Kitchen remodeling
Bathroom remodeling
Home additions & ADU
Roofing
Windows & doors
Driveway & pavers
FenceFree written scope consultation - allowances, timeline, and change-order rules on paper before a single trade is scheduled
Fast, Reliable General Contractor Across Irvine
Finding a general contractor in Irvine means finding someone who understands this city’s particular building rules before the first wall comes down. Polaris Contractors has worked throughout Irvine’s villages long enough to know what a remodel here actually involves: post-tension slabs, HOA design review, and tract homes from the 1960s onward that hide surprises behind drywall. Rick Sondermann and our team handle the full scope, from kitchens and baths to roofing, windows, and ADUs, under one contract and one project manager. Call (855) 473-6535 for a free estimate on your Irvine project.
Why Polaris Contractors Is Irvine’s Preferred General Contractor Company
We’ve built our reputation in Irvine on a simple practice: we inspect before we bid. Walking a 1970s Woodbridge tract home and quoting a bathroom remodel without checking what’s inside the walls is how change orders get weaponized against homeowners later. When our General Contractor team walks an Irvine home, we’re looking at the slab, the panel, the roof deck, and the existing rough-in, because those are the things that actually move a budget.
Irvine homeowners consistently tell us the same thing: they want one accountable team, not a rotating cast of subs. That’s how we run every job, whether it’s a kitchen remodel in Northwood or an ADU addition near the Great Park. Rick Sondermann oversees each project personally, and our customers work with the same project lead from the first walk-through to final inspection sign-off.
We also show up prepared for Irvine’s specific compliance layer. HOA architectural committees in villages like Turtle Rock and Woodbridge review exterior changes, and the City of Irvine’s permit process triggers code upgrades once walls are open. We plan for both from day one, so approval delays and rework don’t stall your schedule.
Styles & brands we work with
Remodeling Contractor in Irvine
Hiring a Remodeling Contractor in Irvine means hiring someone who treats the city’s housing stock for what it is: planned-community tract homes, many built between the 1960s and 1990s, on post-tension slab foundations. A typical kitchen remodel in Irvine runs $14,000 to $45,000, while a small kitchen refresh lands between $9,000 and $20,000. Bathroom remodels in Irvine typically cost $9,000 to $28,000, with smaller baths running $5,000 to $12,000. The number that matters most is the one written into your contract before demo starts, and that’s what we protect with written allowances for concealment work.
Kitchen and Bath Scope
Most Irvine kitchens we open have decent bones but outdated layouts, builder-grade cabinetry, and counters that have seen decades of use. We spec KraftMaid or Wellborn cabinetry, Cambria or Silestone quartz, and Kohler or Grohe fixtures, matched to the home and the HOA’s interior standards where applicable. Walk-in shower installations in Irvine run $4,500 to $12,000, and tub-to-shower conversions typically cost $3,500 to $10,000.
Additions and Conversions
Home additions in Irvine, whether a master suite bump-out or a garage conversion, run $45,000 to $130,000 for a standard addition and $30,000 to $80,000 for a garage conversion. ADU construction in Irvine typically costs $90,000 to $220,000, and we handle prefab ADUs through Abodu, Dvele, and Plant Prefab, which shortens on-site construction time and simplifies the permitting path.
Licensed General Contractor in Irvine
A Licensed General Contractor in Irvine carries responsibilities that go well beyond swinging a hammer. We pull permits, coordinate the structural engineer when a post-tension slab is involved, schedule inspections, and manage the HOA architectural committee submittal for any exterior change. That accountability is the entire point of hiring a single-source contractor instead of stitching together a handyman, a plumber, and a tile guy.
Permit and Compliance Management
When a remodel in Irvine triggers a permit, the city requires the opened scope to meet current code. That means outdated wiring gets brought to current panel standards, and undersized framing gets evaluated by a structural engineer before drywall goes back up. We build those upgrades into the original quote as line-item allowances whenever possible, so you know what a code-triggered change will cost before it happens.
Post-Tension Slab Protocol
Because Irvine’s tract villages sit on post-tension slabs, any trenching or coring, a bathroom relocation, a new drain line, patio footings, needs an X-ray scan and an engineer’s sign-off before a saw touches concrete. Hitting a tension cable is a dangerous, expensive mistake local crews learn to check for first. We treat this as a non-negotiable step, not an optional add-on, and it’s built into our Irvine process from the first site visit.
Trusted Brands We Service in Irvine
We’re a full-scope contractor, not a brand shop, but we stock and install the names Irvine homeowners ask for most, including Irvine PGT service for window and door needs. James Hardie siding holds up against the Santa Ana winds and dry heat better than most fiber cement alternatives, and we spec it across our exterior envelope work. For kitchens, KraftMaid and Wellborn cabinetry give us solid build quality at the mid-to-premium tier. When a project calls for a prefab structure, Tuff Shed and our ADU manufacturer partners keep lead times predictable. We’ll guide you to the right material for your Irvine home, built to the brand’s specification and installed to ours.
Common General Contractor Problems We See in Irvine Homes
- Post-tension slab surprises: Irvine’s tract villages, from Woodbridge to Turtle Rock, are built on post-tension slabs, so any trenching or coring for relocated plumbing or patio footings requires an X-ray scan and engineer sign-off. Skipping this step risks cutting a tension cable, which is dangerous and expensive.
