Kitchen remodeling
Bathroom remodeling
Home additions & ADU
Roofing
Windows & doors
Driveway & pavers
FenceFree written scope consultation - allowances, timeline, and change-order rules on paper before a single trade is scheduled
Fast, Reliable General Contractor Across Laguna Beach
Planning a kitchen remodel, room addition, or full home renovation in Laguna Beach means dealing with things most Orange County contractors never see: hillside grade issues, pier foundations, salt air corrosion, and a city review process that demands documentation before demolition. We’re Square One Builders, a General Contractor team led by Brent Calloway, and we’ve worked on enough Laguna Beach projects to know what’s behind those 1920s bungalow walls before we open them up. Call (877) 688-9930 for a free estimate and a straight answer about what your project will actually cost.
Why Square One Builders Is Laguna Beach’s Preferred General Contractor Company
Laguna Beach homeowners call us because we scope the job from the ground up, accounting for the geotechnical report requirements and hillside drainage issues that flatland contractors miss. Brent Calloway built our reputation on showing up with a plan, not a promise. We’ve handled remodels on Canyon streets where the original redwood piers needed reinforcement before a single cabinet was ordered. That local experience matters more than any marketing line.
Our clients across the Village, the Canyon, and along Coast Highway stay with us because one contract covers everything: structural work, roofing, windows, cabinetry, countertops, plumbing fixtures, hardscaping, and ADU additions. You don’t juggle three specialty crews. You call one number and get one accountable team.
Styles & brands we work with
Construction Company in Laguna Beach
Construction Company work in Laguna Beach covers the structural side of your project: foundations, framing, shear walls, seismic retrofits, and the permitting that goes with them. On a typical hillside lot above the Village, that often includes caisson drilling and pier-and-grade foundation work before vertical framing begins. A home addition runs $45,000 – $130,000, and an ADU construction project ranges from $90,000 – $220,000 depending on foundation complexity and finish level.
Hillside Foundation and Caisson Work
The 1920s – 1950s cottages scattered through the Canyon and the Village often sit on graded pads that were never engineered for modern loads. Adding a second story or a master suite means drilling caissons and pouring new grade beams. We handle that entire phase in-house so your structural engineer, geotechnical consultant, and framing crew work from the same plan.
Permit-Ready Structural Plans
Laguna Beach’s Design Review Board and Coastal Commission approvals can stall a project for months if the structural drawings don’t align with the city’s hillside standards. We prepare permit packages with the geotech report, drainage plan, and view-corridor documentation attached, which keeps the review process moving.
Remodeling Contractor in Laguna Beach
Remodeling Contractor work in Laguna Beach usually starts with a discovery we’ve learned to expect: outdated wiring, failed waterproofing, and framing that doesn’t meet current code. A kitchen remodel here runs $14,000 – $45,000, and a bathroom remodel spans $9,000 – $28,000. The older the home, the more the hidden conditions matter, so we build allowances into every contract and price change orders in writing before any work starts.
Opening Walls in Older Cottages
Pre-1950s Laguna Beach homes often have single-wall construction, knob-and-tube wiring, and zero moisture barrier behind original tile. Once a wall is open, the permit sign-off forces upgrades. We plan for that from the first walkthrough. If the discovery matches the allowance, there’s no surprise. If it doesn’t, you approve a written change order before we proceed.
Full-Scope Interior and Exterior Coordination
Whether it’s a kitchen, bathroom, or whole-home remodel, we manage every trade under one contract. That includes the James Hardie siding on the exterior, the Cambria or Silestone countertops inside, and the PGT windows in between. You pick the brand tier that fits the budget, and we spec the right material for your project.
Trusted Brands We Service in Laguna Beach
We stock and source materials from manufacturers that hold up to Laguna Beach’s salt air and marine layer, including CertainTeed and Owens Corning roofing, James Hardie siding, and PGT impact-rated windows. When a Laguna Beach project needs a product matched or a warranty claim handled, we work directly with the manufacturer’s local rep. That means faster turnaround on replacements and no finger-pointing between installer and factory.
