Woodland Hills ADUs,
designed, permitted, built.
A licensed Los Angeles general contractor designing and building accessory dwelling units in Woodland Hills — detached, attached, garage conversion, and Junior ADU. Owner-led since 2010. One team from the first lot walk through certificate of occupancy.
Hillstar Construction (CSLB #972213) designs and builds accessory dwelling units in Woodland Hills — detached new-build, attached, garage conversion, and Junior ADU.
Owner-led since 2010. LADBS permits and inspections handled in-house at the Valley branch on Sepulveda. The same crew walks the lot, draws the plans, builds the unit, and meets every inspection through certificate of occupancy — no permit expediter, no subcontracted project management, no handoff.
A look at one Hillstar ADU.
A detached contemporary ADU built by Hillstar — concrete patio, fiber-cement siding, oversized sliders, mature landscaping kept intact through the build.
What it costs and how long it takes.
Every Woodland Hills ADU is shaped by lot conditions, ADU type, finish level, and the rule layer that touches the parcel. Hillstar quotes real numbers and a real schedule after the first site visit — in writing, line by line.
Itemized in writing after the site visit.
Cost is driven by ADU type (detached, attached, garage conversion, JADU), lot conditions (flat or hillside, soil report needed or not, access constraints), utility upgrades (electrical panel, sewer lateral, water service), finish level, and overlays such as Chapter 7A WUI, protected trees, or HOA architectural review.
What the written quote includes
- Design, drafting, and structural engineering
- LADBS permit fees and plan-check responses
- Foundation, framing, electrical, plumbing, HVAC
- Title 24 envelope and solar provisions
- Finishes, fixtures, and final inspection
- Any panel upgrade or sewer-lateral work identified at the site visit
Scoped in writing during consultation.
Site visit and feasibility, design and drawings, LADBS plan check, and construction are each scoped during consultation. Material lead times, hillside review, protected-tree review, and any HOA architectural-review track move the schedule — we put the realistic schedule in writing before the design is final.
Stages in the written schedule
- Site visit, feasibility, and zoning confirmation
- Design, structural, and Title 24 drawings
- LADBS submittal and plan-check corrections
- Construction through framing and rough trades
- Finishes, Title 24 verification, final inspections
- Walkthrough, punch list, certificate of occupancy
How Hillstar builds an ADU.
Four stages from the first lot walk to certificate of occupancy — the same in-house crew end to end, with a written scope at every stage.
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01
Free in-home consultation
We walk the lot in Woodland Hills, confirm zoning, check hillside classification, look at the existing electrical panel and sewer lateral, inventory protected trees, and identify fire-zone status. Honest answer on what fits before any drawing.
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02
Design & LADBS permit
Floor plans, elevations, site plan, structural drawings, Title 24 documentation, and a written scope. LADBS submittal at the Valley branch on Sepulveda. LADWP, hillside, tree, and Office of Historic Resources review run in parallel where they apply.
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03
Build & inspections
Foundation, framing, plumbing, electrical (including any panel upgrade), Title 24 envelope, HVAC, and finishes — all by our in-house crew. We schedule and meet every LADBS inspection through certificate of occupancy.
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04
Walkthrough & warranty
Final walkthrough with you on the finished ADU, punch-list completion, and Hillstar Construction's written workmanship warranty — honored in writing on every project.
Woodland Hills rules, briefly.
The rule layer that applies on top of LADBS plan check. Click any row to expand.
LADBS permits — Valley branch on Sepulveda
Woodland Hills is part of the City of Los Angeles, and LADBS — the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety — issues every residential ADU permit here. The Valley branch on Sepulveda processes Woodland Hills plan check and inspections for Valley addresses. Hillstar handles the submittal, plan-check corrections, LADWP utility coordination, and final inspection end to end.
Setbacks, height, and parking
California state law caps required side and rear setbacks at four feet for new detached or attached ADUs and waives setback requirements when you convert an existing garage in its footprint. State law also limits the parking requirement for an ADU within walking distance of major transit. Height is governed by the underlying zone, and on hillside parcels by the LA Baseline Hillside Ordinance.
Hillside parcels — LA Baseline Hillside Ordinance
Walnut Acres and Vista de Oro hillside parcels fall under the LA Baseline Hillside Ordinance, which adds grading, height, slope-stability, and design provisions plus geotechnical review. Haul-route planning can apply. Hillside ADUs are more design-intensive but remain buildable on most qualifying Woodland Hills lots.
Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone — Chapter 7A
Parcels in a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone (VHFHSZ) are treated as Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) under Chapter 7A of the California Building Code. That triggers ignition-resistant siding and soffits, dual-pane tempered or multi-pane glazing, ember-resistant vents, Class A roof assembly, and defensible-space compliance. We confirm fire-zone status at the first site visit.
