Free written scope consultation - allowances, timeline, and change-order rules on paper before a single trade is scheduled
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AfterFast, Reliable Home Additions & ADU Across Richland Hills
Adding square footage to a home in Richland Hills usually costs between $45,000 and $130,000 for a room addition, while a detached ADU runs $90,000 to $220,000. Those numbers reflect what we see week after week on the fully built-out, mid-century lots that define this city. If you’re weighing a second story, a garage conversion, or a new detached ADU behind your brick ranch, call (877) 610-1318 and we’ll come out to Richland Hills, walk the lot with you, and put a real number on paper before you commit to anything.
Why Barrett & Sons Construction Is Richland Hills’s Preferred Home Additions & ADU Company
Tom Barrett founded this company in 1998, and his sons run crews across Richland Hills today. That means the name on the truck matches the people who show up and swing hammers. We answer our own phone, we publish our license number, and we stand behind the work with a written 90-Day Done Right Promise on every contract. If something’s not right, one call brings Tom back to Richland Hills to make it right.
We know what’s behind the walls in Richland Hills before we open them. Homes here were mostly built between roughly 1950 and 1975, which means original framing, 60 to 100 amp panels, galvanized or cast-iron plumbing, and a good chance of un-permitted additions from the 1980s. That’s not a reason to avoid the work. It’s a reason to hire someone who plans for it and puts every allowance, every scope change, and every surprise in writing before work happens. Scope in writing, allowances in writing, change orders in writing.
Our Home Additions & ADU team treats Richland Hills like the neighborhood it is, not a stop on a regional route. We’re a Dallas-Fort Worth company with local crews who know the 76180 streets, the permit counter, and the inspectors. The permit inspector works for you, not for me – that’s why I like him.
Our Home Additions & ADU Services in Richland Hills
ADU Design & Permitting
Most Richland Hills ADU projects start with the existing house, not the new footprint. The city is essentially fully platted, so nearly every accessory dwelling unit goes on a lot that already holds a 1950s to 1970s brick ranch. We design around what’s there: existing setbacks, utility runs, drainage patterns, and whatever the last contractor left behind. Before we draw anything, we pull the property’s permit history and check for un-permitted work that Tarrant County will flag at inspection.
New Detached ADU
A detached ADU in Richland Hills gives you a separate address, a separate meter, and real privacy – whether it’s for a parent, an adult child, or a tenant. The challenge on these older lots is almost always the same: the Blackland Prairie clay underneath. We scope for soil movement, grade the slab so water runs away from the new structure, and tie the foundation plan to what the lot can actually support. A detached ADU in this market typically runs $90,000 to $220,000 depending on size, finishes, and what the electric service will carry.
Garage Conversion ADU
Converting a garage in Richland Hills almost never stops at framing and drywall. Most garages here were built as garages – uninsulated, on a slab poured thinner than code allows for living space, with undersized electrical and no plumbing. We scope the conversion the way an inspector will see it: slab condition, eave height, foundation depth, and whether the existing panel can handle a kitchen or bath. Garage conversions in Richland Hills typically fall between $30,000 and $80,000.
Junior ADU & Interior Conversion
A junior ADU works inside the existing footprint – a finished attic, a closed-off wing, or a converted den with its own entrance and kitchenette. On Richland Hills ranch homes where the lot can’t take another structure, this is often the smartest path. We still have to bring the space to current code: egress windows, smoke and CO detectors, separation from the main unit, and a service upgrade if the panel is original.
What happens when you call
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A real person answersNo phone trees - you reach a local pro.
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You get an upfront price rangeHonest numbers before anyone is dispatched.
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A background-checked tech heads outLicensed & insured, dispatched right away.
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You approve before work beginsNothing starts until you say go.
Trusted Brands We Service in Richland Hills
We install windows and doors from Simonton and Ply Gem on Richland Hills additions and ADUs because they’re brands a homeowner can look up and verify – not mystery product off a van. For impact-rated openings or energy efficiency on a second-story addition, we’ll spec PGT when the job calls for it. We don’t swap in cheaper substitutes at the last minute. The brand you approve in the contract is the brand that shows up on the truck.
Common Home Additions & ADU Problems We See in Richland Hills Homes
- Un-permitted additions from the 1980s. A sunroom or converted garage that was never signed off becomes a problem the moment a new permit is pulled. The inspector sees it, flags it, and the tear-out is on you. We check the permit history before quoting.
