Alamo Heights Custom Home Builder.
We build new custom homes on established lots in Alamo Heights, Terrell Hills, and Olmos Park — managing the architectural review, the municipal permitting, and the teardown itself, at one fixed price, with the discretion these streets expect. Family-owned since 1987.
Building new in a neighborhood that's already built.
The 78209 neighborhoods weren't planned around new construction — and that's exactly why people want to be here. Mature oaks, walkable streets, Alamo Heights schools, and ten minutes to the Pearl or the airport. The land is finished; what changes is what stands on it. Which is why most of our work here is teardown-and-rebuild: a new home, built right, on a street you already love.
Building new among finished homes is a different discipline from building on open land. A few realities we plan for on every 78209 project:
Three cities, three sets of rules
Alamo Heights, Terrell Hills, and Olmos Park are independent municipalities, each with its own permitting office and its own review process. Alamo Heights adds an Architectural Review Board with real standards for what gets approved. We've worked these processes for years — and prepare submissions to pass, not to bounce.
The lot came with history
Established lots mean mature trees worth protecting, older utility connections to remap, and drainage patterns your neighbors have relied on for decades. We study all of it before the price is fixed — so none of it becomes a change order.
Your neighbors live ten feet away
A build here happens in full view of people who will be your neighbors for decades. Clean sites, contained crews, respectful hours, and a single accountable owner they can talk to — no surprises for you, and none for the street.
The teardown itself
Demolition on a tight infill lot — close to existing structures and under tree canopies — is its own craft. We manage it as part of the project, not as someone else's problem.
What we build in Alamo Heights, Terrell Hills & Olmos Park.
Teardown-and-rebuild custom homes
The full scope under one fixed-price contract: demolition, permitting, ARB approval, and the new home itself — designed from scratch or adapted from a proven plan, starting with a free First Draft drawn for your specific lot.
New custom homes on cleared or vacant lots
Where an empty lot exists in these neighborhoods, we build custom homes in Alamo Heights and its neighboring cities to the same standard — of full masonry that the ARB expects, and everywhere it doesn't.
Lot evaluations before you buy
Considering a property for a future rebuild? We'll walk it with you and give you an honest read on setbacks, trees, utilities, and what the review process will likely require — before you're committed.
Why 78209 homeowners choose Hearthside.
If you're searching for a luxury custom home builder in Alamo Heights, one thing worth knowing: we don't use the word. What gets called luxury elsewhere — site-finished details, full masonry, materials chosen to last decades — is our standard, on every home, including the parts you'll never see. Here's what we say instead, and every claim is checkable:
The owner is the builder
Second-generation, family-owned since 1987. Alamo Heights families deal directly, not through layers of project managers — the name on your contract is the name on your job site.
One fixed price, in writing
Itemized line by line, including our margin. No escalation clauses. The number moves only if you change the scope.
Discretion as a practice, not a promise
Quiet sites, tight schedules, one point of contact for you — and, if needed, for the street.
The Invisible Work
Wall cavities vacuumed before drywall; a third-party TREC-licensed inspector at every major stage — standard on every home, not required by law.
Deliberately few
15 to 20 homes total per year. Your build is never one of fifty.
Accountability that outlasts closing
A 10-year structural warranty — four years more than Texas requires — from a builder who's been here to honor it for nearly forty years.
Recently completed homes in 78209.
Building in Alamo Heights: four questions we hear most.
Should we renovate our current home or tear down and rebuild?
It depends on what the existing structure gives you. When the foundation, layout, and systems fight everything you want, a rebuild often delivers a better home for the money than a deep renovation: new structure, new systems, and a warranty that starts from zero. We build new homes exclusively, so if a renovation truly serves you better, we'll say so and step aside. Walk us through the property, and we'll give you a straight answer.
How do you handle the Alamo Heights Architectural Review Board?
As part of our scope, from the first drawing. We design with the board's standards in mind rather than retrofitting a plan to pass, prepare the full submission, and represent the project through approval. Terrell Hills and Olmos Park each have their own municipal processes; we handle those the same way.
What does a teardown-and-rebuild cost in Alamo Heights?
Most rebuilds in Alamo Heights and Terrell Hills run from just under $1M to well over $2M, depending on size and scope. That price includes demolition of the existing structure and all permitting fees — it does not include the cost of the land. You’ll see one fixed price built from complete plans and specifications before you sign, itemized down to our margin.
How disruptive will the build be for our street?
Less than the street expects. Contained, clean job sites; consistent crews who've been with us for 10+ years; working hours that respect the neighborhood; and one owner your neighbors can actually reach if they have a question. We've done this on these streets before — quietly.
The street stays. The house catches up.
If you've found your neighborhood but not your house, tell us about the lot yours is on — or one you're considering. We'll draw a First Draft floor plan for it, free and without obligation, and give you an honest read on what the site and the city will ask of the project.