House Rewiring in Los Angeles

How much does it cost to rewire a house in Los Angeles?

A full rewire runs $5-$15 per square foot, or $10-$20 per square foot when we are removing knob and tube. So a 1,500 sq ft home usually lands between $8,000 and $20,000. If your panel also needs replacing, plan on another $2,500-$5,500. We quote the exact number, in writing, before we start.

If you are pricing house rewiring, Los Angeles bids swing widely because homes differ so much. For example, a one-story 1950s Sherman Oaks ranch with a roomy attic rewires faster than a two-story Studio City hillside home on a slab. Access drives labor hours, and labor is most of the bill.

Our number covers new copper cable to every outlet, switch, and fixture, grounded three-prong outlets, AFCI and GFCI protection where code requires it, permit fees, and rough drywall patching. In short, the price on paper is the price you pay, because we quote after measuring, not before.

House rewiring cost by home size, typical range for the Los Angeles market

These are typical Los Angeles ranges for orientation, not a quote. Every job is priced by its own conditions, so your exact number comes from a free on-site look. Get a free estimate in minutes, or call (818) 421-5290.

Is knob and tube wiring safe or insurable in California?

Knob and tube wiring is not dangerous by design, but after 100 years it usually is. Most California insurers now decline new policies on homes with active knob and tube, or they add a surcharge until you replace it. Replacement costs $10-$20 per square foot. And it usually starts with a letter from your insurer.

First, what it is. Knob and tube was standard wiring before about 1950: ceramic knobs hold single copper wires off the wood framing. And ceramic tubes protect them where they pass through joists. There is no ground wire at all, so three-prong outlets and surge protectors have nothing to ground to.

The design sheds heat into open air, and that is exactly the problem now. Blown-in attic insulation buries those wires in older North Hollywood and Burbank bungalows, so the heat stays trapped. Add modern loads (one hair dryer pulls about 1,500 watts) plus brittle 75-year-old insulation, and conductors crack behind your plaster.

Because of that record, knob and tube drives much of the house rewiring Los Angeles insurers effectively require. Most carriers now decline new policies on homes with live knob and tube, and others surcharge until you replace it. After our knob and tube wiring replacement passes inspection, we hand you the permit record your insurer wants. Insurers ask about house rewiring in Los Angeles more than any other upgrade when a home is pre-1960.

Should aluminum wiring be pigtailed or fully replaced?

Full aluminum wiring replacement is the permanent fix, and pigtailing is the budget fix. Pigtailing splices a short copper lead onto each aluminum wire end with a connector rated for both metals. So the outlets and switches only touch copper. It costs far less than a rewire, but it leaves 50-year-old aluminum in your walls. We will tell you plainly which one your home justifies.

Builders used aluminum branch wiring from about 1965 to 1973, when copper prices spiked. As a result, plenty of Woodland Hills, Northridge, and Tarzana tract homes from those years still carry it. The metal itself is not the flaw; the connections are, because aluminum expands, loosens, oxidizes, and then overheats at terminations.

Warm cover plates, flickering when you plug something in, and a faint hot-plastic smell at switches are the classic warnings. Meanwhile, homes of this era often pair aluminum wiring with Federal Pacific or Zinsco panels, brands with a documented failure record. If yours has one, fold a 200-amp panel upgrade into the project, typically $2,500-$5,500 on top.

So which fix? Full aluminum wiring replacement makes sense when you are already opening walls, staying 10 or more years, or seeing multiple warm outlets. Pigtailing works as a bridge, since it is code-legal with the right connectors. And we quote both options side by side so you compare real numbers.

Can you rewire a house without opening all the walls?

Mostly, yes. We run most new wiring through the attic and crawlspace, then fish it down inside the walls to each outlet and switch. A typical rewire needs strategic cuts, small openings near some boxes and at blocked stud bays, not stripped rooms. Expect patching at those spots. We will tell you before we start exactly which walls get cut and who patches them.

Here is the part of a house rewiring Los Angeles homeowners ask about first: the drywall. Our policy is explicit, and it is printed in every quote. We close and mud the openings we cut (rough patching included). Meanwhile, texture matching and paint stay with you or your painter.

One-story homes with accessible attics need the fewest cuts. And that describes most 1950s ranch stock in Van Nuys and Encino. However, two-story homes and houses on slab foundations need more openings, because there is no crawlspace to route through. Fire blocking inside older walls also forces a small cut now and then.

A typical job: we lift the attic insulation, run new copper along the framing, then fish each drop down to the existing box with a flexible rod. Once the inspector signs off, we close every opening the same week.

How long does house rewiring take in Los Angeles?

Plan on 3-5 working days for a 1,500 sq ft home, plus the city inspection, which adds calendar days but not cost. Power stays on each night: we work circuit by circuit and reconnect before we leave. Larger homes, two-story layouts, and knob and tube removal add time, so we put your exact schedule in the estimate.

