Structure Removal: Permits, Costs and What Happens to the Slab

BySoCal Removal

Removing a shed, garage, carport or ADU in Southern California usually takes a city demolition permit, an asbestos survey with South Coast AQMD notification, utility disconnects and a sewer cap, and a decision about the slab. Budget $26.50–$31.50 per square foot of floor area to collapse and remove the structure with the slab left, or $42–$51 per square foot for full demolition to dirt. Small jobs carry a $3,750 minimum.

What counts as a structure?

Building codes define a structure broadly, as anything built or constructed. For removal work that includes detached garages, carports, sheds, ADUs, guest houses, pool houses, patio covers and houses. South Coast AQMD’s asbestos rule is just as broad: it covers any residential structure, and it treats wrecking or taking out any load-supporting structural member as demolition.

Structure removal takes down the whole structure. Selective demolition removes part of a building that stays, such as an attached carport or an interior wall. Concrete removal handles slabs, driveways and walks on their own. The structure removal service page explains how each scope is defined.

Do I need a permit to remove a shed or garage?

For a garage, ADU, carport or house, plan on one. Section 105.1 of the 2025 California Building Code, in effect since January 1, 2026, requires a permit to demolish a building or structure. Section 105.2 exempts one-story detached accessory structures used as tool and storage sheds, playhouses and similar uses from a building permit if the floor area does not exceed 120 square feet. Cities adopt and amend these sections locally. Fullerton’s 2025 amendments, for example, use the 120-square-foot limit in both its building and residential codes.

That exemption is written for putting up a small shed. It does not waive zoning, setbacks or other local laws, and it does not settle whether taking a shed down needs a permit. Some cities require a demolition permit for any structure. Covina’s demolition handout, effective January 1, 2026, says demolition of any building, structure or portion of one cannot start until a valid demolition permit is obtained. Irvine takes demolition applications online and requires a waste management bond with them. Ask the building department before you start, even for a shed.

Garages replaced by ADUs follow a state rule. Under Government Code Section 66314, a demolition permit for a detached garage being replaced with an ADU is reviewed with the ADU application and issued at the same time. The city also cannot require the lost parking spaces to be replaced.

Does Rule 1403 apply to a house, garage or shed?

Yes, within South Coast AQMD’s jurisdiction, which covers all of Orange County and large parts of Los Angeles, Riverside and San Bernardino counties. Rule 1403 defines a facility as any institutional, commercial, public, industrial or residential structure, installation or building. It has no exclusion for single-family homes and no square-footage cutoff for demolition. That differs from the federal asbestos NESHAP, which excludes residential buildings with four or fewer dwelling units.

For any demolition, the rule requires:

  • An asbestos survey before work starts, by a surveyor certified by Cal/OSHA who has passed an EPA-approved building inspector course
  • Notification to South Coast AQMD at least 10 working days before demolition begins, with the fee set by Rule 301
  • A copy of the survey kept on site

The residential exemptions in Rule 1403 are for renovation, not demolition. An owner-occupant who personally renovates their own single-unit dwelling is exempt from the rule. A single-unit dwelling renovation that removes less than 100 square feet of asbestos-containing material is exempt from the survey requirement. Neither exemption applies when the structure comes down.

The city permit is tied to this. Under Health and Safety Code Section 19827.5, a city cannot issue a demolition permit until the applicant provides copies of required asbestos notifications or declares that none applies. Irvine, for one, requires evidence of the South Coast AQMD notification before it issues the permit. Ventura and San Diego counties have their own air districts and rules.

Surveys, testing and clearance are done by independent third-party consultants. If the survey finds asbestos, abatement is done by a Cal/OSHA-registered asbestos abatement subcontractor before demolition, and SoCal Removal schedules the demolition around that asbestos abatement.

Lead follows different rules. EPA’s RRP rule does not apply to demolishing an entire free-standing structure, but it does apply to renovating a pre-1978 detached garage or shed on a residential lot. Cal/OSHA’s lead standard covers demolition wherever lead is present. SoCal Removal holds EPA RRP lead certification.

