A free site visit, a check of what your lot allows and a written, line-item price.
Get your free estimateFast, Reliable Garage Conversion Contractor Across Katy
A garage conversion in Katy typically costs $42,000 to $78,000 for a full one-bedroom ADU, and $28,000 to $45,000 for a simpler garage-to-bedroom conversion. Most Katy jobs take 10 to 16 weeks from permit application to final inspection, depending on whether your address falls under City of Katy or Harris County jurisdiction. That distinction matters more than most homeowners realize, and it’s one of the first things we check before pricing your job.
Lodgewick ADU Houston, led by Russ Delmar, has converted garages across Katy from Cinco Ranch to Firethorne to Old Katy. Our crews know the difference between a City of Katy permit path and an unincorporated Harris County path, and we plan the schedule around whichever applies. Call (361) 326-2313 and we’ll walk you through exactly what applies to your property.
What makes us different is simple: a written price before any work starts, a real arrival window, a clean job site, and a written guarantee on every project. We put it all in writing. No price changes at the door, no crew that never shows, no surprise change orders halfway through the build.
Why Lodgewick ADU Houston Is Katy’s Preferred Garage Conversion Contractor Company
Our Garage Conversion Contractor team has spent years working in Katy neighborhoods where garages were built as afterthoughts: slab-on-grade floors poured an inch or two lower than the house, no insulation, and an electrical panel that’s already maxed out. None of that is a dealbreaker. It just means the scope has to be right from day one.
Katy homeowners consistently tell us the same thing: they’ve been quoted one price, then hit with a change order once the drywall came down. That’s exactly what The Kingswell Guarantee prevents. We price the job in writing before we start, including the permit path, the slab work if it’s needed, the electrical subpanel, and the HVAC. If we miss something on our end, that’s our cost, not yours.
We also coordinate everything from our Houston office while our crews live and work in the Katy area. That means when you call with a question about your build, a live person answers, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Not a voicemail. Not a chatbot. Russ Delmar and his team know the Katy permitting landscape well enough to flag potential delays before they cost you a week.
Garage to Bedroom Conversion in Katy
A Garage to Bedroom Conversion in Katy turns an existing attached or detached garage into a code-compliant bedroom, usually with an adjacent bathroom or closet, a proper egress window, insulation, and a dedicated heating and cooling source. For most Katy homeowners the motivation is simple: a growing family needs another bedroom but the cost of a full second-story addition doesn’t pencil out. A garage-to-bedroom conversion in Katy typically runs $28,000 to $45,000, depending on whether the slab needs leveling or floodplain-related fill and whether the existing panel can handle the added load.
Permit and Egress Considerations
City of Katy permitting requires a bedroom egress window that meets specific size and sill-height requirements, and yes, a garage door cannot legally remain as the primary egress. Many Katy garages also sit on slabs that are slightly below the finished floor elevation of the main house, which triggers a floor-height correction if the new bedroom connects to the house. We check that early so there are no surprises after demolition.
Adding a Bathroom to the Same Garage
If your garage-to-bedroom plan includes a bathroom, expect to add $18,000 to $28,000 to the total depending on where the main sewer line sits relative to the garage. In older Katy homes around Nottingham Country and Memorial Parkway, the garage is often on the opposite side of the house from the main drain line. That means trenching and a longer waste line, which is exactly the kind of cost that should be in the written price before work starts.
Garage Conversion ADU in Katy
A Garage Conversion ADU in Katy means converting the garage into a full accessory dwelling unit: its own entrance, kitchen, bathroom, living space, and separate electrical subpanel. Katy has seen strong ADU interest north of I-10 in neighborhoods where lots are wide enough to make a detached garage conversion practical. A full garage conversion ADU in Katy generally runs $42,000 to $78,000, with the higher end covering detached garages, foundation work, and separate utility connections. The lower end is an attached garage conversion where the main house panel and plumbing are close enough to share.
Separate Utility Service for the ADU
Harris County inspectors often require the ADU to carry its own 100-amp subpanel, and in some unincorporated Katy pockets they want to see the meter path separated before final sign-off. That work adds $3,500 to $6,000, but skimping on it is the fastest way to fail a final electrical inspection. We’ve seen it happen, and it’s an avoidable two-week delay.
Floodplain and Slab Elevation on Detached Garages
Detached garages in Katy’s floodplain-adjacent areas, especially south of I-10, sometimes sit below the finished floor elevation the county expects for a habitable dwelling. Our crew converted a two-car attached garage in the Cinco Ranch area of Katy into a one-bedroom ADU, pulling Harris County permits, upgrading the existing slab to meet floodplain elevation, and adding a ductless mini-split and a separate 100-amp subpanel – finishing in 14 weeks after two inspection reschedules. That job was in unincorporated Harris County, which changed the inspection sequencing entirely.
