How much does interior demolition cost in Los Angeles?
HomeGuide puts interior demolition at $2 to $8 per square foot, or $1,000 to $5,000 for an average demo project. Fixr agrees on $1,000 to $5,000 and gives a national average of $2,500 for a 500 square foot space. Los Angeles jobs land near the top of those ranges. HomeGuide notes that places with a higher cost of living have higher labor rates and disposal fees.
An on-site look sets the real number for your rooms. What is coming out and how hard it is to reach both move the price. Our interior demolition crews seal the work area with plastic dust walls and cover the floors first. Debris leaves on our own trucks the same day, so demolition and haul-off are one job.
What does interior demolition cost by room?
The two cost guides in this table do not always agree, so each row names its source. Fixr’s guide was updated January 31, 2025.
| Job | Published range | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Interior demolition, average project | $1,000 to $5,000 | HomeGuide |
| Interior demolition, national range | $1,000 to $5,000 (average $2,500 for 500 sq ft) | Fixr |
| Kitchen, average size | $500 to $2,500 | HomeGuide |
| Kitchen | $500 to $3,000 | Fixr |
| Small kitchen, 70 to 100 sq ft | $350 to $1,250 | HomeGuide |
| Large kitchen, 200 to 400 sq ft or more | $2,500 to $5,000 or more | HomeGuide |
| Bathroom | $600 to $2,000 | HomeGuide |
| Bathroom | $550 to $1,500 | Fixr |
| Bedroom or living room | $200 to $1,600 | HomeGuide |
| Whole-house gut | $3,000 to $16,000 | HomeGuide |
| Full interior of a 1,500 sq ft home | $20,000 at the high end | Fixr |
| Tile removal | $2 to $7 per sq ft | HomeGuide |
| Drywall removal and disposal | $0.50 to $2.50 per sq ft | HomeGuide |
| Ceiling demolition | $1.50 to $3.00 per sq ft | HomeGuide |
| Floor demolition | $1.50 to $3.50 per sq ft | HomeGuide |
HomeGuide puts gutting a whole house at $3,000 to $16,000. Fixr’s high end is a complete interior demolition of a 1,500 square foot home, which could cost $20,000. If the whole structure is coming down, that is house demolition. What a full teardown costs is in our house demolition cost guide.
How much does kitchen demolition cost?
HomeGuide puts kitchen demolition at $5.00 to $12.50 per square foot, or $500 to $2,500 for an average-sized kitchen. That $500 to $2,500 covers a tear out of the cabinets, counters, appliances, sink, flooring and drywall. Fixr’s kitchen range is $500 to $3,000.
HomeGuide puts a small kitchen of 70 to 100 square feet at $350 to $1,250. A large kitchen of 200 to 400-plus square feet runs $2,500 to $5,000 or more.
HomeGuide lists kitchen cabinet removal at $300 to $600 and countertop removal at $50 to $400. It notes that demos with pipe, tile and fixture removal cost the most. Water, gas and electrical lines must be disconnected and capped before work starts. A licensed trade handles that, never our crews.
How much does bathroom demolition cost?
HomeGuide puts bathroom demolition at $600 to $2,000. A complete gut costs more than removing fixtures. HomeGuide’s national average is $1,300 with a minimum of $500 and a maximum of $3,500. Fixr’s bathroom range is $550 to $1,500.
HomeGuide also prices bathroom fixtures one at a time:
- Tub removal: $150 to $750
- Shower removal: $100 to $800
- Toilet removal: $50 to $200
- Cabinet and vanity removal: $150 to $400
Bathrooms are more time-consuming to demolish than other rooms, per HomeGuide, so labor costs run higher. Removing bathroom wall tiles runs $210 to $1,900 by the same guide.
What do tile, drywall, floor and ceiling removal cost per square foot?
Tile removal costs $2 to $7 per square foot, or $200 to $1,400 total on average, per HomeGuide. Drywall removal costs $0.50 to $2.50 per square foot with disposal, by the same guide. Ceiling demolition runs $1.50 to $3.00 per square foot, and floor demolition $1.50 to $3.50.
A concrete slab is a separate job. Breaking out a slab or an old garage floor is concrete removal, and it prices on its own.
What does it cost to take out a wall?
HomeGuide puts a non-load bearing wall at $500 to $2,000 to remove. A load-bearing wall runs $4,000 to $10,000. At the low end, Fixr puts one interior nonbearing wall with no reconstruction at about $300.
HomeGuide’s per square foot figure for interior wall removal is $0.50 to $1.50 for the demo only. Debris disposal and repairs are extra.
Removing a load-bearing wall requires a structural engineer, per HomeGuide. Structural engineers charge $100 to $220 per hour. Which walls are bearing is the engineer’s call.
Why does interior demolition cost more in Los Angeles?
Labor and disposal both run higher here. HomeGuide ties a higher cost of living to higher labor rates and disposal fees. It puts an interior demolition contractor at $40 to $80 per hour, and Los Angeles work sits toward the top.
Inside the City of Los Angeles, Ordinance 181519 covers construction and demolition waste generated in the City. It must be taken to a City certified construction and demolition waste processing facility. The ordinance covers Bel Air, Brentwood, Pacific Palisades and San Pedro, which are part of the City.
The City’s free bulky item pickup does not take construction material, so demo debris cannot go out that way. HomeGuide puts renting a dumpster at $280 to $500 per week. Our crews load the debris onto our own trucks instead and haul it the same day.
Does asbestos change the cost of interior demolition?
It can, and by a wide margin on tile. HomeGuide puts asbestos tile removal at $5 to $20 per square foot, against $2 to $7 for regular tile. Asbestos removal is done by a certified abatement contractor, never by our crews.
South Coast AQMD Rule 1403 covers the whole region. Before any demolition or renovation, the part of the building where the work will happen must be surveyed for asbestos. The person doing the survey must be certified by Cal/OSHA. For a full teardown, every step is laid out in our Los Angeles demolition permit guide.
For non-emergency work, the AQMD notification is due no later than 10 working days before demolition or renovation. It needs the AQMD Rule 301 fee. Three exemptions in the rule matter on a home job:
- Notification is not required for renovation work removing or stripping less than 100 square feet of asbestos-containing material.
- The survey is not required for single-unit home renovations removing or stripping less than 100 square feet of asbestos-containing material.
- The rule does not apply to a homeowner who lives in the house and does the renovation personally. That exemption is for a single-unit home, and a hired contractor is not covered by it.
How can you keep the price down?
Clear the rooms before the crew arrives. Furniture and stored things slow the work and add to the haul. If you would rather hand those off too, ask about junk removal.
Mark what stays. A note or tape on the cabinets and fixtures you are keeping saves time on the day.
Book one walkthrough with the estimator. Show every room on the list, the stairs and where a truck can park. Access sets the hours, and hours set the price.
The estimate is free, and demolition and haul-off come back as one number. After the remodel, hauling off the leftover building debris is construction cleanup, and our crews handle that too. We are licensed and insured, CA License 792182, and we work across the Westside and the South Bay. Call (310) 546-4855 or send us the details to set a time.