- Concealed plumbing and wiring failures: We routinely open 1960s and 1970s Irvine homes and find pitted copper supply lines, galvanized drain rough-ins, and panels that are decades past their useful life. When a permit triggers, those get flagged and must be corrected before we close the wall.
- HOA architectural committee rework: Exterior changes in Irvine villages need design-review approval before construction starts. Homeowners who skip this step, or whose contractor treats it as red tape, end up with stop-work orders and rework on palettes, rooflines, and hardscape.
- Draw schedules with no holdback: Some Irvine remodel contracts front-load the draw schedule, leaving the homeowner with no leverage when rough-in surprises and change orders pile up. We structure our draws so concealment work stays priced, approved, and held until inspection sign-off.
See the difference
Before
After
Before
After
Before
AfterPricing for General Contractor in Irvine, CA
Irvine remodel pricing is shaped by the city’s housing stock and compliance requirements. Post-tension slab work, HOA submittals, and permit-triggered code upgrades all add cost that a generic quote from a neighboring city won’t include. Here’s what we see across Irvine’s market:
| Irvine Project | Typical Cost Range |
|---|---|
| Bathroom Remodel | $9,000 – $28,000 |
| Small Bathroom Remodel | $5,000 – $12,000 |
| Walk-In Shower Installation | $4,500 – $12,000 |
| Home Addition | $45,000 – $130,000 |
| ADU Construction | $90,000 – $220,000 |
| Garage Conversion | $30,000 – $80,000 |
What moves those numbers in Irvine: the age of the home, whether the slab requires X-ray scanning, the HOA exterior palette, and what’s behind the drywall once we open it. We inspect first, write allowances into the contract, and price every change order in writing before work proceeds. Call (855) 473-6535 to schedule your free estimate.
We Also Serve Cities Near Irvine
Polaris Contractors works throughout central Orange County. Beyond Irvine, our General Contractor team serves Tustin, Aliso Viejo, Santa Ana, and North Tustin. If you’re in a neighboring city and planning a remodel, addition, or full exterior upgrade, call (855) 473-6535 and we’ll get a project lead out to walk the property.
Serving Irvine, CA — Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Irvine 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 General Contractor in Irvine
Because Irvine’s tract homes date from the 1960s onward, and what’s behind the drywall is rarely what the original builder left in good condition. Outdated wiring, pitted copper supply lines, failed shower waterproofing, and undersized framing all surface once demo starts, and a permit-triggered inspection requires bringing the opened scope to current code. The fix is to build written allowances into the contract before demo begins, so you know what a concealment upgrade costs before it happens. Call (855) 473-6535 and we’ll walk the scope with you line by line.
Yes, if your Irvine home sits on a post-tension slab, which nearly all tract village homes here do. Any trenching or coring, a bathroom relocation, a new drain line, patio footings, requires an X-ray scan and a structural engineer’s sign-off before concrete is cut. Hitting a tension cable is dangerous and expensive. We include the scan and engineering in our Irvine quotes so it’s never an afterthought. Call (855) 473-6535 for an exact cost on your specific project.
Because Irvine is a master-planned city where the Irvine Company set the framework, and most villages govern exterior changes through HOA design review committees. A permit ensures the opened scope meets current code; the HOA committee ensures exterior palette, roofline, and hardscape choices match the village’s design standards. Skipping either stalls the project and can force rework. We handle both as part of our scope, so you’re not navigating them alone. Call (855) 473-6535 and we’ll map the approval path for your specific village.
At minimum: a fixed scope of work with line-item allowances for concealment work, a draw schedule with held-back funds until inspection sign-off, a change order process requiring your written approval before any work proceeds, and explicit language about who handles permits, HOA submittals, and post-tension slab scanning. If a contractor bids off a visual walk-through only and won’t put allowances in writing, that’s a red flag. We’ll walk you through our contract structure before you sign. Call (855) 473-6535 to review a sample scope for your Irvine home.
Yes, and we’ve done many. Condo and townhome remodels in Irvine carry an extra layer of HOA oversight, interior work is usually within your unit’s authority, but anything touching shared walls, plumbing risers, or exterior elements needs association approval. We coordinate that submittal, work around the HOA’s noise and working-hours rules, and sequence waste removal to match the association’s requirements. Call (855) 473-6535 and we’ll walk your unit’s specific constraints before we quote.
Your Irvine Project, Managed Start to Finish
Polaris Contractors has one job on every Irvine remodel: own the outcome. From the roof down to the pavers, from the first inspection to the final walk-through, Rick Sondermann and our team stay accountable. We inspect before we bid, write allowances into the contract, get your approval in writing on every change, and close the punch list clean after inspection sign-off. A Woodbridge homeowner opened a 1970s hall bath for a walk-in shower install and found copper supply lines pitted to the point of pinhole leaks plus a galvanized drain rough-in we replaced before setting tile. Because the original contract carried written allowances and a line-item change order for concealed plumbing, the owner approved the upgrade in writing at the draw schedule checkpoint, no mid-job surprise, and the punch list closed clean.
Call (855) 473-6535 to schedule your free estimate. We’ll inspect, we’ll quote, and we’ll put everything in writing before a single wall comes down in Irvine.
Written by Rick Sondermann, Owner at Polaris Contractors, serving Irvine and central Orange County since day one.