Kitchen remodeling
Bathroom remodeling
Home additions & ADU
Roofing
Windows & doors
Driveway & pavers
FenceFree written scope consultation - allowances, timeline, and change-order rules on paper before a single trade is scheduled
Fast, Reliable General Contractor Across Marin City
If you’re planning a remodel, addition, or ADU in Marin City, you need a contractor who understands county permitting, hillside drainage, and the realities of building on older mid-century lots. San Mateo Construction has done this work here for years. Led by Noel Carrington, we manage everything from foundations to finishes under one contract, so you don’t juggle three separate crews. Call (855) 901-7266 and we’ll walk the property with you, look at the slope, check the setbacks, and give you a straight answer on what the job will take.
Why San Mateo Construction Is Marin City’s Preferred General Contractor Company
Marin City homeowners call us because we already know the terrain. That matters more here than in most places. The hillside streets above Highway 101 have retaining walls that crack after wet winters, and the flat lots near Drake Avenue carry layers of deferred maintenance from the 1950s and 1960s. Our General Contractor team has pulled Marin County permits for everything from kitchen remodels to detached ADUs, so we know which jobs trigger geotechnical review and which sail through plan check.
Noel Carrington runs every Marin City project with the same expectation: a written scope, named material allowances, and a schedule that accounts for county inspection lead times. Homeowners regularly tell us the thing they appreciated most was not discovering a problem at excavation. We scope setbacks before we quote. That habit comes from working unincorporated county land, not from a template.
We serve Marin City with the same crews on every job, not rotating subcontractors from outside the county. That consistency means the tile setter on your bathroom is the same one who prepped the Schluter waterproofing, and the framer on your ADU is accountable to the same foreman who managed your window replacement.
Styles & brands we work with







General Contractor Services in Marin City
General Contractor Services in Marin City cover the full span of a project: demolition, structural work, rough-in, finishes, and final inspection. A Marin City homeowner typically needs us when a remodel touches more than one trade, or when the county requires a licensed general contractor to pull the permit. On acreage, that threshold comes early. Adding a detached ADU, replacing a failed retaining wall, or building a shop with power all require a general contractor who can coordinate engineering, grading, and county inspections.
Kitchen and Bath Remodeling
Most Marin City kitchens sit inside 1940s and 1950s framed homes with original plumbing. A full kitchen remodel here runs $14,000 to $45,000, and we plan around the surprises: galvanized supply lines, undersized circuits, and floor framing that has settled. Bathrooms are similar. Small bathroom remodels start around $5,000 and full ones reach $28,000, with walk-in showers adding $4,500 to $12,000 depending on waterproofing scope.

Remodels and Additions
Whole-home work in Marin City often starts with one failing system and expands once we open the walls. That is normal for mid-century stock. Room additions run $45,000 to $130,000, and on steep lots the foundation and access roads drive more of that cost than the framing itself. We scope drainage before we quote so the addition doesn’t create a new erosion problem downhill.

