes finish-carpentry skill, which is exactly where a craft-focused remodeler earns the fee.
Remodeling in Westmoreland?
Tell us about your project and we'll connect you with our recommended design-build team.