A free site visit, a check of what your lot allows and a written, line-item price.
Get your free estimateFast, Reliable ADU Builders Across Burbank
If you own a 1940s or 1950s ranch in Burbank, you’ve probably looked at your detached garage on the alley and thought: that’s wasted space. You’re right. A garage conversion or detached ADU in Burbank typically runs $180,000 – $420,000 for a turnkey build, and the biggest variable isn’t the framing. It’s whether your lot sits in the flatlands off Chandler Boulevard or up in the hillside fire zone, where setbacks and slope rules rewrite your budget before you’ve picked a floor plan. We’re Lodgewick ADU San Jose, part of the Kingswell family of home service companies, and we build ADUs, garage conversions, and home additions across Burbank under a written guarantee. Call (669) 266-4319 for a free estimate and a real number in writing before any work starts.
Why Lodgewick ADU San Jose Is Burbank’s Preferred ADU Builders Company
Russ Delmar leads our Burbank builds. He’s spent the last decade-plus working through Burbank’s specific planning quirks – the airport overlay zones that push heights down, the hillside fire authority standards that dictate ember-resistant vents, and the alley-loaded lots that make garage conversions the smartest first move for most homeowners. We don’t send a salesperson to your house. We send someone who has walked through Burbank’s single-story housing stock, block by block, and knows what the Builders Board will flag on a Magnolia Park setback.
The Kingswell Guarantee is the whole reason our Burbank customers call us back for their second project: a written price before any work begins, a real arrival window that the crew sticks to, a job site left cleaner than we found it, and a written guarantee on every build. We call it the 365-Day Done Right Promise. If the work isn’t right, we come back and make it right. That’s not marketing language. That’s a page in your contract.
One more thing: when you call us from Burbank, a live person answers. 24/7. Not a voicemail, not a chatbot. You’ll reach a human being who can talk about your project, schedule your free estimate, and answer questions about Abodu or Cover prefab units the same day.
ADU Plans in Burbank
ADU Plans in Burbank are where every project succeeds or dies. A detached ADU on a flat Chandler Bike Path-adjacent lot might clear planning in 8 – 12 weeks. A hillside addition above Kenneth Road can take six months, because the city reviews slope-density calculations, retaining-wall engineering, and fire-department access with a level of scrutiny you won’t see in Glendale. Plan fees for architectural drawings, structural engineering, and Title 24 energy calculations in Burbank generally run $8,000 – $22,000 before you’ve even pulled the permit.
We handle the full plans package under one number. No surprise line items. No “I know a guy who can draw it cheaper.” We spec your ADU to Burbank’s current building code, because a plan that doesn’t pass review is just expensive firewood.
Detached ADU & Prefab Routes
A detached ADU in Burbank spans $250,000 – $450,000, depending on whether you go custom stick-built or prefab. Abodu and Cover units compress the construction timeline by months, because their panels arrive pre-engineered and crew time on your lot drops dramatically. For Burbank’s tight, alleyloaded lots, a 400 – 500 square foot detached unit at the rear of the property preserves your yard and your parking.
Modular ADUs are another path we recommend to Burbank homeowners who want a permit to punch faster. These units are built in a factory to your lot’s survey, then craned into place. Given Burbank’s grid streets and alley access, crane logistics on a Magnolia Park lot are usually straightforward.
Studio & Junior ADUs
A studio ADU above your garage or attached to the rear of your house is the most cost-effective entry in Burbank. Expect $120,000 – $200,000 for a 300 – 400 square foot unit with a kitchenette and full bath. Junior ADUs (JADUs) are smaller still, maxing out at 500 square feet, and frequently convert an existing master suite or den into a rentable unit with its own entrance.
For Burbank homeowners who don’t want a full second building, a JADU is often the only path that avoids a building-department variance hearing. The airport overlay and hillside rules are genuinely strict here, and JADUs give you rental square footage while staying within the existing footprint.
ADU Contractor in Burbank
An ADU Contractor in Burbank is only as good as their Burbank permit history, and ours is built on hundreds of plans stamped and passed by the city’s Community Development Department. That matters, because Burbank does not treat an ADU as a generic structure. It treats it as a property-line debate, a historical-pattern review, and – on hillside lots – a geological event. We know which windows get flagged, which fences trigger public-review periods, and how to sequence inspections so your build doesn’t stall for three weeks waiting on a re-inspection.
Our crews work Burbank year-round. Hot, dry summers mean concrete pours and exterior work get scheduled in morning windows before afternoon heat bakes the site. Santa Ana wind season in October and November changes staging and dust-control plans, particularly on hillside parcels. We don’t treat Burbank like every other LA suburb. We treat it like Burbank.
Garage Conversions on Alleys
The classic Burbank move: a detached garage on an alley, converted into a 1-bedroom, 1-bath ADU with its own entrance off the alley. Since Burbank’s alleyloaded lots already have separate access and parking, you skip the curb-cut permit and the street-parking variance that torpedoes ADU projects in other cities. A garage conversion in Burbank typically lands between $150,000 and $280,000, depending on whether the garage needs a new slab, seismic retrofit, or full re-frame.
We’re also a Garage Conversion Contractor in Burbank in the broader sense. Our team handles the structural work, the interior build-out, and the permit package as one scope, under one written price.
