Masonry Contractor in California City - Block Walls, Pavers and Careful Repairs

It depends mostly on how much wall, paving or veneer you need, the material you choose, how much old work has to come out first and whether the job needs a permit. Skipping a permit to save money usually backfires, because the city lists penalties for unpermitted residential work of $500 or double the permit fee, whichever is greater. The written estimate gives you the number for your own job.

Often yes, because the city's Building & Safety Division only exempts cosmetic work like painting, carpet and trim plus a few small projects, and it lists fireplace installation as work that needs a permit. Walkways and driveways no more than 30 inches above ground, 10 feet from the curb face and not over a basement are among those small projects, but block walls and retaining walls aren't on the list, so we check with the division before we start. Any work at a commercial location needs a permit.

The California Contractors State License Board requires a license whenever the job needs a building permit, uses any extra workers or costs $1,000 or more in labor and materials. A bigger job can't be split into pieces under $1,000 to get around that. We're licensed and fully insured.

No more than $1,000 or 10 percent of the total contract price, whichever is less, under the state licensing board's rule. The board says it covers all home improvement projects, so it applies to masonry work on your house too.

Call the city at 760-373-7162, since inspections are by appointment only. When we pull the permit for your job, we set up the inspections ourselves, so you usually won't need to make that call.

Type your address into the state's EQ Zapp map, which shows whether the property lies in a mapped earthquake hazard zone and tells you when the state hasn't evaluated that area yet. That's worth knowing before a new block wall, chimney or retaining wall, and I'm glad to look at it with you when I come out.