Best General-contractor in Houston, TX — 36 Vetted Contractors

No — Texas has no statewide general contractor license, and Houston doesn't layer on a separate city-level GC license either. This is different from electricians and plumbers, who are licensed through TDLR and the Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners. Since there's no license to check, your best protections are verifying general liability insurance, checking references, and getting a detailed written contract before work starts.

Simple residential permits through the Houston Permitting Center can be approved within a few days to two weeks if plans are complete, but additions, structural changes, or anything touching floodplain rules can take four to eight weeks with plan review. If your contractor quotes a start date that doesn't account for permit lead time, ask them to walk through the timeline specifically.

Houston sits on expansive clay soils that shrink and swell significantly with seasonal moisture changes, which causes more foundation movement here than in most U.S. metros. It's routine for a GC to bring in a foundation specialist to assess and shore up a home before starting interior renovation work, particularly in older pier-and-beam homes in neighborhoods like the Heights or Garden Oaks.

Yes, especially after Hurricane Harvey led the City of Houston to update its floodplain ordinance (Chapter 19). If your home falls within a FEMA-mapped floodplain, substantial improvements — generally renovations valued at 50% or more of the home's market value — can trigger requirements to elevate the structure or floodproof it. Check your address on FEMA's flood map service before finalizing project scope.

Permits and inspections inside the city are handled by the Houston Permitting Center under Houston Public Works. If your property is in unincorporated Harris County, permitting instead goes through Harris County Permits, a separate office with its own review process and inspector schedule. Make sure your contractor knows which jurisdiction your address falls under — pulling a permit through the wrong office delays everything.

Most mid-range kitchen remodels in the Houston metro run $25,000-$75,000 depending on layout changes, cabinet quality, and appliance tier. Projects that stay within the existing footprint and reuse plumbing/electrical locations trend toward the lower end; moving walls or relocating plumbing pushes costs up. Get itemized bids from at least two or three contractors so you can compare labor markup separately from materials.

It's worth asking about directly. Houston's humidity, per NOAA climate data, keeps dew points high for much of the year, and any renovation that opens up walls in a bathroom, kitchen, or older home should include a check for existing moisture damage before new drywall goes up. A contractor who doesn't mention vapor barriers or ventilation when discussing bathroom work is worth a follow-up question.

Not necessarily, but it does affect scheduling — July and August are peak demand months for roofing and exterior work after spring storm damage, so contractor availability tightens and lead times stretch. Interior remodels aren't as affected by season, but if your project includes roofing, siding, or anything storm-related, expect to book further out during hurricane season (June through November).