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Design-build in Birmingham, Michigan
Birmingham homes,
built to last
Designed, sourced & built under one roof.
Our office is on Old Woodward, a few minutes from most of the homes we work on. We design and build kitchens, bathrooms, additions, and whole home renovations for Birmingham homeowners — one accountable team from first sketch to final walkthrough.
4.9 star
Over 100 reviews
5 year
Warranty on our workmanship
2014
Founded, and building here since
100%
In-house design, source & build
Local design-build
Birmingham was built well the first time. The job is to bring it forward without flattening it.
Most of the housing stock here dates from the 1920s through the 1950s - brick Tudors, white Colonials, and Cape Cods in Quarton Lake Estates, Poppleton Park, and Torry. They were built with materials and detailing that would be prohibitively expensive to reproduce today.
That's the opportunity and the constraint. A renovation that ignores the original trim profiles, floor transitions, and window proportions reads as recent forever. One that respects them reads as though the house was always thisway.
We design, source, and build every project in-house, so there's no gap between what was drawn and what gets built — and no one to point at when the two don't match.
What we build in Birmingham
Services
01 - Kitchens
Custom cabinetry, stone, and layout work — from compact galley kitchens to full structural openings.
$65,000 - $250,000
02 - Bathrooms
Powder rooms through primary suites, with waterproofing and a flood-tested pan on every shower.
$18,000 - $160,000
03 - Additions
Seamless additions matched to Birmingham's architecture, inside and out.
$200,000 - $700,000
04 - Whole-home
Full renovations that modernize older homes without losing what makes them worth keeping.
$120,000 - $1,500,000
Ranges shown are typical for Birmingham. Full tier-by-tier pricing is on each cost guide.
building in Birmingham
What Building Here Actually Involves
01
The Historic District Commission reviews exterior work
If your home sits in one of Birmingham’s designated districts — Mill Pond, Baldwin Park, Historical Park, Village Waterworks, Bates Street, or Merrill-Townsend-Brown — anything affecting the exterior appearance goes before the Commission. Lower-impact work such as painting, landscaping, roofing, and fencing can be approved administratively by Planning Department staff instead.
02
Historic approval expires
An approval from the Commission is valid for one year from the date it’s granted, with an extension of up to one further year available. It’s worth sequencing design and construction so approval doesn’t lapse while you’re still selecting finishes.
03
Individually designated homes exist outside the districts
Birmingham designates a number of individual historic properties throughout neighborhoods that aren’t themselves districts. It’s worth confirming your address before assuming a project is exempt from review.
04
The permit set is more than a building permit
Birmingham issues separate electrical, mechanical, and plumbing permits alongside the building permit, plus an impervious surface permit for driveways, patios, and walkways, and a demolition permit where applicable. Construction documents generally need to be sealed by a licensed architect or engineer.
05
The tree report catches people out
Residential work in Birmingham involves a city tree report review and an Engineering Site Evaluation. Neither is difficult, but both take time, and both are more common reasons for a delayed start than the building permit itself.
Requirements change. Confirm current specifics with the Birmingham Building Department or the Planning Department before relying on any of the above.
where we work
Birmingham neighborhoods
We build throughout Birmingham and the immediately surrounding communities —
Beverly Hills, Franklin, Bloomfield Township, and Royal Oak.
quarton lakes estates
poppleton park
Torry
Pembroke manor
linden estates
mill pond
Baldwin park
historical park
bates street
downtown birmingham
rail district
holy name
straight answer
We don't reface cabinets
Every kitchen we build starts with new cabinetry, which puts our smallest Birmingham kitchens around $65,000 and most of them well above that. If refacing or a cosmetic refresh is what your house needs, a specialist will serve you better and cost you far less, and we're happy to point you toward one.
We're the right fit when the project involves custom cabinetry, layout changes, a house with complications behind the plaster, or a homeowner who would rather deal with one team than coordinate a designer, an architect, and a builder.
4.8 stars
Average customer review
2014
Founded in Metro Detroit
Old Woodward
Our office, in Birmingham
100%
In-house design, source & build
Good to know
Birmingham faq
Do you work on homes in Birmingham's historic districts?
Yes. Much of our Birmingham work is in older neighborhoods, some of it within designated districts. We handle the Historic District Commission submission as part of the project and design with the review in mind from the start, rather than presenting something that has to be redrawn.
How long does approval take in Birmingham?
It depends on whether your project needs full Commission review or can be approved administratively by staff, and on where it falls in the meeting calendar. We'll give you a realistic sequence at the design stage. What we won't do is promise a permit date we don't control.
What kind of homes do you typically work on here?
Predominantly the 1920s to 1950s housing stock —brick Tudors, Colonials, and Cape Cods in neighborhoods like Quarton Lake Estates and Poppleton Park. These homes were built well, and they reward renovation that respects the original detailing rather than stripping it out.
What does a kitchen or bath actually cost in Birmingham?
Kitchens here typically run $95,000 to $250,000 and up, bathrooms $60,000 to $160,000 and up, depending on scope. We publish full ranges by tier on our cost guides rather than making you ask.
Can we live in the house during the work?
For a single kitchen or bathroom, usually yes. For a whole-home renovation, usually not, and we'll say so plainly rather than let you find out in month two.
Are you licensed and insured in Michigan?
Yes — licensed Michigan residential builder, Lic. 2102213502, fully insured, with our office on Old Woodward in Birmingham.
Planning a renovation
in Birmingham?