Custom Homes & New Construction
Custom Home Builder & New Construction in Tarzana
Ground-up custom homes, tear-down rebuilds and wildfire rebuilds. Designed, permitted and built by one licensed team across Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley.
★★★★★ 4.9 from 60 Google reviews
Custom home builders based in Tarzana, building across Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley. A new house is the one project where nothing about an old floor plan holds you back. You choose the layout, the light, the ceiling heights and how the home sits on the lot.
Master in Design builds custom homes and handles new construction on empty lots and cleared sites. That includes tearing down a house that no longer works, building the one you want in its place, and rebuilding homes lost to wildfire. Our custom home builders work across Tarzana, Encino, Sherman Oaks, Woodland Hills, Calabasas and Studio City, and throughout the San Fernando Valley.
As a design-build firm in Los Angeles, one team coordinates design, structural engineering, permits, the build and final inspection. See how that works in our design-build process.
What Does a Custom Home Builder in Los Angeles Do?
A custom home builder in Los Angeles takes a house from plans to keys on your lot. Custom home construction covers design coordination, structural engineering, permits, site work, foundation, framing, systems, finishes and final inspection. Published LA construction costs run about $400 to $1,000 or more per square foot, depending on design, site and finish level.
At a glance
What we build
Custom homes
A luxury custom home or a simple family house, designed around how you live, on a lot you own or are buying.
- Single-story and two-story homes
- Hillside home builds and flat lots
- Your architect's plans, or design-build with our team
- Finish selections with our in-house designers
What we build
New construction
Ground-up building on a cleared site, whether the lot is empty, the old house is coming down, or a fire took it.
- Empty-lot builds from grading up
- Tear-down and rebuild of an existing house
- Wildfire rebuilds
- Grading, utility and sewer connections
Our process
We coordinate the full path: architectural and structural plans, survey and soils report, plan check with LADBS or your local city, demolition, grading, foundation, framing, mechanical, electrical and plumbing rough-in, inspections, finishes and final sign-off.
New Construction in Los Angeles: Three Ways a Project Starts
Every new build begins from one of three places. Each one changes the first few months of the job.
Building on an empty lot
An empty lot starts with a survey and a soils report. Those two documents set the foundation design, the grading, and how large the house can be under the zoning rules.
Tear down and rebuild
Many Valley neighborhoods have good lots under tired 1950s and 1960s houses. When the fix list reaches the foundation, the roof and every system at once, a full rebuild is worth pricing next to the remodel.
A rebuild is also the moment to use more of the lot. Under California's SB 9, many single-family lots can hold two homes, or be split into two lots. Historic districts and Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones are excluded, and SB 9 applications are currently barred in the Palisades burn area, so we check eligibility before design starts.
Rebuilding after a wildfire
Fire rebuilds follow their own path: debris removal, soil testing, and expedited permits for like-for-like rebuilds through City of LA and LA County programs. We rebuild homes in the hills, canyons and foothills affected by the 2025 fires.
Planning a Pacific Palisades rebuild? Start with our Palisades fire rebuild page. Coastal lots are covered on our Malibu fire rebuild page. For an Altadena rebuild in the Eaton fire area, see our Altadena fire rebuild page.
How Much Does It Cost to Build a Custom Home in Los Angeles?
Published figures for building a house in Los Angeles run from about $300 to more than $1,000 per square foot. That spread looks like nobody agrees. In practice, each source measures a different kind of house.
| Type of build | Published range per sq ft | What it usually means |
|---|---|---|
| Average California build | $300 to $500 | Quality new build outside the most expensive coastal markets |
| Standard new home in LA | $400 to $600 | Simple footprint, standard finishes, flat lot |
| Custom home in LA | $600 to $800 | Architect plans, upgraded finishes, more complex structure |
| Westside and luxury custom | $850 to $1,000+ | High-end finishes, hillside or coastal sites, specialty engineering |
Ranges published by Los Angeles builders and cost guides, as shown in Google results for Los Angeles in October 2026.
Those numbers usually cover construction only. Land, architect fees, survey and soils work, permit fees and utility connections sit on top.
For a sense of scale, a 2,500 square foot custom home at $600 to $800 per square foot works out to about $1.5 million to $2 million in construction cost.
Four things move the number more than anything else:
- The site: hillside grading, retaining walls and poor soil add structure you never see
- Size and shape: extra corners, roof lines and second-story cantilevers add framing and labor
- Finish level: cabinetry, stone, windows and fixtures can swing the total by hundreds of thousands
- Utilities and access: sewer runs, power upgrades and tight streets that limit deliveries
We give a written line-item estimate once the design is far enough along to price honestly.
Free estimate
Planning a new home? Get a free estimate from our Tarzana team.
What our clients say
Rated 4.9 out of 5 across 60 Google reviews, with 42 more on Yelp.
★★★★★“The constant communication and progress updates from the crew were a huge difference, and every inspection passed on the first pass.”
Debby M.
verified Google review
★★★★★“David proactively kept us up to date by sending pictures throughout the project.”
David F.
verified HomeAdvisor review
★★★★★“The estimate was reasonable, and they were the only company in Los Angeles that guaranteed their work.”
Rob P.
verified HomeAdvisor review
Who runs your project
Avi “Danny” Vaknin, owner
Avi Vaknin owns Master in Design, the Tarzana design-build firm serving the San Fernando Valley since 2012. Most clients know him as Danny.
Reviews describe him on site during the build and back at the house when something needs attention, sometimes years after the job is done.
How Long Does It Take to Build a Custom Home?
Plan on two clocks. Design and permits usually take 6 to 12 months in Los Angeles, and construction takes about 12 to 18 months once permits issue.
Plan check is the part nobody can schedule. A complete submittal moves. A missing sheet or a soils question sends it back.
Once the permit issues, the build runs in this order:
- Demolition or site clearing
- Grading and foundation
- Framing and roof
- Rough plumbing, electrical and HVAC, each with its own inspection
- Insulation, drywall, windows and exterior finishes
- Interior finishes, final inspection and certificate of occupancy
When Building New Is the Wrong Call
A new house is not always the answer, and we will tell you when it is not.
If the house is sound and you mainly need more room, a room addition or second story keeps the foundation, roof and utilities you already paid for.
If the layout works but everything feels dated, whole-home remodeling gets you new kitchens, baths and finishes for far less than a rebuild.
If the goal is rental income or a place for family, a backyard ADU adds a second home without touching the first.
Build new when the foundation, framing and systems all need replacing, or when no remodel can deliver the house you want.
Custom Home FAQs
What homeowners ask before building a new house in Los Angeles.
How much does it cost to build a 2,000 sq ft house in Los Angeles?
Is it cheaper to buy or build a house in California?
How long does it take to build a house?
What is the cheapest type of house to build?
Is it cheaper to tear down and rebuild or remodel?
Built. Finished. Loved.
Ready to start your project?
Tell us about it. No obligation, no pressure. We respond within one business day.
★★★★★
4.9 out of 5 from 60 Google reviews, plus 42 reviews on Yelp.
Licensed General Building contractor, CSLB #979219. Serving Tarzana and the San Fernando Valley.