San Gabriel Valley — Los Angeles County
Painting, drywall and remodeling in Pasadena
Plaster-savvy painting, drywall and remodeling for historic Pasadena homes.
What building in Pasadena actually involves
Pasadena has the best-preserved Craftsman housing stock in Southern California, and working on it properly requires knowing what is behind the wall. These homes have lath-and-plaster, not drywall. Plaster fails as spider cracks and as keys breaking loose from the lath behind, and it has to be re-keyed and repaired in plaster — patching it with joint compound produces a repair that pops back out within a year.
The same applies to woodwork. Original Craftsman trim, built-ins and box beams are the reason these homes are worth what they are, and stripping and refinishing them is very different work from painting a modern baseboard. We treat that trim as something to preserve, not something to cover.
Pasadena has multiple landmark districts and a design review process for exterior changes to designated properties. Interior work is generally unaffected, but we check the status of an address before quoting anything visible from the street.
Recent job here
Craftsman plaster repaired as plaster
Loose plaster keys re-anchored to the original lath, cracks bridged, walls skimmed, and the box beams stripped and refinished.
8 days — $8,200
All services
Everything we do in Pasadena
Six trades under one contract, so a job that touches three of them still runs on one schedule.
Also working across the San Gabriel Valley
FAQ
Working with us in Pasadena
If yours is not here, call us. We would rather answer it before you book than after.
Yes. Fresh Build holds California license #1166332 and carries both general liability and workers' compensation cover. You can verify the license yourself on the CSLB website, and we will send certificates of insurance to you or your HOA on request.
Nothing. We come out, measure, look at what is actually there and send a written fixed-price quote. There is no fee and no obligation, and the number in that quote is the number you pay unless you change the scope or we find something hidden — in which case we photograph it and price it before touching anything.
Small jobs — a room of painting, a drywall repair — usually within a week. Larger projects like a full interior repaint or a bathroom remodel typically start two to three weeks out. If you have a hard deadline, tell us during the estimate and we will tell you honestly whether we can hit it.
California law caps a residential contractor's down payment at $1,000 or 10% of the contract price, whichever is less. We do not ask for more than that, and neither should anyone else. Progress payments follow completed phases of work.
Yes, where the work needs them. Cosmetic painting, flooring and like-for-like fence replacement generally do not. Moving plumbing or electrical, structural changes and taller fences usually do. We pull the permit, schedule the inspections and hand you the signed-off paperwork at the end.
Free estimate
Get a fixed price for your Pasadena project
Free walkthrough, written quote the same day in most cases, and no follow-up sales calls.
Calls answered 24/7
CA License #1166332 — licensed, bonded and insured