# Whole-Home Renovation in Pflugerville, TX: 2026 Cost Guide

By the Home Remodel Pro team · published 2026-10-11 · Whole-Home Renovation, Pflugerville

A down-to-studs whole-home renovation in Pflugerville typically runs $200k–$450k on a 1,800–2,400 sq ft house, and construction takes 4 to 8 months once design and permitting are done. The number moves with how much of the layout changes, whether plumbing and electrical are replaced, and the level of finish you pick. Home Remodel Pro gives you one contract, one schedule and one fixed price in writing before demolition starts.

## What a whole-home renovation costs in Pflugerville

We price whole-house work by scope, not by a square-foot rule of thumb, but homeowners need a bracket before they can plan. On the single-family houses common around Pflugerville — slab-on-grade, one or two stories, 1,600 to 3,000 square feet — here is where projects usually land.

A cosmetic whole-house refresh keeps every wall and every fixture location: new flooring throughout, paint, trim, new kitchen and bathroom cabinetry and counters, lighting, doors and hardware. Expect $120k–$200k on a typical Pflugerville production house.

A full renovation with layout changes — opening up the kitchen and living area, relocating plumbing, reworking a primary suite, new HVAC, new electrical panel and circuits — is the most common version of this project. Expect $200k–$350k.

A down-to-studs renovation with custom work takes the house back to framing: all new plumbing supply and drain lines, full rewire, new windows, insulation, new HVAC system and ductwork, custom cabinetry, tile throughout and higher-end appliances. Expect $350k–$600k and up, depending on size and finish.

Within those totals, the kitchen is usually the single biggest line. Our published Austin-area kitchen ranges hold here: $45k–$70k for a refresh in the existing footprint with new cabinets, counters, lighting and fixtures; $70k–$110k when the layout opens up and plumbing moves; $110k+ for a high-end kitchen taken to the studs with custom cabinetry and high-end appliances. Each full bathroom inside a whole-house project generally adds $25k–$60k depending on size, tile and whether the plumbing moves.

## What moves your number up or down

Two houses on the same Pflugerville street, same floor plan, can come in $150k apart. These are the items that actually swing the budget, roughly in order of impact.

- Layout changes. Keeping walls and plumbing where they are is the cheapest path. Moving a kitchen sink, adding a bathroom, or removing a wall adds engineering, framing, plumbing and drywall work. Any wall you want gone is reviewed by a licensed engineer and the permit office — they make that call, and we build to their direction.
- Systems replacement. New supply and drain plumbing, a full rewire with a new panel, and a new HVAC system with ducts commonly add $45k–$90k combined on a 2,000 sq ft house. Replacing some of it and leaving the rest costs less, but it means opening walls twice if you change your mind later.
- Cabinetry level. Stock and semi-custom cabinetry versus shop-built custom is often a $20k–$50k difference across a kitchen, laundry, mudroom and bathrooms.
- Flooring and tile. Continuous hard flooring through the whole house, large-format tile and full-height shower tile all carry labor as well as material.
- Windows and exterior doors. A full window replacement on a typical Pflugerville two-story generally adds $18k–$40k.
- Second-story work. Stairs, upstairs baths and working above a finished floor slow the schedule and add cost compared with a single-story renovation.
- Living in the house during construction. Phasing the work so you can stay typically adds 15–25% to the schedule and some cost, because crews work in sections and clean to a livable standard every day.

## What we run into on Pflugerville houses

Pflugerville grew fast, and most of the housing stock reflects it: a large share of homes were built in the 1990s and 2000s in subdivisions, on concrete slabs, with builder-grade finishes and compartmentalized kitchens that homeowners now want opened up. The bones are generally in good shape; what people are replacing is the finish level and the floor plan. The older core near downtown Pflugerville has earlier houses, and those need a closer look at wiring, plumbing material and insulation before we price anything.

This area sits on clay-heavy soil that swells and shrinks with our wet-dry cycles, so slab movement, hairline drywall cracks and doors that stick are common. We note any of that at the first visit. If the floors tell us something is moving, we tell you to have a licensed engineer evaluate the foundation before we design around it — that assessment belongs to the engineer, not the contractor.

Two more local realities shape the work. Central Texas summers put real load on an HVAC system, so attic insulation, duct sealing and equipment sizing are worth doing while the walls and ceilings are open. And after the 2021 freeze, most homeowners here want attic and exterior-wall plumbing protected and a shutoff they can actually reach. Both are far cheaper during a down-to-studs phase than afterward.

If your Pflugerville neighborhood has an HOA, exterior changes — windows, paint color, roofline, patio structures — usually need its approval, and that review runs on its own calendar. We flag it during design so it does not stall the schedule.

## Permits and inspections in Pflugerville

First we confirm your jurisdiction. An address inside Pflugerville city limits is permitted and inspected by the City of Pflugerville. Addresses just outside the city line may fall under Travis County, and some properties east and south of town sit in another city's extraterritorial jurisdiction. The line is not always where homeowners assume it is, so we verify it from the address before design finishes. We handle City of Austin permits as part of our standard process and we handle the submittal for Pflugerville and Travis County addresses the same way — drawings, applications, trade permits and inspection scheduling are ours, not yours.

For a whole-home renovation, expect a building permit plus separate electrical, plumbing and mechanical trade permits. Permit fees are based on the valuation and scope of the work; on a project of this size, budget $2,000–$6,000 total for permits and plan review, and we carry that inside the fixed price so it is not a surprise later. Review time varies with the office's queue and how complete the drawings are; we build the realistic window into your schedule rather than guessing.

