Pictured: now building in the Santa Lucia Preserve, Carmel
Monterey County · Santa Lucia Preserve, Carmel
Custom Home Builders in the Santa Lucia Preserve
We’re building a custom home in the Preserve now, working within its design review alongside Monterey County permitting.
The short answer
Harrod Built is building a custom home in the Santa Lucia Preserve now. A new home here goes through the Preserve’s Design Review Board, Monterey County permits and Environmental Health review, water and wastewater service from the Santa Lucia Community Services District, and a lot-specific fuel management plan. Call 805-712-8993 or contact us to talk about your lot.
- LicensedCSLB #986950
- Your teamMichael & Chris Harrod
- Office1345 Riverside Ave, Paso Robles
- WhereSanta Lucia Preserve, Carmel
Now buildingNow building · Santa Lucia Preserve · Carmel
A custom home in the Preserve
A new custom home, now under construction. We’re working within the Preserve’s design review alongside Monterey County permitting.
These are progress photos from the build. We’ll add more as construction continues.
Santa Lucia Preserve
Homes that sit lightly on the land
Harrod Built is a family custom home builder and general contractor led by brothers Michael and Chris Harrod. Our current Preserve home is the kind of project we focus on in Monterey County: a new custom home with a demanding site and more than one layer of review.
The Preserve asks homes to stay subordinate to the land. That shapes siting, height, materials, lighting and landscaping, and it means the builder’s input on cost and constructability is most useful early, while the design is still moving.
We build to your architect’s drawings, and Michael or Chris stays involved with every Monterey County job, with an update every week.
What we build here
- New custom homes on your lot, built to your architect’s plans or design-build
- Guest houses and ADUs as part of a larger project
- Larger remodels and additions
- Landscaping and outdoor living through our sister company, Paso Robles Landscaping
- Plans through our design studio, Harrod Drafting & Design
Building here
Design review, permits and services in the Preserve
Design Review Board
The Design Review Board, overseen by the Santa Lucia Preserve Association, reviews and approves all residential structures, landscaping and associated development in the Preserve, under the Preserve’s Design Guidelines.
Homelands and Openlands
Each residential lot has a Homeland, the envelope where the house can go, and Openlands, which are protected by a conservation easement held by the Santa Lucia Conservancy. The building envelope shapes the design from day one.
Monterey County permits
The Preserve is in unincorporated Monterey County, so building permits run through Monterey County Housing & Community Development, with County Environmental Health review of water and wastewater feasibility.
Water and wastewater
The Santa Lucia Community Services District provides water and wastewater service. Its policy asks the Design Review Board not to approve a residential application until the District has issued a can-and-will-serve letter, and it reviews higher-water-use landscape plans.
Fuel management and fire
Final Design Review Board approval requires a lot-specific fuel management plan under the Preserve-wide standards. Homes in mapped fire hazard severity zones are built to the wildfire chapter of the building code.
Gates, roads and logistics
Long private roads and a gated community shape deliveries, staging and crew access. We plan them with the schedule from the start, the same way we are on our current Preserve build.
Are you building in the Santa Lucia Preserve?
Yes. We are building a custom home in the Preserve now, working within its design review alongside Monterey County permitting. Progress photos are on this page.
What approvals does a new home in the Preserve need?
Design Review Board approval (including a lot-specific fuel management plan), a can-and-will-serve letter from the Santa Lucia Community Services District, and Monterey County permits and Environmental Health review.
Can you work with my architect through design review?
Yes. We can join early to give cost and constructability input while the design is in review, then build to the approved plans.
What does a custom home in the Preserve cost?
Every Preserve home is site- and design-specific. Our Central Coast custom home cost guide gives Michael’s rough per-square-foot ranges, and we give a written estimate once we have seen the lot and the plans.
Do you handle the landscaping too?
Landscaping and outdoor living can be handled by our sister company, Paso Robles Landscaping, within the Preserve’s landscape guidelines.
Cost by town
Custom home cost in other towns
Same rough ranges, different local costs: permits, fees, water, trees and site work change from town to town.
Planning guides
Budget and planning guides
What a custom home costs in Carmel
Design review, tree permits, water and tight lots: the Carmel-specific costs, with Michael’s rough ranges.
What a custom home costs on the Central Coast
Rough per-square-foot ranges for SLO, Monterey and Santa Barbara counties, and what moves a home between them.
Cost to build a custom home in SLO County
What drives the budget on a Central Coast custom home, and how to get a real number.
ADU cost on the Central Coast
Detached, attached or conversion: what moves the price of an ADU or guest house.
Home remodel cost in Paso Robles & SLO County
Kitchens, baths, whole-home remodels and additions: the cost drivers we see.
Building on a hillside lot
Soils, foundations, retaining walls, drainage and access: what a sloped lot adds before the house begins.
How long it takes to build a custom home
The phases from lot to move-in, what sets the pace, and how long our own recent homes took to build.
Building with a well and septic in North County
Wells, septic under the County LAMP, Paso basin and will-serve letters: what a rural North County lot needs before the house.
Building in a fire hazard severity zone
What Chapter 7A (and the California Wildland-Urban Interface Code) change on the roof, vents, walls, windows, decks and landscape.
Build or buy a custom home on the Central Coast
Honest comparison: custom new build vs buying an existing home in SLO, Monterey and Santa Barbara counties.
SLO County building permits: city vs county
Seven cities vs unincorporated PermitSLO, planning vs building, coastal permits and fire-zone steps.
Coastal development permits in SLO County
Cambria, Cayucos, Morro Bay, Pismo Beach and Avila Beach: exempt vs CDP vs Minor Use Permit, and Coastal Commission appeals.
Building in the Santa Lucia Preserve
Design Review Board stages, CSD water and will-serve, lot-specific fuel management and Monterey County permits.
Pebble Beach building permits
Del Monte Forest coastal permits and design approval, Pebble Beach Company ARB, protected trees, Cal Am water and fire rules.
Carmel design review: Track 1 vs Track 2
Carmel-by-the-Sea design studies: staff-level Track 1 vs Planning Commission Track 2, site assessment, story poles, trees and volume.
Montecito Board of Architectural Review (MBAR)
What MBAR reviews, conceptual vs preliminary vs final review, what to submit, floor area guidelines, fire and water steps in Montecito.
Big Sur building permits and the critical viewshed
Coastal permits, staking and flagging, the Highway 1 viewshed test, water and septic, fire access and rebuilds on the Big Sur coast.
Building in Hope Ranch: architectural review and County permits
The Association’s ABR stages, floor area, height and view rules, County design review and coastal permits, water, septic and fire access.
ADU rules in San Luis Obispo County
County vs city rules, how many ADUs a lot can have, size, setbacks, water, septic and fire checks, pre-reviewed plans and the permit path.
ADU rules in Monterey County
Inland vs coastal zone rules, size caps by area, Cal Am water permits, septic, guesthouses and the County permit path.
Areas we serve
Nearby in Monterey County
Custom homes, remodels, additions and ADUs across San Luis Obispo, Monterey and Santa Barbara counties.
Monterey County
Start your project
Building in the Santa Lucia Preserve? Tell us about your project.
A few details help us call you back with useful answers about budget, schedule and permits.
805.712.8993michael@harrodbuilt.com
1345 Riverside Ave, Paso Robles, CA 93446
CSLB #986950