- Pre-1975 electrical that can’t carry an ADU. Knob-and-tube, aluminum branch wiring, or a 60 amp panel won’t support a second living unit. We write the service upgrade into the scope before you sign, not after the walls are open.
- Clay soil movement under new slabs. The expansive clay under Richland Hills shrinks and swells with North Texas rain cycles. If the drainage plan is an afterthought, the new ADU slab heaves and the doors bind within a couple of years. We grade for water day one.
- Load-bearing surprises in mid-century framing. A room addition scoped on assumption hits a bearing wall, and suddenly you need an engineered beam. We identify that before the quote, and when a surprise does surface, it arrives as a written change order with a price attached – never a surprise invoice at the end.
Pricing for Home Additions & ADU in Richland Hills, TX
Here’s the range we quote in Richland Hills, and what drives the difference between the low and high end:
| Project Type | Richland Hills Price Range |
|---|---|
| ADU Construction | $90,000 - $220,000 |
| Home Addition | $45,000 - $130,000 |
| Garage Conversion | $30,000 - $80,000 |
What moves the number: square footage, whether the lot can handle a detached structure, what the existing panel will carry, what’s behind the walls when we open them, and how far the utilities have to run. On a 1950s brick ranch off Baker Drive, we scoped a detached ADU with a separate meter and septic tie-in. The original panel had 60 amps of aluminum branch wiring, so we wrote a change order for a 200-amp service upgrade and a new subpanel at the ADU before pulling the first permit. We ran the rough-in for a full bath with a Kohler shower valve, kept the draw schedule tied to inspection sign-off, and finished with a punch list that included grading the clay swell away from the new slab. That’s how we scope Richland Hills work – fully, up front, with every allowance on paper. Call (877) 610-1318 for a free estimate and a written line-item quote.
We Also Serve Cities Near Richland Hills
Barrett & Sons Construction handles Home Additions & ADU in Richland Hills and the surrounding Tarrant County communities. You’ll find our crews in North Richland Hills, Watauga, Hurst, and Haltom City most weeks. If you’re a few miles out, call anyway – the free estimate covers the area, and there’s no trip charge inside the county.
Serving Richland Hills, TX - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Richland Hills area and know this community well. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs - Home Additions & ADU in Richland Hills
Richland Hills has almost no vacant land left, so nearly every ADU goes onto a lot that already holds a mid-century home. That raises the cost of site prep, utility routing, and code compliance compared to new-build communities. Expect to spend more on panel upgrades, drainage correction, and bringing the existing structure up to current Tarrant County code before the ADU work can even be signed off. A detached ADU on a fully built-out Richland Hills lot typically runs $90,000 to $220,000. Call (877) 610-1318 and we’ll give you an exact number for your lot.
You can go up, but on Richland Hills’s slab-on-grade ranch homes it almost always costs more per square foot than going out – the existing foundation and framing have to carry the load, and that often means engineered beams and foundation upgrades. Going out is usually cheaper where the lot allows it, but many 76180 lots are narrow and fully built, so a second story may be the only path to real square footage. We’ll scope both options and give you written numbers side by side before you pick one.
Richland Hills’s permit queue is dominated by remodels and additions on pre-1975 homes, not ground-up work. That means plan review and inspection timelines run on a mid-century remodeling rhythm – and un-permitted prior work can stall sign-off until it’s remediated. We pull every permit, attend every inspection, and keep the draw schedule tied to sign-off. The permit inspector works for you, not for me – that’s why I like him.
The expansive clay soil under Richland Hills shrinks and heaves with boom-and-bust rainfall cycles, and a slab that was fine for a parked car isn’t necessarily fine for a living space. Without a drainage plan, the new ADU slab heaves within a couple of years and the doors bind. We include grading and drainage in every garage conversion quote in Richland Hills – it’s not an optional line item, it’s the difference between a build that lasts and one that fights the dirt. Garage conversions here run $30,000 to $80,000, drainage plan included.
We assume the original electrical and plumbing need work until proven otherwise. On Richland Hills homes from the 1950s, that usually means knob-and-tube or aluminum branch wiring, galvanized or cast-iron pipes, and a 60 amp panel that can’t carry a new bath. We write the service upgrade and any re-pipe work into the change order before the first permit is pulled, with the dollar figure attached. Nothing gets discovered after the walls are open that wasn’t already on paper. Call (877) 610-1318 for a free estimate.
Written by Tom Barrett, Owner at Barrett & Sons Construction, serving Richland Hills and the surrounding Tarrant County communities.