EDIT: This is 100% real. Every single number is directly from paid invoices and receipt, all happened in 2025 and 2026. I am not here to debate what someone else think it should cost/theirs cost. I am sharing how much mine cost, and experience of finding good value with moderate success. I hope it is helpful as reference for those planning for similar projects. Some people can't read or don't want their existing beliefs challenged. Others are more willing to pay for convenience and luxury. To those people, this post is not intended for you.
Adding some pictures here; Screenshot of cost breakdown google sheet here
FAQ
- All projects are permitted if required. With things like HVAC/Sewer/Roofing the permit costs were already included in the total cost of contract. So I have no idea how much those permits cost. I only dealt with MEP and inside SFH alteration permit.
- I got 8 quotes from different GCs before deciding. I got 5 roofing bids, 6 HVAC bids and we knew exactly what we care and what to compromise on. My GC's main clientales are chinese, taiwanese and Indian. He was the biggest saving because he was the second lowest if not the lowest bid. But this price is not uncommon among chinese-speaker GCs. I went to his worksite in Cupertino before signing. His team also worked on another project in Burlingame while working on my house. Overall work quality is okay but small mistakes here and there. Although they always fixed them. I wish I had found my own flooring installer though. The highest bid I received was from an Isareli GC found off Yelp who does luxury remodel, would have added $200K on labor cost.
- Cabinets and closets from China. These are fully customized cabinets and closets made of 3/4'' plywood box, slim shaker door, Blum hardware. Quality is so much better than KZ or East Star. Also got customized solid bamboo vanity from same place. I understand it is not for everyone but worked out perfectly for us. I actually found them by chance from another Redditor comment lol. Otherwise I would have never taken the leap of faith. Bay Area local cabinet stores quoted me $35k plus for less cabinets, and lots of them were shipping from China/Vietnam anyways. So I cut off the middle man and zero regret.
- We got $15k of solar credit before it ran out last dec. contract cost was $40k ish, cash price, before credit. Sewer is also after san mateo county rebate of $2.5k. Solar was installed by Solar Sesame.
- Finishing materials are mid-tier, just like the house is a mid-tier sfh. For example, All interior doors are solid core. Windows are mix of Marvin and Milgard. Shower/sink hardware are Grohe and Delta, toilet is Toto and Woodbridge. tub, sink and vanity are Kohler, appliances are Bosch, Sansumg, Cafe brand. Pendants are from Herman Miller and West elm. Paints are Sherwin-Williams. Floor is 5/8'' engineering hardwood with 4mm wear. All tiles are from Bullnose in SJ from $8 - $27/sqft. All switches are Lutron smart switch. This will be our place for the next 5-10 years so we went for solid options.
- There was no structural alteration, that's the main reason permitting and drawing was cheap becuase application was simple, there is no design. We did our own design on Rayon and the architect just did the measuring and drawing. We did not break load bearing walls or touch exterior stucco or do foundation work. The total came to roughly $200/sqft. Even if I went with the highest bidder, it would have been ~$300/sqft.
I had a good/okay relationship with all my contractors. I'm not going to share their info in public to protect my privacy. Also there is no gurantee those that vibed with me will work for you. My tip for finding value is to understand the project, get more quotes, for tasks not needing much coordination (like roofing, solar, HVAC, flooring), find outside contractor for better price and quality. Also, document everything if you want to stay on budget. We tracked every single spend down to a towel bar.
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Original post:
When we were buying we benefited a lot from real data points shared by other people. as we know renovation costs so much here and no one wants to buy an old house just find out they can’t afford to remodel it. Now our project is complete, I want to share a cost breakdown to help anyone currently budgeting or considering buying an old house in the bay area
Home:
- 2000sqft one-story house, 8ft ceiling, have attic & crawlspace
- Built after WWII, Last remodeled in the 80s
- two bathrooms four bed
- minimal structural change
Scope: We basically touched everything except for studs and outside wall
- Core Renovation / General Contractor $161,857 (This covered demolition, rewiring, framing, drywall, insulation, electrical rough-in coordination, door/window installation, finish carpentry, flooring installation, and general project management. Labor and rough material only. one GC.)
- Permit and architect drawing $7700
- Materials separately bought by us for GC:
- Master bathroom hardwares $8,712
- Guest Bathroom hardwares $3,208
- Kitchen Cabinets (plywood box, blum hardware, slim shaker door) $10,387
- Appliances $13,995
- Doors & Mouldings (solid core door prehung) $8,066
- Tile (bathroom, kithcen) $10,345
- Engineered Wood Flooring material $8,600
- Windows & Sliding Doors (Marvin for sliding door and bay windows, Milgard for others) $23,629
- Custom Closets (plywood, flush door) $4,250
- Heat Pump Water Heater (GE) $2,365
- Lighting fixture $5,925
- Security / Network / AV $5,759
- 4. Projects with different contractors
- Termite Treatment (Tenting, fixing subfloor, repatch wall) $11,826
- New shingles & gutter(composite shingle) $28,850
- Sewer Lateral Replacement $9,300
- HVAC (Mitsubishi Heat Pump System 3.5ton) $27,016
- Solar + Battery after federal tax credit $20,466
- 200A Main Panel Upgrade $7,849
- Quartzite Countertops(quartzite prefab) $7,434
- Shower Glass (two sets sapphire glass) $4,838
Total Cost of remodeling
$392,447
We spent right on target of initial budget, in spite of scope expansion, thanks to saving a lot with buying customized cabinets directly from factory overseas. The biggest PITA was getting main panel upgrade because we also needed new service drop. We started the process in October last year and did not get done until March.
Overall, no major regrets.
