Guides
Straight answers about building in California
The questions homeowners actually ask us — answered properly, including the ones where the honest answer costs us money.
Most contractor websites answer one question: what does it cost. That is usually the last thing a homeowner needs to know and the first thing everybody publishes.
These pages answer the questions that come earlier and matter more — whether a deposit request is legal, why two bids on the same yard came back $80,000 apart, what a change order is supposed to look like before you sign it. Some of the answers work against us commercially. We publish them anyway, because a homeowner who understands how the work is priced is a better client than one who doesn't, and because it is the truth.
Every number here comes from our own projects or from California law, and where we don't know something — a specific city's permit fee, a size limit that varies by jurisdiction — we say so rather than guessing. Written by a licensed general contractor building in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties.
Your contractor asked for 50% up front. Is that legal?
Short answer: no. And of every warning sign on a residential job, this is the one that costs homeowners the most money.
ADUsWhy two ADU quotes can be $80,000 apart
Two builders walk the same yard and come back $80,000 apart. Usually neither one is lying. They are quoting different scopes, and the difference is mostly in the work that happens before anyone breaks ground.
ADUs · California LawYour city has to offer pre-approved ADU plans now
A state law that took effect in January 2025 changed the ADU permitting math, and most homeowners — and a fair number of builders — still don't know it exists.
During ConstructionWhen should you refuse a change order?
Change orders are normal. Change orders you find out about after the work is done are not, and the difference is entirely about when the paperwork happens.
Before You SignThe same project, in 16 cities, is 16 different projects
People assume the local rules are roughly the same across the valley and vary at the edges. They are not. Here is the specific thing that catches people out in each of the sixteen cities we work in.
Buying & SellingThe inspection found unpermitted work. Now what?
You have a closing date and a problem that was built ten years ago. Here is how this normally plays out, and the three decisions that actually matter.
ADUsDoes your ADU need its own electrical meter?
Almost every page you will read on this gets the answer roughly right and the reason completely wrong. The reason is the part that saves you money.
ADUsCan I actually build an ADU on my lot?
California law made this question much easier to answer. What it did not do is make every lot the same.
ADUsConverting your garage into an ADU
It looks like the easy one because the structure already exists. Usually it is. Here is where it stops being easy.
Hiring a ContractorYour contractor stopped showing up. Here is what to do.
Half-finished, money already paid, and the phone stopped being answered. The order you do things in from here matters more than you would expect.
Permits & InspectionsWhat a failed inspection actually costs you
Most homeowners assume the cost is the fee. The fee is almost never the expensive part.
StructureThere is a crack in my foundation. Is it serious?
The honest version of this article is shorter than most: some cracks are normal, some are not, and the difference is not something to diagnose from a photo.
Before You SignWill your remodel trigger a panel upgrade?
This is the line item that most often turns a fixed price into a change order. It is also the easiest one to catch early, and the check takes an afternoon.
Before You SignDo you need an architect, a designer, or a builder?
The answer depends almost entirely on one thing: whether your project changes the structure, or only what is inside it.
ADUsWhat changed in California ADU law on 1 January 2026
Two bills changed the rules this year. One of them gives you a deadline you can hold your city to, and almost nobody is using it.
ADUsWill building an ADU raise my property taxes?
The honest answer is smaller than people fear and less generous than several builder blogs are telling you.
ADUsHow big can my ADU actually be?
Four numbers get quoted at homeowners as if they were the same rule. They are not, and knowing which one applies to you is worth an entire bedroom.
ADUsDoes my ADU need fire sprinklers?
This is one of the largest single line items a quote can carry, and one of the most commonly quoted when it is not required.
ADUsHow long does an ADU actually take?
We will not quote you a permit duration, because it is not ours to promise. What we can hand you is the three deadlines the city owes you.
Hiring a ContractorYou have three bids and they are $80,000 apart. Now what?
Comparing the totals is the one thing you should do last. Until the three documents describe the same project, the totals are not comparable numbers.
Hiring a ContractorWhat to ask a contractor before you sign
Most lists of questions to ask a contractor are guesswork. This one is mostly just reading back what the law already entitles you to.
Planning Your ProjectCan I live in my house while you build?
The honest answer depends on which rooms lose their plumbing, and for how long. Nobody moves out because of dust.
Planning Your ProjectDoes my ADU or addition need solar panels?
“California requires solar on ADUs” is too broad, and believing it has cost people real money on projects that never needed a panel.
ADUsHow do people actually pay for an ADU?
The most common reason a good ADU project dies is not the price. It is that the money was arranged in the wrong order.
New ConstructionCan I split my lot under SB 9?
The legal answer is genuinely unsettled and most pages you will find state it with more confidence than the record supports. The building answer is not unsettled at all.
Hiring a ContractorHow to check a contractor's license before you sign
It takes two minutes and it is the single highest-value thing you can do before handing anyone money.
During ConstructionYour builder found something unexpected. What should happen next?
Almost every renovation runs into something nobody could see. The discovery isn't the problem — what happens in the next 48 hours is.
Trades & SubcontractorsHow roofing gets handled on your project
Short version: it gets done, by someone licensed for it, sequenced so it lands before interior finish.
Tell us about your project
Book a Project Discovery Call and we'll tell you what's realistic — scope, budget and timeline — whether or not we're the right builder for it.