Trusted Brands We Service in Katy
When a Katy customer wants a panelized or prefab approach, we work with brands we trust: Boxabl for compact, factory-built ADU shells; Plant Prefab for panelized construction that goes up fast on a slab that’s already in good shape; and Tuff Shed for structurally sound base buildings that become ADUs with our finishing work. Because our crews work in Katy regularly, we can get materials to your site without the lead-time delays that plague out-of-area contractors. For James Hardie siding and trim on a garage conversion exterior, we’re familiar with the finish details that hold up to Katy’s humidity.
Common Garage Conversion Contractor Problems We See in Katy Homes
- Underestimating slab elevation when the original garage sits below Katy’s floodplain requirements. This forces a costly regrade or fill after demolition starts, and in unincorporated Harris County it can mean a non-habitable classification until corrected. We measure finished floor elevation before we ever submit a permit set.
- Assuming City of Katy permits apply when the address is in unincorporated Harris County. Parts of Katy near Fry Road and south toward Clay Road are Harris County, not City of Katy. The wrong application costs two to four weeks and an application fee that doesn’t get refunded.
- Not budgeting for separate utility metering or subpanels. Leaving the new ADU on the main house panel leads straight to a failed final electrical inspection. We line-item the subpanel and any meter path work in the written price up front.
- Ignoring HVAC and humidity control. Katy garages get hot and humid. A ductless mini-split is the standard fix, and it’s rarely in a competitor’s base quote. With us, it’s in the written price, never a change order.
Pricing for Garage Conversion Contractor in Katy, TX
Here are the ranges we actually quote for Katy, not the vague ones you’ll hear over the phone from a general contractor:
- Garage to bedroom conversion (attached, no bathroom): $28,000 to $38,000
- Garage to bedroom conversion with bathroom: $46,000 to $58,000
- Garage conversion ADU (attached, one bedroom): $42,000 to $55,000
- Detached garage conversion ADU: $58,000 to $78,000
What moves the number in Katy specifically: whether your address is City of Katy or unincorporated Harris County, your slab elevation relative to floodplain, the distance from the garage to the main sewer line, and whether the existing electrical panel has capacity or needs a subpanel. Free estimates mean exactly that: we come out, take measurements, check the permit path, and hand you a written line-item price. Call (361) 326-2313 to schedule yours.
We Also Serve Cities Near Katy
Our crews serve Garage Conversion Contractor in Katy and the surrounding communities, including Richmond, Sugar Land, Stafford, and Missouri City. If you’re just outside the Katy city limits, the permit path may be Fort Bend County instead, so give us a call first and we’ll point you the right way before you spend a dollar.
Serving Katy, TX - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Katy 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 About Garage Conversion Contractor in Katy
Your address determines the jurisdiction. Properties inside City of Katy limits go through the City of Katy permitting office. Addresses in unincorporated Harris County, which include parts of Katy north of I-10 and south of Clay Road, go through Harris County Permits. We check this before we draft anything, and the written price reflects the correct path. Call (361) 326-2313 and we’ll confirm yours in minutes.
Most original Katy garage slabs pass structurally but many fail the floodplain elevation check if the garage was built before current standards. That’s especially true south of I-10 and in older sections of Old Katy. If your slab is low, the fix is a fill, a regrade, or a raised floor assembly, which adds $4,000 to $9,000 to the job. We measure it before you sign anything so the price is real.
Plan on 10 to 14 weeks. City of Katy typically reviews a garage-to-bedroom permit set in two to three weeks. Harris County can take four to six weeks depending on current backlog and whether floodplain review is triggered. Construction itself runs six to eight weeks. When we give you a start date, the calendar accounts for the inspection sequencing your jurisdiction actually uses.
No. A garage door cannot remain as the primary egress for a legal bedroom under either City of Katy or Harris County code. The opening gets framed in with a new exterior wall incorporating a code-compliant egress window. Some homeowners keep the garage door on the outside as a decorative element, but that’s a conversation for the design phase, not a shortcut around code.
Harris County inspectors commonly require a separate 100-amp subpanel for a new ADU. City of Katy is less strict for a simple garage-to-bedroom conversion without a kitchen, but if you’re adding a kitchenette or full ADU, plan on the subpanel regardless. We line-item it in the written price, so you won’t get a surprise electrical quote two weeks in. Call (361) 326-2313 for a specific answer for your address.
Contact Lodgewick ADU Houston for Your Katy Garage Conversion
If you’ve been burned by a contractor before, you already know the red flags. A price that sounded low over the phone. A crew that didn’t show. A job that failed a month after the final check cleared. The Kingswell Guarantee exists for exactly that reason: written price first, real arrival window, clean job site, and a written guarantee on every project. Under the 365-Day Done Right Promise, if the work isn’t right, we come back and make it right. That commitment is in writing before we ever pick up a hammer.
Call (361) 326-2313 to schedule a free estimate for your Katy garage conversion. We’ll walk the site, confirm your permit path, and hand you a written price that actually holds.
Written by Russ Delmar, Owner at Lodgewick ADU Houston, serving Katy since 2010.
