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Woodland Hills Remodeling

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On September 6, 2020, the official weather station at Pierce College in Woodland Hills read 121 degrees, the highest temperature ever recorded in Los Angeles County. In 2025, one of every two house permits here went to a property inside a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone. In this corner of the San Fernando Valley, heat and wildfire belong in the plan from the first sketch.

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A 1960s ranch house in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles with a new backyard pool
In this guide

What changes a remodel in Woodland Hills.

58.9 percent of Woodland Hills homes went up between 1950 and 1979

Woodland Hills is a neighborhood of Los Angeles, so the Census Bureau counts it through its ZIP code areas, 91364 and 91367. Between them the two ZIPs contain 31,816 homes in the Census count for 2020 to 2024. Of those, 18,725 date from 1950 through 1979, and the 1960s were the busiest decade with 6,843. The median year built is 1967 in 91364 and 1975 in 91367. Ranch houses from that era often keep their first ductwork, single-pane windows and thin attic insulation, which matters more here than in most of the city because of the summer heat.

Source: Census ACS 2020-2024, Year Structure Built, ZCTAs 91364 and 91367

Woodland Hills holds the Los Angeles County heat record of 121 degrees

The National Weather Service station at Pierce College hit 121 degrees on September 6, 2020, two degrees above the county's previous record from 2006, and the highest official reading ever in Los Angeles, Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties. A remodel here should treat cooling as part of the scope: size the air conditioning for triple-digit afternoons, add attic insulation while the ceiling is open, and choose west-facing windows that cut solar heat. Roofing and exterior paint colors also affect how hot the rooms under them get.

Source: ABC7 Los Angeles, Woodland Hills reaches 121 degrees

890 of 1,781 house permits in 2025 fell in the top wildfire hazard zone

Matching the 1,781 LADBS permits from 2025 on one and two family lots in 91364 and 91367 against the city's fire map puts 890 of them inside the Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone. In 91364 alone it was 657 of 775. Owners in the zone must keep native brush, grass and weeds cleared year round within 200 feet of any structure and 10 feet of a combustible fence or driveway, cut grass to 3 inches, prune trees taller than 18 feet so no foliage is within 6 feet of the ground, keep branches 10 feet from a chimney outlet and 5 feet above the roof. Brush clearance cannot be done on red flag days.

Source: LAFD, Brush Clearance Requirements

What a remodel costs in Woodland Hills in 2026.

$20,000

Median value declared on a kitchen permitWoodland Hills house alterations permitted in 2025 (ZIPs 91364 and 91367) whose work description includes a kitchen, n=90; a figure written on the application rather than a price paid

LADBS permit records show what Woodland Hills projects were declared at in 2025. The department issued 901 alteration permits with a value for single-family houses in 91364 and 91367, at a median of $6,600. Kitchen permits had a median of $20,000 across 90 and bathroom permits $10,000 across 145. Outdoor work shows up often: 142 pool and spa permits with a value landed at a $20,000 median, and 51 retaining walls at $10,000. New ADUs came in at $107,500 across 50. These are declared values from the applications, not prices paid, set against median owner-occupied home values of $1,208,200 in 91364 and $1,067,000 in 91367.

Cooling earns its own line in a place that has hit 121 degrees. Federal housing survey data from 2023 puts the typical heating and air conditioning job in greater Los Angeles at $7,500. The installers are paid above the national rate: HVAC installers around Los Angeles earned a $35.49 hourly median in May 2025, versus $29.33 for the country.

The numbers behind this section
Median value declared on a kitchen permit$20,000Woodland Hills house alterations permitted in 2025 (ZIPs 91364 and 91367) whose work description includes a kitchen, n=90; a figure written on the application rather than a price paid (LA Open Data, LADBS Building Permits Issued 2020 to Present)
Median value declared on a new ADU$107,500New ADU buildings permitted by LADBS during 2025 in the 91364 and 91367 ZIP codes, n=50 (LA Open Data, LADBS Building Permits Issued 2020 to Present)
Median value declared on a pool or spa$20,000LADBS pool and spa permits for one and two family properties in 91364 and 91367 issued in 2025 with a declared value, n=142 (LA Open Data, LADBS Building Permits Issued 2020 to Present)
Median home value, ZIP 91364$1,208,200Owner-occupied homes, Census ACS 2020-2024; ZIP 91367 was $1,067,000 (Census ACS 2020-2024, Median Value, ZCTAs 91364 and 91367)
Median HVAC project, Los Angeles metro$7,500Owner-reported heating and cooling jobs in greater Los Angeles, which the survey defines as Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, 2023 (Census American Housing Survey 2023, Table Creator)
Median HVAC mechanic wage$35.49 an hourHVAC and refrigeration mechanics in greater Los Angeles, May 2025 median; national median $29.33 (BLS OEWS May 2025, Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim HVAC mechanics)

Who issues permits in Woodland Hills.

