Frequently Asked Questions

The process starts with a survey of your property and a written feasibility assessment. From there we handle drawings, structural engineering, the permit set, plan check with LADBS, construction, inspections, and final occupancy. Because we are design-build, you deal with one entity from first sketch to final walkthrough. The permitting step is where most LA projects stall, and our process is built around getting clean drawings through review efficiently. You get documentation at every stage, including photos and inspection sign-offs. Nadia Ellery's practice runs on evidence, not assurances.

From signed contract to certificate of occupancy, a garage conversion in Los Angeles typically takes 6 to 9 months depending on plan check speed. A new detached ADU runs longer, often 10 to 14 months, because of foundation work, utility trenching, and more inspections. LADBS plan check is the wildcard, and it is the reason we spend extra time on the permit set before submittal. We will give you a written schedule with your quote, and you will get progress documentation throughout. No one in LA can honestly promise a faster build without cutting corners we will not cut.

Yes, that is exactly the model. Ellery ADU Studio was founded in 2015, the year California's ADU statute changed, to solve a specific failure pattern: ADUs where the designer and the builder could each blame the other. Our design-build contract means the same team owns the drawings and the hammer. You get one point of contact, one contract, one flat price, and one warranty. The drawings, permit set, and construction are not separated into different firms. The projects that go wrong are almost always the ones where that line exists.

We use several approaches depending on the site. For some projects we design and build with traditional stick framing, which gives the most flexibility on a tight LA lot. For others, panelized wall systems from manufacturers like Dvele can shorten the framing phase and improve precision. We have also completed projects with James Hardie siding systems where the design called for a fire-resistive exterior. The method follows the site, not the other way around. We will show you the cost difference in writing.

Our locations cover the city of Los Angeles and surrounding areas, including Sherman Oaks, Studio City, Culver City, Silver Lake, Echo Park, Highland Park, Mid-City, Westchester, and the San Fernando Valley. Every location operates under The Haven Standard, which means the same written-price rule, the same documentation system, and the same warranty. When you call (971) 497-2402, our coordinator connects you with the location that covers your address. Your project manager and your crew are drawn from that local team.

We specify manufacturers based on the job, not out of habit. For exterior cladding we often use James Hardie fiber cement because it holds up in Los Angeles heat and meets wildfire zone requirements in hillside areas. For prefab or panelized projects, we have worked with Dvele and Cover on select builds where the design called for off-site fabrication. The brand decision is yours to make with our input, and every specification is in your written scope. We do not sell one manufacturer. We design around what the site and the budget need.

You can, but it needs to be agreed in writing before we price the job. If you supply a material, you own the lead time and the warranty on that item, and our labor warranty excludes problems caused by the material itself. In practice, most of our Los Angeles clients let us source everything through our supply channels, which keeps the flat price predictable and the schedule intact. If you want a specific appliance or fixture, give us the model number and we will put it in the written scope. That is the clean way to do it.

Los Angeles is hot, dry, and occasionally subject to heavy rain, so we specify materials that handle UV exposure and thermal movement. James Hardie lap siding and panel products resist cracking and fading better than wood in our sun, and they carry a noncombustible rating that matters in WUI zones. For rooflines, we prefer standing seam metal or high-reflectance composition shingles to manage heat. Foundation drainage matters in clay-heavy soil parts of the Valley. Every choice gets documented in your permit set and your warranty record.

Yes. Every pro working under our name in Los Angeles is required to hold the license and insurance the state of California requires, including workers' compensation coverage on our job sites. Our crews are verified under Haven standard 3: licensed, insured, background-checked, and their license number is on record and available to you. We carry general liability coverage on every project. If you want to see documentation before signing, ask for it. We will provide it. That is the evidence-first way we run every job.

Yes. Permitting is handled by our team as part of the design-build contract. We prepare the full permit set, submit to LADBS, respond to plan check comments, and schedule every inspection through final signoff. We do not ask the homeowner to act as the general contractor or pull owner-builder permits, because that shifts liability to you and usually delays the project. The permit fee schedule is in your written estimate, and every inspection result is documented in the job record you receive. Permitted, built, and finished to the drawings.

