We build legal basement apartments from the first assessment through to the final city inspection: drawings, permits, structural work and underpinning where ceiling height demands it, separate entrance, fire separation and proper egress. A suite is only an asset if it is legal, so every stage is inspected before it is paid for.
Ceiling height, entrance options, windows and mechanical locations decide what is possible before anything is drawn.
Layout designed to code, then submitted for the building permit.
Underpinning if the height needs it, plus any beams and footings the new layout requires.
Separate entrance, fire separation, egress windows, mechanicals, kitchen and bathroom.
The city signs off and the suite is tenant ready.
A suite for family is built differently from a rental. It can share the home's main entrance, which removes the cost of building a separate one, and a second laundry becomes optional rather than expected. We design it around how the family actually lives, and it can be converted to a rental unit later if that changes.
An unpermitted suite is a liability at insurance time and at sale time, and it is worth less to a lender. Building it legal from the start costs less than legalizing it afterward, and it means the suite counts as what it actually is.
In plain terms: proper ceiling height, a compliant separate means of egress, fire separation between units, and the right window sizes, all confirmed by permit and city inspection.
Often yes, but it depends on the ceiling height, the entrance and the window openings. That assessment is free and it is the honest first step.
There is a code minimum, and where an existing basement falls short we underpin to gain the height. Underpinning is work we do in house.
For a rental suite, yes. For a family or in-law suite that shares the home's entrance, no, which removes a substantial cost.
Permits set the front end of the schedule and the build follows. We map the realistic timeline at the assessment rather than promising a number up front.
Free assessment. Pick a time and Alex calls you at the slot you choose.