Woodland Hills is inside the City of Los Angeles, so the Department of Building and Safety, LADBS, issues its building, trade and grading permits, and Los Angeles City Planning sets its zoning. The Los Angeles Fire Department enforces brush clearance in the hills. Check a parcel in ZIMAS, the city's zoning lookup, to see whether it is in the Hillside Area, the fire zone or the Ventura Boulevard specific plan.

  • Simple projects can go through the LADBS Express Permit system: a like-for-like window or door swap, a Class A or B reroof, a kitchen or bath remodel, added plumbing fixtures or rewired outlets. Homeowners may apply for all four e-permit types, building, mechanical, electrical and plumbing, on a single-family house.
  • When a project needs plans, Counter Plan Check reviews simpler submissions over the counter on the day they are filed, while new houses and other complex work go to Regular Plan Check.
  • 31.2 percent of the 2025 house permits in 91364 and 91367, 555 of 1,781, were for lots in the city's Hillside Area. There, an RE11 lot may build floor area equal to 0.40 of the land on slopes under 15 percent and 0.20 on slopes of 60 percent or more, and an RA lot runs from 0.25 to 0.05.
  • Hillside grading by right tops out at 2,200 cubic yards in RS zones and 2,800 in RE11. In the standard height district an RE11 hillside house may reach 30 feet with a low-sloped roof and 36 feet with one pitched at 25 percent or more.
  • In the fire zone, an extinguisher or a pressurized garden hose must be within 10 feet of any brush clearance work, cutting blades must be non-sparking, and chipped cuttings may be spread no deeper than 3 inches within 30 feet of the house.
  • An ADU in Los Angeles needs no parking within a half mile walk of transit, you do not replace covered parking taken for it, and a new detached ADU must include solar. Pre-approved designs from the LADBS Standard Plan Program go through plan check faster.
  • The Ventura-Cahuenga Boulevard Corridor Specific Plan covers lots along Ventura Boulevard in Woodland Hills, and its update took effect March 14, 2026.

What Woodland Hills homeowners plan most.

Kitchen remodel

The typical Woodland Hills kitchen permit in 2025 listed $20,000, the median across 90. The kitchen guide we link covers the City of Los Angeles, and LADBS issues Woodland Hills permits as part of it.

Read our Los Angeles kitchen remodel guide

Bathroom remodel

Bathroom work showed up on 145 permits here in 2025, and the median value written on them was $10,000. Our Los Angeles bathroom guide covers the same department and rules.

Read our Los Angeles bathroom remodel guide

Outdoor living and landscaping

In the fire zone, anything planted within 200 feet of the house falls under year-round brush clearance, so plant choice and spacing are part of the design. The outdoor living guide was written for Los Angeles, and LAFD enforces the same rules here.

Read our Los Angeles outdoor living and landscaping guide

Roofing

Roof work appeared on 331 Woodland Hills house permits in 2025, and half of them declared $6,200 or less. Roof color and insulation matter in 121 degree heat. The Los Angeles roofing guide shares the permit office.

Read our Los Angeles roofing guide

ADU or garage conversion

LADBS signed off on 50 new ADUs in 91364 and 91367 during 2025, with a middle declared value of $107,500. A detached unit must include solar panels. Our Los Angeles ADU guide applies here without changes, since Woodland Hills follows the city ordinance.

Read our Los Angeles adu or garage conversion guide

Before you start.

What do Woodland Hills homeowners spend on a kitchen remodel?

Ninety kitchen permits for Woodland Hills houses in 91364 and 91367 carried a median declared value of $20,000 in 2025. That is what applicants wrote down, not a final price. The same records show bathroom permits at a median of $10,000 across 145, and many kitchen permits also cover other rooms, so compare the scope before you compare numbers.

What are the brush clearance requirements in Woodland Hills?

In the Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone, which covered half of the 2025 house permits here, owners must clear native brush and grass within 200 feet of structures and 10 feet of driveways, keep grass at 3 inches, lift tree foliage 6 feet off the ground, and keep branches 10 feet from chimneys. Clearance is required all year.

Does a reroof in Woodland Hills need a permit?

Yes, a reroof needs an LADBS permit, but it is a simple one. Reroofing with Class A or B material qualifies for the online Express Permit system. In 2025, LADBS issued 331 Woodland Hills house permits that mentioned roof work, with a median declared value of $6,200.

What is the hottest temperature recorded in Woodland Hills?

121 degrees, measured at the National Weather Service station at Pierce College on September 6, 2020. It was the highest official reading in Los Angeles County history, two degrees above the 2006 record. For a remodel, that argues for properly sized air conditioning, more attic insulation and windows that block afternoon sun.

Can I build an ADU in Woodland Hills?

Yes. Woodland Hills ZIP codes saw 50 new ADUs permitted in 2025, and their median declared value was $107,500. The city drops the parking requirement near transit and lets you convert a garage without replacing it. Any newly built detached unit needs solar, and lots in the hills or the fire zone face more rules.

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