Protected trees — oak, sycamore, walnut, bay
LA's protected-tree ordinance covers oaks, sycamores, walnuts, and bay trees on private property. An ADU sited in the root-protection zone can require arborist review, a tree-protection plan, or a shift in the building envelope. We inventory protected trees at the first site visit, before the design is set.
Utilities — LADWP, sewer, panel upgrades
LADWP coordinates separate or shared water and power service for new ADUs. Many older Woodland Hills homes need an electrical panel upgrade before the ADU load can land — we size that during design, not on the construction call. Sewer-lateral capacity is checked as part of the LADBS submittal; older laterals can need repair or replacement before connection.
Title 24 & CALGreen
Title 24 (California Energy Code) applies in full to new detached ADUs and significant additions — solar PV requirements, high-efficiency envelope and HVAC, electric-ready provisions for cooking and water heating, and EV-charger-ready circuits where the ADU has parking. We design to Title 24 and CALGreen baseline from day one rather than retrofit at plan check.
HOA architectural review
Some Woodland Hills neighborhoods carry HOA architectural-review committees or CC&R-driven design rules covering exterior materials, roof form, fence and gate detail, and visibility from common areas. Interior or garage-conversion ADUs typically pass HOA review without complication. When a detached new-build alters the visible envelope, the HOA submission runs in parallel with the LADBS permit so both tracks finish on one timeline.
Recent ADU FAQs.
The questions Woodland Hills owners actually ask before signing a contractor.
Does my Woodland Hills lot qualify for an ADU?
Most do. California state law (Government Code §65852.2) requires the City of Los Angeles to allow at least one ADU on single-family residential lots and most multifamily lots. What changes per lot is the type that fits — detached, attached, garage conversion, or JADU — based on zoning, hillside status, protected trees, and fire-zone classification. We confirm all of that at the first site visit.
Detached, attached, garage conversion, or JADU — which one is right?
A detached new-build is common on deeper lots in Walnut Acres, Vista de Oro, South of the Boulevard, and Warner Center-adjacent. An attached ADU shares a wall with the primary house and works when the rear yard is tight. A garage conversion uses the existing detached-garage footprint and skips many setback rules. A Junior ADU (JADU) is carved out of the primary home, up to 500 sq ft with its own entrance and efficiency kitchen — often the right answer when the rear yard is constrained.
How do I verify a Woodland Hills ADU contractor is licensed?
Search the contractor's company name or license number at the CSLB license-check tool on cslb.ca.gov. A valid B-license general contractor can legally build a full ADU in California; an unlicensed builder cannot. Hillstar Construction's license is CSLB #972213, displayed in the hero and footer of this page. Verify any bid you receive before signing.
Does an older Woodland Hills home need extra work before adding an ADU?
Often, yes. Older homes can need an electrical panel upgrade to support the ADU load, a sewer-lateral capacity check, a foundation review on hillside parcels, and asbestos or lead testing when walls are opened on pre-1978 construction. We identify which of these apply at the first site visit so the budget reflects real scope before design starts.
Garage conversion or detached ADU — which fits my lot?
A garage conversion uses the existing detached-garage footprint and waives most setback rules — often the lower-scope path when the garage shell is sound. A detached new-build allows a larger and better-designed unit on deeper lots. We check the foundation, framing condition, and ceiling height of the existing garage at the site visit to confirm whether a conversion is realistic.
Can I rent out a Woodland Hills ADU?
Yes. AB 670 and AB 671 (California state law) removed the owner-occupancy requirement for detached and attached ADUs, so a Woodland Hills detached or attached ADU can be rented separately. JADUs still require owner-occupancy of one of the two units. Local HOA short-term-rental rules can still apply — we review CC&Rs during the feasibility step.
A West Valley general contractor.
Hillstar Construction is a family-owned Los Angeles general contractor based on Ventura Boulevard in Woodland Hills, serving the West Valley since 2010. Owner-led on every project — from the first site walk through final inspection.
We work in Walnut Acres, Vista de Oro, South of the Boulevard, and Warner Center-adjacent every week. LADBS Valley branch, LADWP utility coordination, the LA Baseline Hillside Ordinance pathway, LA's protected-tree ordinance, and Chapter 7A fire-zone compliance are part of how we plan a project — not a surprise mid-build.
The same in-house crew handles design, LADBS submittal, construction, and final inspection. No permit expediter. No subcontracted project management. Same point of contact from first call to certificate of occupancy.
Plan a Woodland Hills ADU with us.
Send a few details and we'll respond within 24 hours. The first site visit is free, in-home, no pressure, no sales pitch — a real conversation about whether the project fits your lot.
Free Woodland Hills ADU estimate
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