Home Builder & General Contractor in Sherman Oaks, Our Home Base

The flats between Ventura Boulevard and the 101, and north toward Van Nuys, are mostly single-story homes built in the late 1940s and 1950s. The lots are usually rectangular and deep, with flat ground and good street access, which keeps foundation and grading work predictable. Families who have outgrown a small ranch either expand it with a home addition or take it down and build a larger two-story house in its place. Original wiring, plumbing, and roofing often need replacing either way. Where a detached garage sits at the back, a backyard ADU or a garage conversion usually fits without a variance.

Once you head up into the canyons toward Mulholland Drive, the rules change. Many hillside lots fall under LA's Baseline Hillside Ordinance and sit in a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone, which can affect floor area, grading, street access, parking, and building materials. That shapes how large a new home can be and whether a second story is realistic, and some hillside lots also have limits on ADUs tied to fire access and street width. KR checks the zoning, hillside designation, and fire zone during feasibility so you are not paying for plans that cannot be permitted.

Sherman Oaks projects go through the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety. A new house or a large addition goes through regular plan check, with zoning review for height, floor area, and setbacks before the structural review. For ADUs, LADBS runs a Standard Plan Program with pre-approved designs that can shorten review on flat lots that meet the criteria. Either way, KR coordinates the drawings, corrections, and inspections from start to final. Read our Los Angeles ADU guide for the state rules behind it.