Free written scope consultation - allowances, timeline, and change-order rules on paper before a single trade is scheduled
Fast, Reliable Bathroom Remodeling Across San Francisco
A full bathroom remodel in San Francisco typically costs $10,620 to $33,040, and the work usually takes four to seven weeks from demolition to final inspection. That timeline depends heavily on two things most national remodeling guides never mention: Title 24 lighting compliance and pre-1979 lead-safe containment rules. If you live in a pre-1950 building anywhere from the Richmond to Bernal Heights, your project will likely trigger both, which changes the calendar and the price before a single tile comes off the wall. Mason Remodeling has handled these exact conditions in San Francisco homes since 2004. Call (803) 680-2547 to get a written price for your bathroom, not a verbal guess.
Why Mason Remodeling Is San Francisco’s Preferred Bathroom Remodeling Company
San Francisco homeowners deal with a permitting process and housing stock that no generic contractor handbook covers. We do. Our Bathroom Remodeling team works inside the city’s existing-building codes every week, which means we know what the San Francisco Department of Building Inspection will flag before you pay for work that has to be redone. Every crew member who walks through your door in Outer Sunset or Noe Valley arrives in a marked uniform, shows a photo ID badge, and was introduced to you by name and photo before the visit. That is the Threshold Standard, and it is how we have operated since 2004 as part of the Threshold Group family of home-service companies.
We are not a sales team that hands your bathroom to strangers. The person who scopes your project is the person who answers questions about it. Isaac Pruett leads our crews, and he holds every San Francisco project to one rule: a written price before any work starts. Not an estimate range. Not a verbal figure. A written price, delivered on paper, before a tool is unpacked. If the work is not right within 365 days of completion, we return and make it right at no cost to you.
Styles & brands we work with
Shower Remodel in San Francisco
A shower remodel in San Francisco usually means one of three things: replacing a failing tile surround, converting a tub to a walk-in shower, or gutting a water-damaged stall and rebuilding it correctly. Most of the shower remodels we do in San Francisco are on the second and third floors of pre-1960 buildings where water damage has been quietly working through the subfloor for years. A walk-in shower installation in San Francisco runs $5,310 to $14,160 depending on whether we are reusing the existing drain location or moving it, and whether the city requires a rough-in inspection on the new valve and pan before the wallboard goes up.
What a San Francisco Shower Remodel Actually Involves
We remove the existing surround or pan down to the studs, then check what is behind it. In many San Francisco apartments and single-family homes built before 1959, the drain is cast iron or galvanized. If that is what we find, the inspector will require replacement, which is why our written scope on an older San Francisco shower always includes a contingency line for drain replacement. Then we install new framing where needed, run supply lines, set the pan or Schluter waterproofing system, hang cement board, tile, grout, and finish with a new valve and fixtures.
Permits and Timing on San Francisco Shower Work
A shower remodel that changes the valve location or drain position needs a plumbing permit and usually a rough-in inspection. San Francisco inspectors schedule those in windows, not exact times, so we build two to five days into the calendar for inspections per phase. The pace frustrates homeowners who want it done fast. But the alternative is finishing tile over work the city then fails, which costs more to fix than the inspection ever would have.
Tub to Shower Conversion in San Francisco
A tub to shower conversion in San Francisco is the single most requested bathroom change we handle, because so many pre-war homes here have one original tub and no dedicated shower. The conversion cost runs $4,130 to $11,800 in San Francisco depending on the drain work, waterproofing system, and whether we are building a curbless entry. Homeowners who choose this are usually done trying to climb over a high tub wall, or they want a second shower in a house with one bathroom, or they need the tub gone entirely because a family member uses a walker or chair.
When the Drain Work Changes Everything
In a pre-1959 San Francisco bathroom, the tub drain is often 1-1/2 inch galvanized steel. A shower requires a 2-inch drain under current code. That means we cannot simply cap the old line and set a shower pan on top. We open the floor, cut back to the stack, and run new pipe. This is where the price moves from the low end of the range to the high end, and it is also where unlicensed or out-of-town crews get into trouble, because they tile over the old drain and the final inspector fails the job.
What We Use and Why It Matters Here
For San Francisco tub-to-shower conversions we standardize on Schluter Kerdi waterproofing membrane, with the choice of a low-profile acrylic pan or a custom mortar bed. We install the Schluter strip, the metal trim that seals the edge where tile meets flooring, on every curbless build. For fixtures, most San Francisco clients spec Moen or Kohler valves, and we quote those brands by model number on the written price, so there is no substitution game when the box arrives. The 365-Day Done Right Promise covers this work in full, including any weep hole failures or grout cracking within the first year.
Trusted Brands We Service in San Francisco
San Francisco homeowners often arrive with a fixture list already picked out from a showroom in the Design District or from an online plan. We work with that. Mason Remodeling installs and services Kohler, Moen, Toto, and Grohe fixtures daily, and we stock common trim kits and valve cartridges locally so a parts issue does not stall your San Francisco project for two weeks while something ships from the Midwest. For surfacing, we are an authorized installer for Cambria, Silestone, and Caesarstone quartz, which matters in San Francisco because many of our clients want a single source responsible for both the fabrication and the install, not a third party they have never met. Our written price includes the brand, model, and finish of every fixture before you sign.
See the difference
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AfterCommon Bathroom Remodeling Problems We See in San Francisco Homes
- Pre-1950 Title 24 lighting triggers. Any permitted bathroom remodel in a San Francisco building this age must meet current Title 24 lighting efficiency rules. If your scope does not include at least one high-efficacy fixture or occupancy sensor, the final inspection will fail. We calculate this into the written price up front, which is why our San Francisco bids do not need a lighting change order on the back end.