The trade partners we work with are held to the same Haven standards as our direct team. Every pro on a project, regardless of role, is required to hold the license and insurance their trade requires in California, and to pass a background check before they walk onto your property. We are not a referral network that hands your project to an unknown name. Nadia Ellery's practice is built on a simple idea: you should know who is on your property and what they are responsible for. Your project manager gives you that in writing before mobilization.

You call your project manager, not a general hotline. Our coordinator at (971) 497-2402 routes you to the local team running your build, and they respond during business hours: 7:30 AM to 7:30 PM, seven days a week. If the issue is structural or permit-related, we document it immediately with photos and a written description of what happened and what we are doing about it. That documentation becomes part of your job record. If the issue requires a schedule change, you get a written update. No one is left guessing.

We do not run a 24/7 emergency call line. Our hours are 7:30 AM to 7:30 PM, Monday through Sunday. Most issues on an ADU project are not true emergencies, and they are handled more efficiently during working hours when the crew and the project manager are both available. If something happens after hours, leave a message and we will call you back the next morning. For a genuine safety emergency like a gas smell or electrical hazard, call your utility provider or 911 immediately, then let us know. We will document and fix the cause.

Shut off the water at the fixture or the main, and call us during business hours at (971) 497-2402. A leak in a new build is usually a failed connection or a damaged fixture, and it is covered under our workmanship warranty if it was installed by our crew. Take photos before you move anything. We will send a qualified pro to assess the cause, document it, and repair it. If the leak caused damage to flooring or drywall, we will write up the scope of the repair in writing before anyone starts. No surprises, per Haven standard 5.

Every ADU project includes a written workmanship warranty that is spelled out in your contract, per Haven standard 1. The specific term is listed on your warranty certificate, and it covers defects in the work we performed. Manufacturer warranties on materials like James Hardie siding or Dvele panel systems run separately and are handed over to you with the documentation. The key detail: the warranty is in writing, not a handshake. If something is covered, we fix it. If it is not covered, we tell you why in writing. That is the whole point of a documented job record.

The Haven Standard is the five-clause operating promise every Ellery ADU Studio project runs under. Clause 1: a flat price, written scope, and written warranty before anyone starts. Clause 2: a real arrival window and a named tech, with a text when they are on the way. Clause 3: verified crews, licensed and background-checked. Clause 4: evidence on every job, with photos and readings of what we actually found. Clause 5: no surprises, no upsell, no "while we are in here." It is the standard Nadia Ellery built the practice on, and it is stamped on every contract.

You get the full job record: final drawings, the approved permit set, the inspection sign-off history from LADBS, material cut sheets for everything we installed, manufacturer warranty cards, and our workmanship warranty certificate. You also get the photographs taken throughout construction, including the evidence logs from Haven standard 4. This is the difference between a firm and a crew. When you sell the house or answer a city question years later, that record is your proof the ADU was permitted, built, and finished to the drawings. That is the mission.

The workmanship warranty on our ADU work is written to transfer to a new owner in most cases, and the language is in your contract. The real value at resale is the documentation package: the approved permit set, the final inspection sign-off, and the evidence log. In Los Angeles, where unpermitted work is a deal-killer and many buyers now demand proof of legal status, that file is worth more than the warranty itself. Ask us for the exact transfer terms before signing. We will put them in writing.

A general contractor builds from someone else's drawings. We are a design-build studio, which means the drawings, the permit set, and the construction are one contract with one price and one point of accountability. That is the model Nadia Ellery established in 2015, when California's ADU law changed and the permitting queue became the actual product. The ADU projects that go wrong are almost always the ones where the designer and the builder can each blame the other. Our name is on both, so we own both. The Haven Standard makes that promise enforceable.

Written by Nadia Ellery, Owner at Ellery ADU Studio, serving Los Angeles since 2015.