Most of the house rewiring Los Angeles crews handle follows the same sequence, and ours runs in five steps. Better yet, you know your dates before we start, because the schedule is written into the estimate. Most house rewiring in Los Angeles wraps up in under a week, inspection included.

1. Walkthrough and written quote60-90 minutes

   We map every outlet, switch, and fixture, then check the attic, crawlspace, and panel. You get one fixed price in writing, free.

2. Permit filingusually 1-3 business days

   We file the electrical permit with LADBS, or with the Burbank or Glendale building department if you live there, before any cable moves.

3. Rough wiringdays 1-3

   We run new copper through the attic and crawlspace, fish drops down to each box. And make only the strategic cuts we flagged in the quote.

4. Devices and paneldays 3-5

   We install grounded outlets, switches, and AFCI and GFCI protection, land the new circuits in the panel, and disconnect the old wiring.

5. Inspection and patchingabout half a day on site

   We meet the city inspector, walk the job together, and close and mud every opening after the pass.

What are the signs your home needs rewiring?

The clearest signs are breakers that trip weekly, outlets that are warm or buzzing, lights that dim when the AC starts, and two-prong outlets throughout the house. Also, any burning smell near a switch or panel is a call-now problem, not a someday one. One sign alone rarely means rewiring, but three or four together usually do.

• Breakers trip on ordinary loads, like a microwave and toaster running together
• Lights flicker or dim when large appliances start
• Outlets or switch plates feel warm, buzz, or crackle
• Two-prong, ungrounded outlets in most rooms
• Extension cords doing permanent duty because outlets are scarce
• A fishy or burning smell near outlets, switches, or the panel
• Fuses instead of breakers, or a panel brand like Federal Pacific or Zinsco
• Your home was built before 1950 and has never been fully rewired

One symptom on its own often has a smaller fix, so start with an inspection, not a contract. Our Los Angeles electrical team will tell you when a one-circuit repair beats a whole house rewire, because we quote both when both are honest options.

Do you need a permit to rewire a house in Los Angeles?

Yes. Every rewire needs an electrical permit and a city inspection, and we handle both for you. For house rewiring, Los Angeles city properties permit through the Department of Building and Safety (LADBS). Meanwhile, Burbank and Glendale run their own building departments with their own inspectors. The permit protects you: it creates a record that the work passed inspection, which matters at resale and for insurance.

City of Los Angeles homes (Van Nuys, Encino, and Studio City included) go through the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety. Burbank and Glendale are separate cities with their own counters, fees, and inspectors, so the paperwork differs a little. Either way, we file it, and the fee sits inside your quote.

Unpermitted wiring surfaces at the worst moment, during a sale, when the buyer's inspector finds it. Then you pay twice: once for the original work and again to open walls and prove it is safe. Also, before hiring anyone, verify their license for free at the Contractors State License Board. A legitimate electrician will encourage it.

Should you choose a partial rewire or a whole house rewire?

Do a partial rewire when the problem is contained: one addition with aluminum wiring, one knob and tube circuit left in the attic, or a kitchen that needs dedicated circuits. Choose a whole house rewire when the original wiring is failing everywhere, because partial fixes on a failing system just move the weak point. The comparison below shows how we make the call.

Partial rewire vs whole house rewire

These are typical Los Angeles ranges for orientation, not a quote. Every job is priced by its own conditions, so your exact number comes from a free on-site look. Get a free estimate in minutes, or call (818) 421-5290.

Shoppers comparing whole house rewire cost in LA usually want one clean number. But the honest answer is a range: $5,000-$15,000 at 1,000 sq ft, up to $10,000-$26,000 at 2,000 sq ft. For whole house rewiring, Los Angeles pricing lands inside that spread once we count circuits and access. A partial rewire only wins when the rest of the wiring is genuinely healthy. So we test before we say it is.

Should you rewire during a remodel or repipe?

Because your walls only open once, yes, whenever you can. Rewiring and repiping both mean cutting drywall, routing new lines, passing inspection, and patching. When one licensed team handles both trades, you pay for that open-wall work once. And you schedule one crew instead of refereeing two contractors. Since we hold both classifications, one call sets up both scopes, one schedule, and one invoice.

A+ Electric & Plumbing, a licensed electrician and plumber serving Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley, runs both trades with one office and one schedule. That matters here because homes with pre-1950 knob and tube usually also carry pre-1960 galvanized steel pipe, which rusts shut from the inside.

So when your Glendale or Burbank bungalow needs new wiring, ask us to scope a whole home copper or PEX repipe during the same walkthrough. The walls open once, the patching bill lands once, and one crew coordinates both inspections.

Rewiring during a remodel works the same way. Once your kitchen is down to the studs, wiring that zone costs a fraction of the closed-wall price, because the access is free. Tell your general contractor to slot us after demolition and before insulation. And we will sequence any recessed lighting and LED work while the ceiling is open.

Frequently asked questions