- Cast-iron and galvanized drains under pre-1959 bathrooms. Once the inspector sees the existing drain, reuse is off the table. This turns a cosmetic tile job into a rough-in rebuild that requires opening the floor and replacing the trap arm and often the vent. We flag this in the walkthrough before you commit, not after the hammer comes out.
- Structural walls hiding behind tub surrounds. Many San Francisco two-unit buildings from the 1920s through the 1940s use a chase wall to carry load. Removing a tub surround or furring out a shower wall can expose structure the city will not let you alter without an engineered fix. We confirm what is load-bearing during the scope, which is why our estimates take a little longer to prepare than a one-page bid.
- Lead-safe containment on pre-1979 painted surfaces. Any wet-wall alteration in a pre-1979 San Francisco home requires a certified lead-safe renovation firm under EPA RRP rules. That means plastic containment, HEPA filtration, and specific cleanup procedures that add cost and time. We are certified, we do the containment, and we do not pretend the rule does not apply.
Pricing for Bathroom Remodeling in San Francisco, CA
Here is what San Francisco homeowners actually pay for bathroom work in the current market. These are line-item ranges, not vague guesses. The spread between low and high on any project is driven by three things: the age of the existing plumbing, whether the wall being opened is structural, and whether Title 24 lighting compliance is required. Our written price accounts for all three before you sign, so the final invoice matches the number you approved. If you are planning a bathroom remodel in San Francisco, call (803) 680-2547 for a free estimate and we will walk the space and hand you the actual figure.
| Service | San Francisco Price Range |
|---|---|
| Bathroom Remodel | $10,620 – $33,040 |
| Small Bathroom Remodel | $5,900 – $14,160 |
| Walk-In Shower Installation | $5,310 – $14,160 |
| Tub-to-Shower Conversion | $4,130 – $11,800 |
| Shower Replacement | $3,540 – $10,030 |
| Bathroom Vanity Installation | $945 – $3,540 |
Those ranges reflect what we have quoted and built in San Francisco in the last twelve months, not national averages copied from a cost survey. A curbless walk-in shower on an upper floor with drain replacement lands near the top of its range. A vanity swap with no plumbing changes lands near the bottom. We will show you exactly which line items your job includes and which permit fees are baked in.
We Also Serve Cities Near San Francisco
Our crews work throughout the Bay Area, so if you live just outside the city we can still help with your bathroom remodel. We regularly serve Daly City, Brisbane, Sausalito, and South San Francisco, with the same written-price standard and the same crew verification on every job. Dispatch and scheduling are coordinated from our San Francisco Bay Area office, so the team that shows up knows the local codes and the local inspectors.
Serving San Francisco, CA - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the San Francisco 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 Bathroom Remodeling in San Francisco
No, but most real bathroom remodels in San Francisco do. A fixture swap in the same location, like replacing a vanity or a toilet, usually does not need one. Moving a drain, altering a wet wall, changing valve locations, or removing a structural wall does. The city’s existing-building requirements mean a permit for a full remodel is the default, and we handle the permit set, the inspections, and the sign-off for you. Call (803) 680-2547 and we will tell you whether your specific scope needs a permit before you spend anything.
Plan on four to seven weeks for a full bathroom remodel in San Francisco. The range is driven by inspection scheduling, which happens in four-hour windows rather than fixed appointments, and by whether our crew uncovers cast-iron drain work or structural framing that needs an engineered fix. A tub-to-shower conversion on a simple single-family layout can be done in three weeks. A curbless shower in a pre-1950 building with Title 24 lighting and lead-safe containment typically runs six to seven. We give you a written calendar with your written price, so you know which weeks we are working and which weeks we are waiting on the city.
A full bathroom remodel in San Francisco runs $10,620 to $33,040. A small bathroom remodel runs $5,900 to $14,160. A tub-to-shower conversion runs $4,130 to $11,800, and a walk-in shower installation runs $5,310 to $14,160. The biggest cost drivers are drain replacement under pre-1959 bathrooms, structural wall work, and the Title 24 lighting compliance that pre-1950 buildings require. Call (803) 680-2547 for a free estimate and you will get an exact written figure, not a range.
The most common change order is drain replacement. A homeowner budgets for tile and fixtures, then the inspector sees a galvanized drain under a pre-1959 bathroom and requires new pipe. The work adds $1,000 to $2,500 and several days to the project. Mason Remodeling’s written scopes on older San Francisco homes include a drain replacement contingency line by default, so you know the number before it becomes a change order. Call (803) 680-2547 for a quote that accounts for this up front.
Yes. Mason Remodeling is a certified lead-safe renovation firm under EPA RRP rules, and we follow the containment, cleanup, and documentation procedures required on any pre-1979 San Francisco bathroom remodel. That includes sealed plastic containment, HEPA vacuuming, and post-job verification. This is not an optional add-on we charge extra for. It is part of the written price on any San Francisco home where it applies.
If you are planning a bathroom remodel in San Francisco, call (803) 680-2547 to schedule a free estimate. We will walk the space, check the existing drain and the wall structure, confirm whether Title 24 applies, and hand you a written price before any work starts. No verbal estimates. No surprise invoices. Just the number, on paper, with our name on it.
Written by Isaac Pruett, Owner at Mason Remodeling, serving San Francisco since 2004.