What happens when you call
- 1
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.
Construction Company in Marin City
A Construction Company in Marin City doing real work here has to handle county permitting, hillside access, and older framing that rarely matches modern code. San Mateo Construction serves as that single company on projects that span exterior and interior: re-roofing, window replacement, kitchen work, and hardscape under one contract. A homeowner in Marin City who needs a paver driveway and a bathroom remodel shouldn’t have to hire two firms and mediate between them. We handle both.
Exterior and Site Work
Roof replacement in Marin City typically falls between $8,000 and $20,000. The marine layer off Richardson Bay keeps roofs wet for months, so we specify GAF or Owens Corning in Marin City systems with a ventilation plan, not just new shingles. Paver driveways on flat lots run $7,000 to $18,000, and grading needs attention on every hillside site. A failed driveway drain here becomes a foundation problem within two winters.
Windows, Doors, and Openings
Replacement windows on Marin City homes run $4,500 to $15,000, and impact-rated openings go higher when the exposure faces the bay. We install Therma-Tru doors and PGT windows where coastal moisture and wind demand it. On older homes, we often find the rough opening itself has shifted, which means the new window includes a reframed header, not just a sash swap.
Trusted Brands We Service in Marin City
We carry the same name-brand relationships in Marin City that we use across San Mateo County. For windows and exterior doors, that includes Therma-Tru, PGT, and ECO Window Systems. For cabinet and countertop work we specify KraftMaid and Wellborn cabinetry with Cambria, Silestone, or Caesarstone surfaces. For a hillside ADU with a tight building envelope, Mr-Glass and ViewLux give us glazing options that handle salt air and fog without condensation problems. We don’t stock showroom samples in Marin City, but we bring the material selection meeting to your kitchen table and order from our local supplier network with a turnaround that keeps the schedule moving.
See the difference
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After
Before
After
Before
AfterCommon General Contractor Problems We See in Marin City Homes
- Failed retaining walls on hillside lots above 101. The older walls near Cole Drive and along Drake Avenue were built without drainage behind them. After a wet winter, they crack and lean. We rebuild them with proper gravel backfill and weep holes, and we inspect them before the rainy season.
- Deferred maintenance on 1940s and 1950s wood-frame homes. Original wiring, galvanized plumbing, and undersized floor joists show up constantly. A small remodel often becomes an electrical panel upgrade and a partial re-pipe once we open the wall.
- County septic and well setbacks blocking expansion plans. On acreage around Marin City, homeowners want to add a shop or ADU, and the county flags the location because it falls inside a well setback. We scope that before excavation so the project doesn’t stall at permit review.
- Drainage and erosion on open lots. The marine layer and winter rains saturate hillside soil. Without a grading and drainage plan, a new addition sheds water onto a neighbor’s slope or undercuts a driveway. We run the drainage math before we pour the foundation.
Pricing for General Contractor in Marin City, CA
Here are the numbers we quote most often in Marin City. ADU construction runs $90,000 to $220,000 depending on site access, geotechnical work, and finish level. Home additions fall between $45,000 and $130,000. Garage conversions run $30,000 to $80,000 if the existing slab and framing are sound. County septic and well setbacks, grading plans, and long material hauls all move the final figure. We give you a line-item quote before we start, and we do not hide a known cost as a surprise change order.
| Project Type | Typical Marin City Range |
|---|---|
| ADU Construction | $90,000 – $220,000 |
| Home Addition | $45,000 – $130,000 |
| Garage Conversion | $30,000 – $80,000 |
Call (855) 901-7266 for a free estimate. We will walk the property, check the county records, and give you a written number that covers the scope as we see it.
We Also Serve Cities Near Marin City
Our General Contractor crews work throughout southern Marin. That includes Sausalito, Belvedere, Tiburon, and the Chinatown neighborhood, where flatland lots and newer construction mean different permitting and foundation realities than the hillside acreage in Marin City.
Serving Marin City, CA — Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Marin City 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 General Contractor in Marin City
Yes. Marin City is unincorporated, so Marin County issues building permits, not a city department. An ADU or detached shop triggers county review that often includes septic and well setback checks, and on steep lots a geotechnical report. Call (855) 901-7266 before you draw plans and we will tell you what the county will ask for on your specific parcel.
Setbacks determine where a structure can sit relative to your septic system and well, and the county enforces them strictly. If your planned addition falls inside a setback, the project shifts footprint or needs a variance, which adds weeks. We confirm setbacks before quoting so the number we give you holds.
A detached ADU in Marin City typically runs $90,000 to $220,000. Site access, hillside grading, geotechnical requirements, and the finish package drive the range. The county pathway also adds plan review and inspection time that a flatland lot in Sausalito wouldn’t see. Call (855) 901-7266 and we will scope your specific site.
We start with a grading and drainage plan, not a foundation plan. On a hillside lot off Cole Drive, we rebuilt a cracked 1950s retaining wall and added a French drain before the rainy season, then framed a detached ADU on the upper bench. The county required a geotechnical report and well setback verification, which we scoped into the initial bid along with a rough-in allowance for the new electrical panel.
A change order is a written adjustment to the original scope and price. On county-permitted Marin City work, the most common trigger is a revised grading plan after geotechnical review, or unplanned structural repair inside an old wall. We document the change, get your sign-off, and keep the extra work separate from the original bid so you know exactly what changed and why.
Call (855) 901-7266 to schedule a free estimate with San Mateo Construction. We serve Marin City and the surrounding communities with one accountable team from roofline to foundation.
Written by Noel Carrington, Owner at San Mateo Construction, serving Marin City and San Mateo County.