A free site visit, a check of what your lot allows and a written, line-item price.
Get your free estimateFast, Reliable Garage Conversion Contractor Across Burbank
Your garage is sitting there holding boxes, holiday decorations, and a car that barely fits between the walls. Meanwhile, you’re paying Burbank prices for every square foot of your lot, and an entire room’s worth of space is going to waste. That’s the problem we solve every week for homeowners across Burbank, from the Chandler Bike Path neighborhoods up to the Verdugo foothills. A garage conversion in Burbank typically runs $95,000 to $160,000 for a full attached conversion with plumbing and electrical, with detached conversions landing between $120,000 and $190,000 depending on foundation work and utility runs. We know these numbers because we’ve priced hundreds of them. Call (669) 266-4319 and we’ll give you a written number for yours.
Burbank’s housing stock makes this conversation different than it would be in, say, North Hollywood or Glendale. Most of the homes here are 1940s and 1950s ranches with detached garages off the alley. That’s actually good news for a conversion: the garage already has its own footprint, its own roofline, and in many cases its own access point. The work is less about creating something new and more about making something existing livable. We’ll walk through exactly what that looks like below.
Why Lodgewick ADU San Jose Is Burbank’s Preferred Garage Conversion Contractor Company
Russ Delmar leads our garage conversion work, and he’s built his reputation in Burbank on one simple habit: the number we quote is the number you pay. No change orders at the door. No “we discovered something” surprise halfway through. Every project starts with a written price, a defined arrival window, and a written guarantee. When a Burbank homeowner asks what sets us apart, that’s the answer we give, and it’s the answer that matters after you’ve been burned once.
We’re part of the Kingswell family of home-service companies, established in 2010. The name matters: a lodge is a small house on a larger property, which is exactly what a garage conversion becomes. Our team operates under The Kingswell Guarantee, which means a clean job site every day, a background-checked and uniformed crew, and a 365-Day Done Right Promise attached to every project. If something isn’t right within that year, we come back and fix it. That’s in writing before the first nail goes in.
Our dispatch and scheduling is coordinated from the brand’s Los Angeles office, and crews serve Burbank locally. When you call, a live person answers. Not a voicemail, not a chatbot. Someone who knows the difference between a Magnolia Park detached garage and a Burbank Hills carport conversion. Call (669) 266-4319 and you’ll see what we mean.
Garage Apartment Conversion in Burbank
A garage apartment conversion in Burbank turns a detached or attached garage into a self-contained living unit with its own kitchen or kitchenette, bathroom, and sleeping area. Most homeowners pursue this when they want rental income, a space for adult children, or a place for aging parents that keeps them close without sharing a hallway. In Burbank, detached garages off alleys are particularly suited to this because the unit gets its own entrance without reconfiguring the main house.
For a garage apartment conversion, Burbank homeowners should budget $130,000 to $190,000 for a detached garage with a full bath and kitchen. Attached conversions run lower, typically $95,000 to $140,000, since the structure already shares walls and sometimes plumbing with the house. These are real numbers from Burbank projects, not national averages. The Kingswell Guarantee covers the work for 365 days after completion.
Detached Garage Apartment Conversions
Burbank’s alley-loaded lots give detached garages a natural advantage: separate access, separate address potential, and less disruption to the main house during construction. We’ve converted garages behind homes on streets parallel to Chandler Boulevard and throughout the Magnolia Park district. The key is utility runs. Your detached garage likely has electrical but no sewer line, and trenching through a Burbank yard to connect to the main line adds real cost. We price that trenching up front so it doesn’t ambush you later.
Attached Garage Apartment Conversions
An attached conversion shares a wall with your house, which makes plumbing and electrical cheaper to extend. The tradeoff is that you lose interior parking and your garage door becomes a wall, which changes the front elevation. On Burbank’s flat, grid-like lots, this is often the faster path to a finished unit. We handle the door removal, framing, insulation, and all finish work so the new space matches the rest of the house.
Garage Conversion Permit in Burbank
A garage conversion permit in Burbank is the city’s formal approval to change a garage from vehicle storage to habitable space, and it’s non-negotiable. Burbank’s Building Division reviews plans for structural changes, energy compliance, and zoning. The city has specific rules about parking replacement when you convert a garage, especially in hillside and airport overlay zones. We pull permits on every project, and we don’t start demo until the permit is in hand.
Permit costs for a garage conversion in Burbank generally run $3,500 to $7,500 depending on square footage and whether the project triggers school district fees, park fees, or hillside review. This is separate from construction cost and is something many contractors bury until after you’ve signed. We line-item it in your written price before work begins. Call (669) 266-4319 and we’ll walk you through exactly which fees apply to your property.
Parking Replacement Rules
When you convert a garage in Burbank, the city typically requires replacement parking on-site unless your property qualifies for an exemption. Alley-accessed lots often can comply with tandem parking or an existing driveway without a new curb cut, which saves thousands. That’s a significant reason why detached garages on Burbank alleys are so popular for conversion: the parking solution often already exists.