Home Additions That Touch the Main House
Sometimes the smarter play is a home addition with a kitchenette and a separate entrance, rather than a detached unit. If your Burbank house has a dead corner, a too-big utility room, or an underused den, we can convert that interior square footage into compliant living space. Home additions in Burbank run $180,000 – $350,000 depending on whether we’re doing a bump-out or a full interior conversion.
When an ADU isn’t the right fit, our team also operates as a Home Addition Contractor in Burbank. The same written-price promise, the same guarantee, the same crew.
Trusted Brands We Service in Burbank
We’ve built with Abodu and Cover prefab units on Burbank lots, and we spec James Hardie siding on detached ADUs where the city’s fire authority wants Class A rated exteriors. For hillside parcels, Hardie’s fiber cement holds up under Burbank’s dry summers and occasional Santa Ana gusts without the cracking you see in stucco over time. We keep the paperwork and warranty registrations for every brand we install, so if something goes wrong on a Cover unit or Hardie panel within the guarantee period, we handle the claim and the repair, not you. The ADU Builders team at Lodgewick matches the right manufacturer to your Burbank lot, your budget, and your timeline.
Common ADU Builders Problems We See in Burbank Homes
- Garage slabs from the 1940s that were never designed for living space. We see this constantly in the Magnolia Park district. The slab is too thin, lacks a vapor barrier, and has settled unevenly. We sister beams, pour new slab overlays, and retrofit the structure before finish work begins.
- Hillside fire authority requirements that catch homeowners off-guard. If your Burbank ADU sits in the hillfire zone, the city requires ember-resistant vents, Class A roofing, and sometimes defensible-space landscaping. We plan for these in our first bid, not as change orders later.
- Airport overlay height restrictions that shrink a second-story ADU. Burbank’s proximity to Bob Hope Airport means certain parcels can’t go above 25 feet. We catch this during the feasibility walk and design your ADU to the maximum allowed height from day one.
- Old single-story ranches with undersized electrical panels. A 1950s Burbank ranch with a 100-amp panel won’t support a full ADU with AC, fridge, and laundry. Panel upgrades typically add $4,000 – $8,000 to the build, and we include that number in the written price, not in a surprised afterthought.
Pricing for ADU Builders in Burbank, CA
A turnkey ADU in Burbank, all in, typically runs $180,000 – $420,000. Here’s how that breaks down: a JADU or studio conversion of existing space starts around $120,000; a garage conversion lands between $150,000 and $280,000; a detached one-bedroom unit runs $250,000 – $450,000 depending on finishes and site conditions; and a two-bedroom custom build starts around $350,000 and goes up from there. Hillside lots and airport overlay constraints add 10 – 20% to any of those ranges. The written price we give you includes all permits, all labor, all materials, and all engineering. If the price changes once work starts, that’s on us, not on you. Call (669) 266-4319 to schedule your free estimate in Burbank, and we’ll give you a real number with no obligation.
We Also Serve Cities Near Burbank
Our crews work throughout the wider South Bay and Peninsula area, and we’re a familiar name to homeowners checking out ADU Builders in Burbank for the first time. We also take projects in Los Gatos, San Jose, Santa Clara, and Milpitas. If you’re just outside the Burbank city limits, call (669) 266-4319 and we’ll tell you straight whether we can help on your lot.
Serving Burbank, CA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Burbank 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 ADU Builders in Burbank
We can usually walk your Burbank property within 3 – 5 business days of your call, depending on scheduling volume. Dispatch and scheduling are coordinated from our Los Angeles office, and local crews serve Burbank directly. Call (669) 266-4319 to get on the calendar.
Yes. We work throughout Burbank, including Magnolia Park, the neighborhoods off Chandler Boulevard, Rancho adjacent to the airport, and the hillside parcels above Kenneth and Glenoaks. If your property is in Burbank, we cover it.
Burbank ADU pricing is generally 5 – 10% higher than Glendale for the same square footage, mainly due to stricter plan review cycles and the fire authority requirements on hillside lots. LA city permits move faster on flat parcels. The number you’ll care about is the written price, and we give you one before any work begins. Call (669) 266-4319 for an exact quote.
The 365-Day Done Right Promise covers all workmanship and materials for one full year from project completion. If anything fails during that window, we come back and fix it at no charge. Every Burbank build includes this guarantee in writing as part of your contract.
No. The price we give you in writing before the permit is the price you pay. If we encounter unforeseen site conditions, we eat the cost or stop and bring you a change order to approve before proceeding. We don’t show up mid-build and ask for more money. Call (669) 266-4319 for a free, written estimate and see the difference.
Your Burbank ADU, Done Right, In Writing
If you’ve been burned by a contractor before, you already know what the absence of a written guarantee feels like. We built Lodgewick ADU San Jose to be the opposite. A written price before any work. A defined arrival window. A clean site. A written guarantee. And a live person who answers when you call. Russ Delmar and our Burbank crews are ready to walk your lot, read your setbacks, and tell you exactly what’s possible on your property. Call (669) 266-4319 today to schedule your free estimate and get a real number for your Burbank ADU.
Written by Russ Delmar, Owner at Lodgewick ADU San Jose, serving Burbank and the surrounding area.