Inspections happen in sequence as the work goes: foundation or framing, then rough-in for electrical, plumbing and mechanical, then insulation, then final. Whether a specific scope needs a permit, and whether a structural change is approved, is decided by the permit office and, where framing changes are involved, a licensed engineer. We submit, we meet the inspector, and we fix anything they want corrected.

## A realistic timeline, first visit to move-in

Whole-home construction runs 4 to 8 months. Design and permitting happen before demolition, so the construction calendar we hand you is the one we build to. Here is the full arc in weeks.

- Weeks 1–2: First visit and walkthrough. We measure, look at the slab, attic, panel and plumbing, and talk through what you want changed. You get a scope and budget bracket.
- Weeks 2–8: Design and selections. Floor plans, elevations, structural coordination with a licensed engineer where walls or openings change, and your finish selections — cabinets, tile, counters, fixtures, flooring, paint. Selections being complete is what makes a fixed price possible.
- Weeks 6–10: Fixed price in writing. One contract, one scope, one number, with allowances closed out rather than left open.
- Weeks 8–16: Permitting. Drawings go in, plan review runs, and HOA approval (if yours applies) runs alongside. Materials with long lead times — windows, cabinetry, appliances — are ordered in this window so they are not holding up the site later.
- Construction months 1–2: Demolition, framing changes, rough plumbing, electrical and HVAC, inspections.
- Construction months 2–4: Insulation, drywall, interior trim, cabinetry, tile.
- Construction months 4–8: Counters, flooring, paint, fixtures, appliances, final inspections, punch list and handover.
- Add time for: living in the house during the work, a second story, foundation work ordered by an engineer, or selections changed after the contract is signed.

## How our fixed-price design-build process works, and what to ask

Design-build means one company is responsible for the drawings, the price and the construction. You are not refereeing between a designer who did not price the work and a builder who did not draw it. We design it, we price it, our in-house carpenters build it, and our 5-year workmanship warranty covers the work.

Fixed price means the number on the contract is the number you pay, barring changes you ask for or a condition nobody could see behind a wall — and those are written up and priced before anyone touches them, not added at the end. We do the discovery work up front specifically so there is less behind the wall to find. Financing is available if you would rather not fund the whole project from cash.

When you are comparing contractors in Pflugerville, ask these and compare the answers, not the brochures.

- Is this a fixed price or an estimate with allowances? Which items are still allowances, and what happens when they are exceeded?
- Who holds the permit, and which office is my address under — Pflugerville, Travis County, or an ETJ?
- Who carries the engineer, and when does that review happen relative to my price?
- Are the carpenters your employees or subcontracted crews rotating off other jobs?
- What is the workmanship warranty, in years, in writing?
- Show me the construction schedule by phase, and tell me what is already ordered before demolition day.
- How are change orders priced and approved — in writing, before work proceeds?

## What to do next

Write down three things before you call anyone: the rooms you want changed, what you want the house to do that it does not do now, and the number above which the project does not make sense for you. That is enough to get a useful first conversation.

Then book a walkthrough. We will look at your Pflugerville house, tell you which of the three cost brackets above it falls into and why, and show you the sequence from design through permitting to construction. If the scope and the budget do not line up, we will say so at the first visit rather than three months in.

## Pflugerville homeowners also ask

### Can I live in my Pflugerville house during a whole-home renovation?

Sometimes, if the work is phased — for example, finishing the bedroom wing before the kitchen and main living areas come apart. Plan on adding roughly 15–25% to the construction schedule, and expect weeks with no kitchen and limited bathrooms. On a true down-to-studs project with full rewire and replumb, most homeowners move out, because the house has no working water, power or HVAC for stretches of it.

### Do I need a permit for a whole-home renovation in Pflugerville?

That decision belongs to the permit office with jurisdiction over your address — the City of Pflugerville inside city limits, or Travis County or an ETJ just outside it. We confirm which one applies from your address, prepare the drawings and applications, pull the building and trade permits, and meet the inspectors. Budget $2,000–$6,000 for permit and plan review fees on a project this size; it is carried inside the fixed price.

### Can I take out the wall between my kitchen and living room?

That is a question for a licensed engineer and the permit office, and we bring an engineer in during design to evaluate it and specify what the opening needs. Opening up a kitchen wall in a typical Pflugerville house moves the kitchen from the $45k–$70k refresh range toward $70k–$110k once framing, plumbing relocation, electrical and drywall are included.

### How far ahead should I start if I want construction to begin next year?

Work backward from your construction window. Design and selections take 6 to 8 weeks, pricing and contract another 2, and permitting plus long-lead orders can take 6 to 10 weeks on top. That puts the first visit about 4 to 6 months before demolition. We will not promise a start date at the first meeting; we give you a schedule once the drawings, the price and the permit path are settled.

## Check it with Pflugerville's own pages

Permit rules and fees change, and the office that issues the permit is the authority on them, not this guide.

- [City of Pflugerville — residential building applications](https://pflugervilletx.gov/residential-building-applications-guidelines)

What a whole-home renovation in Austin involves: https://www.homeremodelpro.com/austin/whole-home-renovation

## Get a free estimate

- Call (512) 601-5666 (Monday to Friday 8am–6pm and Saturday 9am–2pm); a project consultant calls back within one business hour.
- Request an estimate online: https://www.homeremodelpro.com/austin#quote
- 5-year workmanship warranty · one fixed price in writing · in-house carpenters · permits and inspections included

---
Source: https://www.homeremodelpro.com/austin/blog/whole-home-renovation-pflugerville-guide · Home Remodel Pro Austin, TX