Hillside and Airport Overlay Review
Homes in the Burbank Hills above Glenoaks Boulevard and properties within the Bob Hope Airport influence area face additional review layers. The airport overlay can restrict building height and require noise attenuation, while hillside lots trigger geological and fire-safety requirements. This is exactly why many Burbank homeowners choose a garage conversion over a ground-up ADU: working within an existing structure sidesteps some of the more expensive variance hearings. We’ve navigated both review tracks and will tell you honestly which applies to your address.
Trusted Brands We Service in Burbank
We work regularly with Tuff Shed structures on Burbank lots where homeowners want a prefab studio shell that we then finish into a permitted ADU. James Hardie siding is our default exterior for Burbank garage conversions because it holds up to the hot, dry summers without warping or fading the way cheaper alternatives do. For homeowners considering a prefab ADU delivered as a complete unit, we’re familiar with Abodu’s models and can advise whether your Burbank lot and alley access can accommodate delivery. The brand you choose matters less than the installation, and that’s where we earn our keep. We keep common materials and hardware stocked for Burbank projects, which shortens turnaround when a project is mid-build.
Common Garage Conversion Contractor Problems We See in Burbank Homes
- Foundation settling on 1940s slabs. Burbank’s older garages were poured for cars, not people. Many slabs have cracks, low spots, or no vapor barrier, and correcting that before framing prevents a finished room with a sloping floor or moisture wicking through the flooring.
- Insufficient electrical panels. Most 1950s Burbank homes have 100-amp panels. A garage conversion with a kitchen or mini-split HVAC often needs a 200-amp upgrade, which means coordinating with Burbank Water and Power. We identify this during the estimate, not after the walls are open.
- Santa Ana wind damage to garage roofs. Burbank’s occasional Santa Ana events stress aging garage rooflines, especially in hillside neighborhoods. We inspect rafters and tie-downs before conversion and add wind-rated reinforcement where required.
- Heat gain in summer without proper insulation. Burbank’s hot, dry summers mean a converted garage with thin walls and no roof insulation becomes an oven by 3 p.m. We spec insulation levels and passive cooling strategies like shaded window placement and light-reflective roofing so the unit stays livable in August.
Pricing for Garage Conversion Contractor in Burbank, CA
A straightforward attached garage conversion in Burbank starts around $95,000 when the structure is sound and utilities are close. Detached conversions on alley lots run $120,000 to $190,000, with the higher end reflecting sewer trenching, foundation work, and hillside or airport overlay requirements. A garage-to-bedroom conversion with just a closet and no bath is the least expensive option, typically $55,000 to $85,000. Adding a full bathroom pushes the total up by $25,000 to $45,000 depending on plumbing distance. Every estimate we give is a written, line-item price with no change orders. The only way to get an exact number for your property is a site visit, and that visit is free. Call (669) 266-4319 and let’s schedule it.
We Also Serve Cities Near Burbank
While this page is for Burbank homeowners, our team also handles garage conversions in ADU Builders in Burbank and surrounding communities. We regularly work with homeowners in Los Gatos, San Jose, Santa Clara, and Milpitas who want the same written-price, written-guarantee approach. If you’re in one of those cities, or anywhere nearby, the process is the same: call, we visit, you get a number in writing. For a broader look at what’s possible on your lot, see our Garage Conversion Contractor overview. If you’re weighing a garage conversion against a larger addition, our Home Addition Contractor in Burbank team can walk you through both scenarios and help you compare square-foot costs. And if you’re still deciding between a garage conversion and a ground-up ADU, read our Burbank guide to learn how each option performs on local lots.
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 Garage Conversion Contractor in Burbank
We typically schedule Burbank estimates within a few business days of your call, with crews dispatched from our Los Angeles-area coordination office. Call (669) 266-4319 and the person who answers will get you on the calendar directly.
Yes. We work in Magnolia Park, the Chandler Bike Path-adjacent neighborhoods, Rancho Adjacent, the Burbank Hills, and everywhere in between. Each has its own zoning quirks, and we know them well enough to flag potential issues before you spend money on plans.
We handle urgent structural issues like failed garage door headers, water intrusion, or fire damage as quickly as possible, but a full garage conversion is planned work, not emergency work. The best way to know your timeline is to call and describe what’s happening. A live person answers around the clock.
Burbank falls in the middle to upper range for Los Angeles County garage conversions because of city-specific fees, parking replacement rules, and the age of the housing stock. Expect to pay slightly more than in some Valley communities and slightly less than in Westside cities. Your written estimate will reflect Burbank’s actual permit and utility costs, not a generic regional average.
Every garage conversion we complete in Burbank carries our 365-Day Done Right Promise in writing. If anything isn’t right within that year, we return and make it right at no charge. That guarantee is part of The Kingswell Guarantee and is delivered before work begins, not as an afterthought.
Schedule Your Free Burbank Garage Conversion Estimate
You’ve got a garage that could be a bedroom, a rental, a studio, an office. You’ve got a lot in Burbank that’s worth too much to leave half-used. Call (669) 266-4319 and we’ll come out, walk the space, and hand you a written price that covers everything: permits, materials, labor, utilities, and our 365-day guarantee. No pressure, no vague language, no number that changes when we show up. That’s the way we’ve done it since 2010, and we’re not changing now.
Written by Russ Delmar, Owner at Lodgewick ADU San Jose, serving Burbank with garage conversions and ADU projects since 2010.
