“We’re actively engaged on three fire rebuilds in the Palisades right now, with several more in the pipeline. One is under contract, and two others are deep into the insurance and entitlement phases, Zoltan E. Pali, FAIA, its design principal and co-founder, told GlobeSt.com.

“Because each site requires geotechnical review and careful planning, these projects are progressing deliberately but consistently. We expect a steady increase in rebuild activity through the end of 2025, especially as more insurance settlements are finalized and city support mechanisms continue to roll out. Retrofits require less from an architect unless the scope includes significant additions or layout changes, so our work centers on new construction."

According to Pali, the biggest obstacle is investing in land remediation, which can include additional cleaning, importing engineered fill, stabilizing slopes and drilling piles.

“This work is highly technical and incredibly expensive, and rarely covered by insurance," he said.

"We’re working with geotechnical teams to guide clients through this process. In some hillside areas where structures were built before the 1960s, much of the grading and soil conditions are not certified, and this remediation can be very costly and unexpected.”

He said it’s become a significant side effect of the fires: insurance companies may cover $400 to $500 per square foot, but rebuilding in this area can run $700 to $1,000 per square foot, and that’s before land stabilization is factored in.

Concrete and steel are among the costliest materials the company uses, but they’re also among the most critical, according to Pali.

“A whole concrete structure, devoid of air gaps and steel shade structures, helps form a thermally massive, ember-resistant envelope,” he said. “These assemblies can approach a two-hour fire rating when combined with layered gypsum board and fire-rated sheathing. However, all this increases the costs of conventional Type V wood construction.”

Pali said labor costs are even more challenging.

“Concrete and steel construction requires a higher level of skill and specialized labor, which is harder to find and costlier,” he said.

“Wood framing, by contrast, benefits from a much larger labor pool. That said, a well-executed wood-framed building isn’t necessarily inexpensive. Quality framing and craftsmanship are still critical, especially when high-end finishes are involved.”

Construction cost reduction is unlikely without scale, said Pali, whose firm has worked in the Los Angeles area for 30 years. The only way that might happen is if there is an economic downturn that tanks demand across the board.

“While material prices remain high, we’ve tried to minimize excess costs by designing with restraint – using simple forms, rational spans, and eliminating unnecessary complexity, such as eaves, attics, or crawl spaces, said Pali. Broader price reductions will likely depend on improved supply chain conditions and increased demand for fire-resilient materials, which could push manufacturers to scale more efficiently.”

Unique Circumstances in Permitting

One specific California-based company, Thomas James Homes (TJH), has already secured permits for three homes that are currently under construction. Active discussions are underway with 300+ households, the firm said. TJH offers speed-to-market, fixed pricing, guaranteed timelines, and personalized design, starting at $650 per square foot, which it claims is significantly lower than that of a custom builder.

While some delays are inevitable given the unprecedented scale of the fire damage, they are a natural part of the rebuilding process, Kim Diamond, TJH's SVP of community development + relations for its Southern California Division, told GlobeSt.com.

“This work requires close collaboration between the public and private sectors,” she said.

Diamond said the most expensive building materials are lumber and concrete.

“Lumber is a commodity and fluctuates with the market, whereas concrete is affected by steel costs (i.e. rebar and structural hardware) and powder import costs,” according to Diamond.

“It is possible that tariffs could impact both trades, and we do not anticipate pricing decreasing in the near term due to the high demand for homebuilding in general, and more specifically, the fire rebuilding in Altadena and the Palisades.

Over the past decade, Thomas James Homes has built approximately 50 homes in Pacific Palisades, which has given the team a deep understanding of the community and local market.

Before the wildfires, six additional homes were in various stages of construction and were awaiting permits. In the months following the disaster, three of the four building permits issued have been for TJH-owned lots.

One, at 1050 Iliff St, had just been completed, while the other two were already progressing through the plan check process.

Diamond said the firm is starting construction on four to six homes per month. However, this pace will increase with time as the rebuilding process proceeds.

To date, the City of Los Angeles, Department of Building & Safety (DBS) has issued four permits for homes that Thomas James Homes is building. She said the permitting process for each of these homes had unique circumstances.

“For our first building permit issuance, the home had just been completed before the fires,” she said. “It took approximately two months to receive the permit, which was issued in early April. The process was slightly delayed as the City and County worked through the clearance protocol—specifically, the City’s receipt of documentation from the County confirming debris removal—but the impact on overall timing was minimal.”

Two of its other building permits were already in the plan check process before the wildfires, so TJH continued through the City’s standard review procedures rather than going through the One-Stop Building Center established after the fire.

The fourth building permit was issued for a homeowner client of Thomas James Homes, whose home had been completed at the end of 2023. This permit was processed through the City’s One-Stop Building Center and took approximately two months to obtain.

Architects Come Together to Design Home Template

Case Study 2.0 is a forward-looking initiative designed to help rebuild Los Angeles into a more resilient and sustainable city in the aftermath of January’s fires. The initiative brings together more than 45 of Los Angeles’s leading architecture firms to create a selection of fire-resistant and design-forward homes intended for pre-approval and offered at a fraction of traditional custom design fees.

Each home in the Case Study 2.0 portfolio is tailored to today’s realities, engineered to meet stringent fire safety and insurability standards, while honoring the cultural, environmental and architectural character of the neighborhoods they’re designed to serve.

Local officials have responded positively to this initiative, Steven Somers, CEO, Crest Real Estate, told GlobeSt.com.

“They recognize that a standardized, replicable approach can significantly reduce the burden on city plan check staff, streamline permitting timelines, and help expedite the rebuilding of much-needed housing.

“The City of Los Angeles already has experience with a similar approach through its set of pre-approved Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) designs, which has served as a helpful precedent. While this exact model hasn’t been rolled out by developers in other markets yet, the current effort draws on best practices from past collaborations. It demonstrates how public-private alignment can accelerate housing recovery.

One of the biggest challenges was coordinating among more than 40 architecture firms to establish a shared baseline for design, construction standards, and pricing, particularly given the elevated requirements for fire resilience.

Achieving consistency while honoring each architect’s creative input required extensive dialogue and alignment.

“Fortunately, there was a strong sense of shared purpose across the group, and everyone was committed to addressing the crisis with solutions, not just ideas,” Somers said.

“The logistical complexity of rebuilding in active neighborhoods, while managing construction timelines, traffic flow, and community coordination, will be the next significant hurdle. Keeping costs in check as activity ramps up will also require disciplined project management and strong partnerships with builders.”

Somers noted some of the most expensive materials in the rebuilding process include doors and windows, interior and exterior finishes, and concrete for foundations.

“High-performance products, especially those with fire-resistant properties, can significantly increase costs,” he said. “To help mitigate these expenses, we’re working directly with manufacturers such as Fleetwood and Western Window Systems to reduce pricing for windows and doors."

“We’re also partnering with finish suppliers such as Eco Outdoor and Clé Tile to source materials like stone, brick, and wood more cost-effectively.”

Labor costs again remain another major factor; however, replicating a home design across multiple sites allows builders to streamline construction processes and reduce oversight expenses, which can help offset some of these pressures, he said.

“Material costs are likely to remain elevated in the near term, driven by supply chain volatility and inflation,” Somers said. “However, the broader adoption of standardized designs and long-term supplier partnerships could help bring those prices down over time.”

Between Altadena, Malibu, and Pacific Palisades, approximately 10,000 single-family homes have been lost.