A Surprise in the New National Electrical Code

On today's show, we're talking about a sneaky regulatory change that could cost your next development project tens of thousands of dollars. If you've built, flipped, or remodeled a property in the last thirty years, you know the drill. When you design a kitchen island or a peninsula, the electrical code required you to install at least one electrical outlet on the island or the peninsula. For decades, the standard practice was simple and cheap: you had your electrician cut a standard wall outlet into the side of the cabinetry, just beneath the countertop overhang. It cost maybe ten bucks in parts and a few minutes of labor. But if you're pulling permits under the new 2023 National Electrical Code, you're in for a rude awakening. Those cheap, side-mounted outlets are now strictly prohibited. They have been entirely banned. Why the sudden change? It all comes down to safety data. The Consumer Product Safety Commission analyzed emergency room reports from 1991 to 2020. They found a disturbing trend of severe injuries and burns—particularly involving young children. What was happening is that people were plugging heavy appliances—like slow cookers, hot plates, and blenders—into these side-mounted island outlets. The power cords would drape over the edge of the counter. A toddler walking by would grab the cord, give it a tug, and pull a crockpot full of boiling hot soup onto themselves. The new code does allow for top-mounted, pop-up outlets installed directly into the surface of the island. However, these aren't your standard five-dollar hardware store outlets. Because they are mounted horizontally on a kitchen counter, they must be highly specialized, UL-listed, spill-proof, and water-resistant assemblies tested to withstand spills. A single unit can cost anywhere from a hundred and fifty to three hundred dollars. Add in the cost of having your stone fabricator precision-cut a hole in your granite or quartz slab, plus the specialized electrician labor to wire it, and you're easily looking at four to five hundred dollars per island. ------------- **Real Estate Espresso Podcast:** Spotify: [The Real Estate Espresso Podcast](https://open.spotify.com/show/3GvtwRmTq4r3es8cbw8jW0?si=c75ea506a6694ef1) iTunes: [The Real Estate Espresso Podcast](https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-real-estate-espresso-podcast/id1340482613) Website: [www.victorjm.com http://www.victorjm.com/](http://www.victorjm.com http://www.victorjm.com/) LinkedIn: [Victor Menasce](http://www.linkedin.com/in/vmenasce) YouTube: [The Real Estate Espresso Podcast](http://www.youtube.com/@victorjmenasce6734) Facebook: [www.facebook.com/realestateespresso](http://www.facebook.com/realestateespresso) http://www.facebook.com/realestateespresso%5D(http://www.facebook.com/realestateespresso) Email: [[email protected] mailto:[email protected]](mailto:[email protected] mailto:[email protected]) **Y Street Capital:** Website: [www.ystreetcapital.com http://www.ystreetcapital.com/](http://www.ystreetcapital.com http://www.ystreetcapital.com/) Facebook: [www.facebook.com/YStreetCapital](https://www.facebook.com/YStreetCapital) http://www.facebook.com/YStreetCapital%5D(https://www.facebook.com/YStreetCapital) Instagram: [@ystreetcapital](http://www.instagram.com/ystreetcapital)

• 0:02Speaker 00

  Welcome to the Real Estate Espresso Podcast, your morning shot of what's new in the world of real estate investing. I'm your host Victor Manash. On today's show, we're talking about a sneaky regulatory change that might cost your next development project tens of thousands of dollars. If you've built, flipped, or remodeled a property in the last 30 years, you know the drill. When you design a kitchen island or peninsula, the electrical code required you to install at least one electrical outlet on the island or the peninsula. For decades, the standard practice was simple and cheap. You had your electrician cut a standard wall outlet into the side of the cabinetry, just beneath the counter overhang. It costs maybe 10 bucks in parts and a few minutes of labor. But if you're pulling permits under the new 2023 National Electrical Code, you're in for a rude awakening. Those cheap

• 0:46Speaker 00

  side-mounted outlets are strictly prohibited. They've been completely banned. So why the sudden change? Well, it comes down to safety data. The Consumer Product Safety Commission analyzed emergency room reports from 1991 to 2020. They found a disturbing trend of severe injuries and burns, particularly involving young children. What was happening is that people were plugging in heavy appliances like slow cookers, hot plates, blenders, into these side-mounted island outlets. The power cords would drape over the edge of the counter. A toddler walking by would grab the cord, give it a tug, and pull the crock pot full of hot boiling soup onto themselves. But for real estate developers, this new safety rule creates a massive headache. The immediate assumption in the industry

• 1:28Speaker 00

  is that if you can't put the outlet on the side, you have to put it in the top. The new code does allow for top-mounted pop-up outlets installed directly into the surface of the island. But these aren't your standard $5 hardware store outlets, because they're mounted horizontally on a kitchen counter. They have to be highly specialized. They carry an underwriters lab listing certification. They're spill-proof, water-resistant assemblies tested to withstand spills. A single outlet can cost anywhere from $150 to $300. Add to that the cost of having your stone fabricator precision cut a hole in the granite or quartz slab, plus the specialized electrician labor to wire it. You're easily looking at $400

• 2:09Speaker 00

  to $500 per island. Multiply that across an entire apartment complex of 200 units, and this single code change added $80,000 to $100,000 to your construction budget. So what are your options as a developer or an investor under Section 210.52(c) of the 2023 National Electrical Code? Well, we investigate to the fine print, and you essentially have three paths you can take. Option one is to bite the bullet and install those expensive pop-up receptacles. If you're building luxury condos or high-end custom homes, that's probably the route you'll take. The buyers expect the convenience, and the sleek flush-mounted pop-ups look fantastic. Option two is change the kitchen design. The code allows standard

• 2:51Speaker 00

  outlets if they're mounted on or above the countertop up to 20 inches high. If you designed a multi-tiered island with a raised breakfast bar and a backsplash, you can put a cheap standard outlet in that vertical space. But the current design trend heavily favors massive, flat, single-level slabs, so this might make your kitchens look dated to prospective buyers or renters who want modern aesthetics. But there's a third option, and it's a silver bullet that many electricians, architects, and contractors have not fully realized. When the National Electrical Code banned the side-mounted outlet, they also fundamentally changed the overarching requirement to have an island outlet at all. That's right, under the 2023 code, kitchen island receptacles are completely optional. You're no longer

• 3:36Speaker 00

  forced to supply one. If you choose not to install a functioning outlet, you are required to leave a provision for that for the future. That means your electrician simply runs a wire to a blank junction box tucked safely out of sight inside the cabinetry. There's no expensive waterproof pop-up required. There's no precision hole to be drilled in the beautiful quartz countertop. For a large multifamily developer, this is the ultimate workaround. You just rough in the wire to meet the new electrical code, save thousands of dollars per kitchen, and leave the ultimate decision to the future homeowner or tenant if they ever decide they desperately need to retrofit a pop-up outlet. In many cases, this can be hidden in the cavity underneath the dishwasher. Now, keep in mind, electrical

• 4:18Speaker 00

  codes are adopted at the local and state level on very different schedules. Your municipality might be using the 2020 code, which required the outlet to be side-mounted, or they might have adopted the 2023 code with their own unique amendments. You have to verify exactly which version your local inspector is enforcing before you finalize your drawings. But knowing the rules, and more importantly, knowing the exact exceptions, is how you protect your project budgets tightly under control in a changing regulatory environment. As you think about that, have an awesome rest of your day. Go make some great things happen, and we'll talk to you again tomorrow.