Complete Home Renovation
Complete home renovation for older Orange County and LA homes: structure, systems, roof, windows and finishes, handled by one licensed design-build team.
Tell us about the house. A project manager will call to set up a walk-through.
Prefer to talk? Call (714) 449-9035
A complete home renovation is what an older house needs when the problem isn’t one room. The roof is near the end, the windows sweat in winter, the plumbing is original and the kitchen and baths are a few decades behind. Horizon Construction & Remodeling handles complete home renovations across Orange County and Los Angeles County, taking the house back to its frame where it needs it and bringing it forward to how people live now.
We’ve done this work for more than 18 years as a licensed Class B general building contractor, with a design center in Fullerton and an office in Laguna Hills.
On this page
The words get used interchangeably, and that’s fine. When we say renovation, we usually mean the house is being restored and modernized as a whole, systems and shell included, more than it’s being redesigned. A whole home remodel tends to focus on changing the layout and finishes. In practice, most big projects are some of each.
The homes we see for complete renovations usually fall into a few groups:
No two scopes match, but these are the parts of the house we evaluate on every renovation.
Structure. Foundation cracks, sagging floors, termite or dry rot damage, and walls that were modified without permits in past decades. Older raised-floor homes may benefit from seismic work such as foundation bolting and cripple-wall bracing. California’s Earthquake Brace + Bolt program offers grants for this work on qualifying pre-1980 homes in participating ZIP codes, during its registration windows.
Roof and envelope. Roofing, flashing, gutters, stucco or siding repairs, and new energy-efficient windows and exterior doors.
Plumbing. Repiping galvanized or failing supply lines, replacing old drain lines where a camera inspection shows damage, and new water heating.
Electrical. Panel upgrades, rewiring, grounding, and new circuits for kitchens, laundry, HVAC and EV charging.
Heating and cooling. Replacing old furnaces and AC with modern systems, often heat pumps, and resealing or replacing ductwork.
Insulation and air sealing. The walls and attic are open anyway, so this is the cheapest time to fix comfort and energy use.
Interiors. Kitchen and bathroom remodels, flooring, doors, trim, lighting and paint, planned together so the house reads as one finished place.
Exterior and yard. Entry, driveway, hardscape and landscaping, if they’re part of the plan.
A big share of the housing stock in both counties was built before 1980. That’s a good thing for renovation, because those houses tend to sit on generous lots with solid framing. But a few hazards come with the age, and they have to be handled correctly.
Lead paint. Homes built before 1978 may contain lead-based paint. Contractors working on them must follow the EPA’s Renovation, Repair and Painting rule. Horizon is an EPA Lead-Safe Certified Firm.
Asbestos. Popcorn ceilings, some flooring, duct wrap and older stucco can contain asbestos. Suspect materials are tested before work begins, and any removal is done by a licensed abatement contractor.
Outdated fixtures. For many permitted renovations of homes built before 1994, California Civil Code 1101.4 requires older high-flow toilets, showerheads and faucets to be replaced with water-conserving models before final sign-off.
Unpermitted past work. Garage conversions, patio enclosures and additions done without permits are common. Sometimes they can be legalized; sometimes they need to be rebuilt. We assess them up front so they don’t stall your permit.
Most complete renovations start with a list that’s longer than the budget. We help clients sort it in a simple order.
First comes anything that protects the house or the people in it: structure, roof, water intrusion, unsafe wiring, gas lines. Second come the systems that are hard to reach later, such as plumbing and electrical inside walls that are about to be closed. Third come the things you see and touch every day, like the kitchen, baths and floors.
That order means that if part of the list has to wait, it’s the part that’s easy to do later. Nobody wants to open a new kitchen wall in three years to replace pipe that could have been done now.
We don’t quote price ranges online, because older homes vary too much. The biggest cost drivers on a complete renovation are hidden conditions found during investigation, the amount of structural repair, whether plumbing and electrical are replaced fully or partially, any abatement work, and the finish level you choose. Your proposal will break all of that out line by line.
California caps the down payment on a home improvement contract under Business and Professions Code 7159.5, and our payment schedule follows the work as it’s completed. Financing options are available.
We renovate homes throughout Orange County and Los Angeles County, including Fullerton, Orange, Santa Ana, Anaheim, Lake Forest, Brea, Whittier, Long Beach and Burbank. See all Orange County and Los Angeles County service areas.
We work across four Southern California counties. Each county page links to the city pages, with local permit and housing details for every city we serve.
Often, yes. If the foundation and framing are sound, renovation keeps the parts that are expensive to replace. If they aren’t, a new build may make more sense. We’ll give you an honest read after the walk-through.
We can walk it with you before you close and give you a sense of scope, which can help with your offer and planning.
For a full renovation, usually yes, at least for the heaviest phases. Smaller scopes can sometimes be phased so you stay.
Older homes hide things. That’s why we investigate before design. If something still turns up once walls are open, you’ll get a written change order with the cost and schedule impact before we proceed.
Sometimes. It depends on what was built and how. We assess it early and tell you whether it can be permitted as is, needs upgrades, or should be rebuilt.
Yes. Room additions and ADUs are often part of a complete renovation.
Let’s look at your house. We’ll walk it with you and tell you what it needs. Schedule a consultation or call (714) 449-9035.
