Six subdivisions platted in the 1960s, a median house built in 1955, and a lot of families who love the street and have outgrown the floor plan. Most of our Beverly Hills work is exactly that, opening up a well-built postwar house rather than leaving it.
4.9 star
Google rating across 75+ reviews
5 year
Warranty on our workmanship
2014
Founded in Metro Detroit
100%
In-house design, source & build
Beverly Hills was incorporated as Westwood in 1958 and built out mostly between the 1960s and 1980. Nottingham, Metamora, Georgetown, Ronsdale, Westwood and Sturbridge came first, with Williamsburg Row following in the 1970s. Colonial Revival dominates, with substantial mid-century modern, brick ranch and Tudor alongside it.
Lot sizes swing hard across the village. East of Southfield Road they run 6,000 to 15,000 square feet; between Southfield and Evergreen, 12,000 to 20,000; west of Evergreen toward the Rouge River, anywhere from 16,000 square feet up to multiple acres. That single fact drives what is possible on any given address.
The Village's own Master Plan observes that owners here increasingly prefer major renovation or demolition over moving. That is the market we work in.
01 - Kitchens
Opening up closed postwar kitchens, with custom cabinetry and layout changes.
$65,000 – $195,000+
02 - Bathrooms
Primary suites and guest baths, with waterproofing and a flood-tested pan on every shower.
$18,000 – $120,000+
03 - Additions
Additions planned against a 25 percent lot coverage cap and generous required yards.
$165,000 – $500,000+
04 - Whole-home
Full renovations of 1960s and 70s houses that were built well and have simply dated.
$250,000 – $900,000+
Ranges shown are typical for Beverly Hills. Full tier-by-tier pricing is on each cost guide.
In the R-A, R-1, R-1A and R-2 districts, all buildings together may cover no more than 25 percent of the lot — 30 percent in R-2A, 35 percent in R-3. On a mid-sized Beverly Hills lot that gets consumed quickly by a house plus an attached garage, and it is the number most additions run into first.
The Village allows the Building Official to grant up to 5 percent additional lot coverage where the owner incorporates low impact design practices, rain gardens, green roofs, porous pavement, bioretention, into a stormwater plan that mitigates the increase. On a lot close to its cap, this is a genuine and underused route to a larger addition.
Where an existing front open space greater or less than forty feet exists on one side of a street within two hundred feet of the parcel, the front open space of any building subsequently erected or remodeled on that side of the street cannot be less than the average of those existing homes. Front-facing work is measured against the block, not the code minimum.
Any project disturbing five cubic yards or more requires a site plan, and any project involving earth movement requires a topographic survey and plot plan prepared by a registered engineer or licensed land surveyor. A full-lot grading plan is required, final grading must be verified in writing, and projects on Village-maintained roads carry a $5,000 road preservation bond.
R-1 requires a 40-foot front open space, 40-foot rear, and side yards of 15 and 20 feet. Detached garages are capped at 720 square feet, and all accessory buildings together cannot exceed half the usable floor area of the house. Recent ZBA cases include a 973-square-foot addition needing rear and side relief. Plan for the variance path where the numbers are close.
Requirements change and figures vary by zoning district. Confirm current specifics with the Village of Beverly Hills Building Department before relying on any of the above.
We build throughout the village and the surrounding communities — Birmingham, Franklin, Bloomfield Township and Royal Oak.
Beverly Hills caps building coverage at 25 percent on most residential lots, and requires 40 feet front and rear. On a 14,000 square foot lot with a house and attached garage already in place, the room left for an addition is often smaller than people expect.
There are two honest routes when the numbers are tight: the low impact design bonus, which can buy back up to 5 percent of coverage in exchange for a real stormwater plan, or the Zoning Board of Appeals. We will tell you which one your project needs at the design stage, with the survey in front of us.
We don't reface cabinets and we don't paint them. We're the right fit when the house is worth reworking properly.
4.8 stars
Average customer review
2014
Founded in Metro Detroit
Old Woodward
Our office, in Birmingham
100%
In-house design, source & build
How big an addition can I actually build?
It depends on your lot size and what is already on it, because coverage is capped at 25 percent in most of the village. We run that calculation from the survey before drawing, so the design starts inside the limit rather than getting cut back to fit it.
What is the low impact design bonus?
The Village can allow up to 5 percent additional lot coverage where you incorporate practices like rain gardens, porous pavement or bioretention into a stormwater plan that offsets the increase. It is a real option on a constrained lot and it is not widely known.
Do I need a survey?
For anything involving earth movement, yes — a topographic survey and plot plan by a registered engineer or licensed surveyor, plus a full-lot grading plan. Final grade has to be verified in writing when the work is done.
Is there a historic district in Beverly Hills?
We have found no local historic district or preservation ordinance in the village, so exterior design review of the kind Franklin or Northville requires does not apply here. We would still confirm with the Village for any specific property.
Do I need a permit to remove a tree on my own property?
The Village's tree chapter regulates right-of-way and public trees rather than private removals, but no excavation or driveway work is permitted within five feet of any tree without a permit from the Village Clerk, and trees within six feet of the work must be protectively framed during construction.
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 Beverly Hills?
