Terrell Hills Custom Home Builder.
Terrell Hills is one of the quietest addresses in San Antonio — and it intends to stay that way. We build new custom homes on its established lots the way the city expects: full scope under one fixed price, proper permitting handled, and a job site your neighbors won't have to think about. Family-owned since 1987.
Building in a city that's almost entirely homes.
Terrell Hills is its own city, its own government, its own permitting, its own standards, and it's nearly all residential. No commercial strips, no through-traffic destinations. Just streets of established homes under mature canopy, Alamo Heights schools, and a ten-minute drive to the Pearl, downtown, or the airport. People here didn't buy a house so much as a permanent one.
That permanence shapes how we build:
Its own city hall, its own process
Terrell Hills is not Alamo Heights, and San Antonio — permits, inspections, and approvals run through the city's own offices, with requirements that differ from its neighbors'. We've worked this process before and prepare every submission to its standards, not a generic one.
Lots with room to think
Many Terrell Hills lots are larger than the typical 78209 parcel, which opens design options a tighter lot can't offer: single-story living, deeper setbacks, and a real backyard under the existing oaks. We design to what your specific lot allows, which is why every project starts with a First Draft drawn for it.
Restrictions vary street by street
Setbacks, height limits, and deed restrictions in these neighborhoods aren't uniform. We verify what governs your block before we draw a line — so the plan you fall in love with is one the city will approve.
The quiet is the amenity
A build here has to protect the very thing people moved for. Contained sites, consistent crews, respectful hours, and one accountable owner reachable by you — and, if ever needed, by the street.
What we build in Terrell Hills.
Teardown-and-rebuild custom homes
When the lot is right, but the house isn't, we manage the entire scope under one fixed-price contract: demolition on a tight infill site, city permitting, and the new home itself — starting with a free First Draft.
New custom homes on cleared or vacant lots
Where an open lot exists, we build custom homes in Terrell Hills to the same standard as everywhere else we work — which is to say, the only standard we have.
Lot evaluations before you buy
Weighing 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 city's process will ask of the project — before you commit.
Why Terrell Hills homeowners choose Hearthside.
In a city this small, reputation is not a marketing asset; it's the whole ballgame. Every claim below is checkable:
One fixed price, in writing
Itemized line by line, including our margin. No escalation clauses, no allowance games. The number moves only if you change the scope.
Trades who stay
Most of our crews have been with us 10 years or more. The same hands, house after house — including on your street.
Deliberately few
15 to 20 homes total per year. Your build is never one of fifty, and your call never goes to a queue.
A warranty backed by a builder
10-year structural coverage — four years beyond what Texas requires — from a company that's been around long enough to honor every year of it.
Referrals as the whole reputation
For most of four decades, nearly 100% of our work has come from referrals. In a city of a few thousand neighbors, that's the only advertising that counts.
Recently completed homes in Terrell Hills.
Building in Terrell Hills: four questions we hear most.
Is a teardown-rebuild allowed in Terrell Hills, and how does the approval work?
Yes, new construction on existing lots happens here regularly, and it goes through the city's own permitting and review process — which differs from those in Alamo Heights and San Antonio. We verify what governs your specific block — setbacks, height, and deed restrictions — before we draw, prepare the submission to the city's standards, and carry the project through approval as part of our scope.
You'll see "luxury custom homes Terrell Hills" all over search results. Is that what you build?
By the market's definition, probably. By ours, we call it built right. Full masonry, site-finished details, materials chosen to last decades — that's our standard on every home, including the parts behind the drywall that no listing photo will ever show. We'd rather hand you an itemized proposal than an adjective.
What does a teardown-and-rebuild cost in Terrell Hills?
Most rebuilds in 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 do you keep the build from disturbing the street?
By treating the quiet as part of the job. Contained, clean sites; crews who've been with us a decade or more; working hours that respect the neighborhood; and one owner your neighbors can reach directly. We've built on streets like these for two generations. The goal is that the only thing anyone notices is the finished home.
You found the street years ago. Now build the house.
If your lot in Terrell Hills is right but the house on it isn't — or you're weighing one that might be — please tell us about it. We'll draw a First Draft floor plan for the property, free and without obligation, and give you a straight read on what the site and the city will require.