Elevate your curb appeal and outdoor living. We design custom hardscapes, durable paving, and beautiful landscaping that thrive in the Southern California climate.
Need a paver patio, a new driveway, a retaining wall, or a yard that doesn't need a sprinkler running every day? Apex Build handles the full outdoor scope for LA homeowners: hardscape, softscape, permits, and the LADWP rebate paperwork that goes with a turf conversion. One contractor, one crew, one permit trail.
Apex Build is a licensed and insured California general contractor serving Los Angeles and the surrounding communities. Because we're a full GC and not a landscape-only outfit, we pull the LADBS permits ourselves when a retaining wall or drainage change requires one, instead of handing you off to a separate permit expediter.
Hardscape
Paver, brick, and concrete patios
Driveway paving (asphalt, concrete, or pavers)
Retaining walls (block, stone, poured concrete, and engineered designs for taller walls)
Walkways and stepping paths
Grading and drainage work, including drainage sized to meet LA's low-impact-development (LID) rules where they apply
Softscape
Drought-tolerant and native plant installation
Turf replacement and xeriscaping design
Artificial turf installation
Irrigation adjustments to match the new planting plan
Free on-site consult. We walk the yard, talk through what you want, and flag anything that's likely to need a permit before you commit to a design.
Design and material selection. You pick materials and layout; we price it against the ranges below so there are no surprises later.
Permitting, when it applies. For retaining walls, driveway approaches, or drainage work that triggers LADBS review, we prepare and submit the paperwork.
Site prep and construction. Excavation, base compaction, and installation. Most patio and driveway jobs run 3 to 7 days; larger driveways or patios can take 1 to 2 weeks, mostly because of how long proper base prep takes.
Final walkthrough. We check the work with you and, if you converted turf to drought-tolerant landscaping, help you pull together what's needed for the LADWP rebate application.
Every yard is different, and final price depends on site access, existing grade, and material choice. These are the typical Los Angeles ranges we price against, not a quote for your specific project.
Paver patios. Installed paver patios in LA typically run $15 to $25 per square foot for standard-to-mid-grade material. Premium options like porcelain or natural stone tend to push past $25 per square foot.
Driveway paving. Material choice is what moves the number here. Asphalt runs about $3.50 to $5.40 per square foot and is the cheapest option. Concrete lands in the $12 to $16 per square foot range. Pavers cost the most per square foot, though a modest paver driveway project can land close to concrete pricing once you look at total project cost rather than the per-square-foot rate alone.
Retaining walls. Retaining walls in LA average $35 to $65 per square foot, with the exact figure depending on material: vinyl starts around $15 per square foot on the low end, wood runs $20 to $25, stone $25 to $40, modular block $35 to $65, CMU $40 to $80, and poured concrete $50 to $95. A typical LA retaining wall project averages around $7,140 total, with most projects falling somewhere between $2,674 and $11,842 depending on wall height and length.
Artificial turf. Installed artificial turf in LA typically runs $13 to $22 per square foot, with $16 per square foot a common rate for a straightforward yard. Sites needing heavy old-grass removal or extra grading can run higher, up to around $25 per square foot in some cases.
It depends on what you're building and how tall it is. Here's how it breaks down under City of Los Angeles rules.
Patios, walkways, and driveways on your own property are generally exempt from a building permit as long as the surface sits no more than 30 inches above grade and isn't built over a basement. A detached patio cover under 120 square feet is also exempt; anything bigger, or attached to the house, needs a permit (LADBS offers an Express Permit for straightforward patio covers, which can be issued the same day).
Retaining walls are where permits get triggered more often. As a rule of thumb, a wall over roughly 3 feet of exposed height needs an LADBS permit and engineered plans. Even a shorter wall needs a permit if it's holding back a driveway, a structure, or any other surcharge load. Walls over 6 feet, or built on a slope steeper than 15%, also require a soils report.
Driveway approaches, meaning the section that connects your driveway to the public street or curb, go through a separate process with the LA Bureau of Engineering (or LA County DPW if you're in unincorporated county territory). That's a different permit from the flatwork exemption above, since it involves the public right-of-way.
Drainage is the one people forget about. Adding a lot of new hardscape can change how water moves across your lot, and LA's low-impact-development rules may require you to manage that runoff on-site rather than sending it straight to the street.
If your project is outside City of LA, your local building department sets its own rules. We confirm permit requirements with the jurisdiction before we start design.
If you're a City of LA resident on LADWP water, replacing lawn with drought-tolerant landscaping currently qualifies for a $5 per square foot rebate through LADWP. LADWP estimates that every square foot of turf converted this way saves around 44 gallons of water a year.
To qualify, the converted area needs to end up with native or drought-tolerant plants covering at least 25% of the space once the planting has had two years to grow in, and any bare ground has to stay permeable. That last part matters if you're considering artificial turf: turf and other impermeable surfaces don't count toward the planted coverage, so an artificial turf install on its own does not qualify for this rebate. Rebate rates change, so we verify the current amount through SoCalWaterSmart before finalizing your project numbers.
If you live in unincorporated LA County served by County Waterworks Districts rather than LADWP, note that the county's grass-replacement program is a separate, smaller rebate and only applies in specific districts. It is not the same $5-per-square-foot program.
Most design-build landscaping companies in LA sell the finished look: pools, fire pits, lifestyle renderings. What they tend to skip over is the part homeowners actually worry about, which is permits and cost.
As a licensed general contractor and landscaping contractor in Los Angeles, Apex Build pulls LADBS permits directly instead of routing you to a third party, prices projects against sourced local ranges instead of a flat "call for pricing," and can fold your turf-to-drought-tolerant conversion into the LADWP rebate process. If your outdoor project is part of a bigger renovation, our home remodeling team can scope the whole job together.
Apex Build serves Los Angeles and the surrounding area, including Silver Lake, Los Feliz, Eagle Rock, Studio City, Burbank, Hollywood, Glendale, Pasadena, Woodland Hills, and Calabasas.
Have questions? We've got answers. Here are some of the most common questions we receive from our customers.
Get a clear estimate and a realistic timeline before you commit to anything. We'll walk your property and tell you exactly what the work involves.
Request a no-obligation estimate based on your home and needs.
We're based in Los Angeles for fast response and scheduling.
We pull permits and manage inspections, so the paperwork doesn't land on you.
Consistent finishes that hold up over time