Which utilities need to be disconnected or capped?

Before the structure comes down, the serving utilities and licensed trades make every line safe:

  • Electric. The utility disconnects a structure with its own meter. A garage fed from the house panel needs that circuit made safe at the panel by an electrician.
  • Gas. The gas utility removes the meter, and the service is capped.
  • Water. Lines are shut off and capped, including irrigation and hose bibbs on the structure.
  • Sewer. Cities typically require the lateral to be capped and inspected. Covina requires the cap to stay exposed for inspection before backfill.
  • Solar and low voltage. Panels on a garage roof, batteries, cameras and telecom lines need to be removed or rerouted.

Lead times vary by utility. Our guide to utility disconnects before demolition covers the sequence.

What order does structure removal follow?

  1. Asbestos survey by an independent consultant.
  2. South Coast AQMD notification, at least 10 working days before demolition.
  3. Demolition permit application with the notification copy and any waste plan.
  4. Utility disconnects and written confirmations.
  5. Abatement and clearance, if the survey found asbestos.
  6. Collapse, sort, load and haul.
  7. Slab removal if it is in the scope, then the sewer cap inspection and permit final.

What happens to the slab?

Collapse and remove takes the structure down and leaves the slab for the builder. Full demolition to dirt also breaks out the slab, footings and foundation. Leaving the slab makes sense when the next project will reuse the pad, or when you want a hard, clean surface until construction starts. Whether a new building can sit on an old slab is a question for the project engineer. Remove it when the area becomes yard, landscaping or new construction that won’t reuse it.

A 4-inch concrete slab budgets at $8.75–$10.50 per square foot. Removing it later, after the structure is gone, means a second mobilization, and a small slab job falls under the $3,750 minimum. See concrete and asphalt removal costs.

What happens to the debris?

Debris is sorted. Concrete, metal, clean wood and green waste go to recyclers, and the rest goes to a transfer station or landfill. CALGreen, the state green building code, requires covered projects to recycle or salvage at least 65 percent of nonhazardous construction and demolition waste. CalRecycle notes that a demolition-only permit falls outside CALGreen’s scope, so cities handle those projects through their own ordinances.

Local rules can go further. Irvine requires an approved waste management plan before it issues permits, collects a refundable deposit of $1.00 per square foot capped at $50,000, and asks for weight tickets with the final report. Covina requires at least 75 percent of project debris to go to a reclamation facility. Keep every scale ticket. The CALGreen glossary entry has more.

How much does structure removal cost?

Published 2026 budget ranges:

  • Collapse and remove a house, garage, ADU or shed, slab left: $26.50–$31.50 per square foot of floor area
  • Full demolition to dirt, including slab and foundation: $42–$51 per square foot
  • 4-inch concrete slab removal: $8.75–$10.50 per square foot
  • Asbestos bulk sample: $120–$145 per sample
  • Minimum job: $3,750

Worked examples

400 SF detached garage. Collapse and remove at $26.50–$31.50 per square foot comes to $10,600–$12,600, with the slab left in place. Full demolition to dirt at $42–$51 per square foot comes to $16,800–$20,400. If the consultant collects six bulk samples, testing adds $720–$870.

100 SF storage shed. At $26.50–$31.50 per square foot, the math is $2,650–$3,150. That is under the minimum, so the budget is $3,750.

The demolition ranges cover collapse, sorting, loading, hauling and disposal. Permit and city fees, the asbestos survey and any abatement, utility disconnects and engineering are separate. Access, height, materials and survey results can move a price within or outside the range. See demolition costs and testing costs.

What’s the next step?

Send photos, the address, the approximate square footage and any asbestos survey through our contact page, or call (949) 446-0000. SoCal Removal (CSLB #980451) serves Orange County, Los Angeles County and the rest of Southern California. Crews work daylight hours, and after-hours work is available on request.

References

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