How much does a full backyard remodel cost in San Diego?
A full backyard remodel in San Diego typically ranges from $80,000 to $300,000+ depending on scope, materials, and site conditions. Projects including a patio, outdoor kitchen, fire feature, and shade structure fall in the $100,000–$200,000 range. We provide a detailed line-item scope after a site walk.
Do I need a permit for a backyard remodel in San Diego?
It depends on scope. Structural work — pergolas over a certain size, outdoor kitchens with gas, retaining walls over 4 feet, electrical — requires permits in most San Diego jurisdictions. We handle all permitting as part of the project.
How long does a full backyard remodel take?
Once construction begins, a typical full remodel runs two to four months on site. Smaller, scoped remodels in the $50,000 range finish in four to six weeks. The schedule we publish in your proposal is the schedule we build to; weather, permit review, and change orders are the only things that move it, and we communicate any movement the day we see it coming.
Do you handle permits?
Yes. Permitting is inside our scope on every full remodel. We prepare the drawings, submit to the relevant municipal or county office, respond to plan-check comments, and schedule inspections. In San Diego County that means coordinating with the Planning & Development Services department or your city’s equivalent. You sign. We do the walking.
Do you work with our architect or designer?
Often, yes. If you already have an architect or interior designer you trust, we collaborate directly with them — we bring the build discipline and material knowledge, they bring the design direction, and we coordinate one set of drawings rather than two. If you do not have a designer, our in-house design process handles the program from sketch to photorealistic rendering.
Why we don’t take on small-scope work
It is an honest filter. Below the scope that warrants a dedicated crew, we cannot deliver the coordination, the material quality, the crew continuity, and the post-project accountability that define the work we are willing to put our name on. A smaller project built to our standard would lose money — and a smaller project built cheaply would hurt the brand. A good maintenance company is a better fit for small scopes, and we are glad to refer one.
Can we live at home during the build?
Almost always, yes. Our crews work a defined zone, protect the rest of the property, and clean at the end of every day. We coordinate access with you weekly. For households with young children or pets, we walk the containment and safety plan before the first delivery truck arrives.
How do you handle change orders?
In writing, with a line-item price and a schedule impact, before any work proceeds. Change orders are normal on larger projects — something opens up in the demo, a material selection evolves, a scope addition makes sense once you see the space coming together. What is not normal is discovering them on the invoice. Nothing gets built under a change-order number you have not signed.
What does “by design, not by dispatch” actually mean for my timeline?
It means we do not roll trucks to ideas. Between a first conversation and the day the crew breaks ground is a deliberate sequence — design, revisions, proposal, contract, permitting, procurement — and the length of that window varies with scope, jurisdiction, material lead times, and where your project falls in our calendar. We would rather be honest about that at the start than promise a date we cannot keep. Clients who need a patio by this weekend are better served by a different kind of contractor, and we will say so honestly.
Do you guarantee the work?
Yes. We warranty our workmanship for a minimum of one year, with material warranties extending longer per manufacturer. More importantly, we built the 10-Month Walk-Through into every project: ten months after completion, we return to your property, walk every square foot with you, and handle anything the seasons have exposed — on our dime. You can verify Mike’s active Class B general contractor standing any time through the CSLB license lookup.
Who do we actually talk to during the project?
Gio or Mike. Every project is personally run by one of the founders — no account managers, no handoffs, no “I’ll check with the team and get back to you.” You have both cell phones from the first call. Our Field Lead runs the day-to-day on the ground. This is the point. The relationship is not something we sell; it is part of the product.
Can we see completed work?
References available on request. Out of respect for our clients’ privacy, their homes never become our showroom — instead, we share written references and a detailed photographic record of completed work during your discovery conversation. At launch we are not publishing client testimonials or quotes — that is a deliberate editorial choice, and we will revisit it once our first San Diego Landscape Remodeling projects are ready to be spoken about with the people who live in them.