See the difference
Before
After
Before
After
Before
AfterCommon General Contractor Problems We See in Laguna Beach Homes
- Pier-and-grade foundation failures on hillside lots. The graded pads under older cottages can’t support modern additions without caisson drilling and new grade beams, which most contractors don’t factor into the bid.
- Outdated wiring and framing hidden in pre-1950s walls. Opening a wall for a kitchen or bathroom often reveals knob-and-tube electrical and undersized floor joists that trigger mandatory code upgrades.
- Failed waterproofing behind original tile and stucco. Marine layer humidity and winter storm runoff find every gap in old flashing and moisture barriers, rotting framing from the inside out.
- Design Review Board and Coastal Commission delays. Any visible change facing the ocean can trigger a view-corridor fight, so we file documentation early and keep the review process on track.
Pricing for General Contractor in Laguna Beach, CA
We quote Laguna Beach projects with the local conditions already priced in, which means the number you get reflects what the job will actually cost here, not a generic Orange County estimate. Materials, labor, permits, and the geotech and design review steps are all line items. If a hidden condition appears once walls are open, we price it in writing and get your approval before continuing.
| Project Type | Price Range in Laguna Beach |
|---|---|
| Kitchen Remodel | $14,000 – $45,000 |
| Bathroom Remodel | $9,000 – $28,000 |
| Home Addition | $45,000 – $130,000 |
| ADU Construction | $90,000 – $220,000 |
Call (877) 688-9930 to schedule a free estimate. We’ll walk your property, check the lot conditions, and give you a written line-item quote before you commit.
We Also Serve Cities Near Laguna Beach
From our Westminster headquarters we serve all of Laguna Beach, plus San Joaquin Hills, Aliso Viejo, Laguna Woods, and Laguna Hills. If you’re planning a remodel anywhere along the coast or in the hills just inland, we’ll bring the same full-scope process to your project.
Serving Laguna Beach, CA — Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Laguna Beach area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage — if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs About General Contractor in Laguna Beach
We inspect first, write allowances into the contract for the most likely discoveries, and price any additional condition as a written change order before work proceeds. On a hillside street in the Canyon, we opened up a 1940s beach cottage for a kitchen remodel and found knob-and-tube wiring, a redwood pier foundation with dry rot, and no waterproofing behind the old tile. We wrote change orders for the electrical rough-in, pier reinforcement, and new drainage before proceeding, keeping the project on schedule and the client’s budget predictable. Call (877) 688-9930 to discuss your specific home.
Hillside remodels in Laguna Beach typically require a geotechnical report, structural calculations, a grading and drainage plan, and Design Review Board approval, with Coastal Commission sign-off if the project faces the ocean. We prepare and submit the full package as one permit set, then manage the review cycle so your project doesn’t stall waiting on a missing document.
Yes, but the scope depends on what the walls reveal and what the city requires once a permit opens the structure. Many Village cottages have enough sound framing for a kitchen or bath remodel if we reinforce the foundation and bring electrical and plumbing to current code. Call (877) 688-9930 for a free assessment and we’ll tell you what’s actually required.
We write inspection-based allowances into the contract, priced for the conditions common to Laguna Beach’s older housing stock. When a surprise appears, we document it, price it, and get your written approval before touching it. You never get a vague invoice for work you didn’t agree to.
We design the waterproofing and drainage system for the specific slope and exposure of your lot, including grade beams, swales, and foundation waterproofing that keep storm runoff away from the structure. On steep lots above Coast Highway, concentrated stormwater is the biggest threat to a foundation, so we plan for it before framing begins. Call (877) 688-9930 for a free estimate.
Written by Brent Calloway, Owner at Square One Builders, serving Laguna Beach since 2010.