Highland, Utah's Best Custom Home Builder and Remodeler
Custom home builders Highland Utah homeowners hire are working on some of the most valuable housing stock in Utah, where the average home is worth roughly $978,000. Ironwood Custom Builders treats it that way. Before anything gets demolished we map the full scope, schedule and cost, so the number you approve at the start is the number you pay at the end. That means a real line-item estimate, one project manager who answers the phone, and no mid-project surprises. Whether you are finishing a basement, adding a primary suite, or building a custom home from the ground up, our remodeling and construction team has done it in Utah County before.
Whole House Remodeling
Home Additions
Basement Remodeling
Kitchen Remodeling
Theater Room Remodeling
Bathroom Remodeling
ADU’s
Home Remodeling Highland, Utah
Highland is 8.5 square miles, all of it land, and most of it already built on. That single fact shapes almost every project we take here. There is no new frontier of subdivisions left to absorb growing families, so when a household outgrows its floor plan the answer is usually to reshape the house rather than move out of the city.
The numbers behind that are worth knowing. Highland had 1,864 housing units in 2000. By 2020 it had 4,761, and the population went from 8,172 to 19,348 over the same twenty years. Roughly six in ten Highland homes went up during that window, which means a very large share of the city is now hitting the twenty to twenty-five year mark all at once. That is exactly when kitchens start feeling closed off, primary baths start looking dated, and the unfinished half of the basement starts looking like wasted money.
Highland homes are also unusually large. The city has a higher share of four and five-plus bedroom houses than 98 percent of communities in America, and 92.8 percent of them are owner-occupied. Combine that with a median household income of $186,075 and a median age of 26.9, and you get a very specific customer: a family with kids still at home, in a big house they intend to keep, who would rather invest in the house than start over somewhere else.
We work across the whole city, including Dry Creek East and West, Beacon Hill, Bull River, Mercer Hollow, Spring Creek, Town Center Meadows, View Pointe, Twin Bridges, Wild Rose, Wimbleton, Windsor and Ridgeview. Permits for all of it run through the Highland City Building Division, not Utah County, because Highland operates its own building department and Utah County only handles unincorporated land. Our project managers file with Highland City directly. Worth flagging if you are planning a 2026 or 2027 project: Utah adopted the 2024 editions of the International Building, Plumbing, Mechanical, Energy Conservation and Existing Building codes effective July 1, 2026 under HB 65, with the Residential Code staying on the 2021 edition. See our full Highland home remodeling services for the complete scope, or read the background on Highland’s history and geography if you are new to the area.
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Kitchen Remodeling Highland, Utah
What a kitchen remodel costs in Highland comes down to how much of the layout moves, the cabinetry level and the finish selections. You get a complete itemized estimate for your specific kitchen before demolition starts, not a per-square-foot guess.
Most Highland kitchens we are asked to update came out of the 2000s and early 2010s building wave. They were built well, on generous footprints, but to a production spec: a peninsula or half-wall separating the kitchen from the family room, upper cabinets that stop a foot short of the ceiling, and a single wall oven. Three things usually deliver the most value:
- Open the wall between the kitchen and the family room. Highland floor plans from that era tend to be big but compartmentalized. Removing the divider gives you the connected great-room layout buyers now expect. Ironwood handles the structural assessment, engineering and the Highland City permit, so you are not coordinating an engineer and an inspector yourself.
- Build storage around a large household. Highland has more four and five-plus bedroom homes than 98 percent of the country, and 56.6 percent of households have children under 18. Floor-to-ceiling cabinetry, deep drawer lowers and a walk-in or pull-out pantry system matter more here than in a market of smaller households.
- Specify finishes for a near-million-dollar house. With the average Highland home around $978,000, the kitchen should still look current in fifteen years. Quartz, quartzite and porcelain slab are the surfaces we recommend most, and our breakdown of quartz versus granite countertops walks through the tradeoffs.
Ready to price yours? Talk to our Highland kitchen remodeling team.
Bathroom Remodeling Highland, Utah
Bathrooms are where a 2005 Highland house shows its age fastest. Builder-grade vanities, cultured marble tops, a garden tub nobody has filled in a decade, and a separate shower with a metal frame. The bones are fine. The fixtures and layout are twenty years old.
Cost on a primary bath comes down to square footage, fixture selection, and whether the plumbing moves. We scope the whole job first, including any plumbing or electrical rerouting, so the number you approve is the number that holds.
- Convert the single vanity to a double. The highest-return change we make in Highland, in a city where 84 percent of households are married couples and the median age is 26.9.
- Replace the tub-and-shower pair with one good shower. A curbless tiled shower with a bench usually beats keeping a garden tub that gets used twice a year. If you want a soaking tub, a freestanding one uses the space better.
- Redo tile, lighting and ventilation as one job. Piecemeal updates are why bathrooms end up looking assembled instead of designed. Do them together and the room reads as intentional.
Secondary and guest baths are worth doing at the same time, since the crew, the materials order and the permit are already in place. Start with our Highland bathroom remodeling page, or see the range of bathroom projects we build across Utah County.
Bathroom Addition Tips for Highland, UT
If you’re looking to add value to your home, why not focus on remodeling and upgrading your bathroom? Ironwood Custom Builders has some great tips that will help you upgrade without wasting money. Here are some ideas to consider for your bathroom renovation:
- Transform your master bathroom into a luxurious retreat by incorporating a stylish, freestanding clawfoot or Jacuzzi tub. Or, indulge in the captivating experience of a steam shower that offers the ultimate relaxation. Upgrade your shower enclosures and doors to enhance its sophistication and elegance. This small investment is guaranteed to be worth it in the end.
- Updating your tile is the most effective way to change the look of your bathroom. There are numerous designs to choose from that will instantly revitalize the space. The addition of accent tiles in the shower will also elevate its appearance. A significant modification you can make is converting a single sink in the master bath to a double sink or vanity. This upgrade not only increases functionality but will significantly increase your home’s resale value. If you’re a resident of Highland and want to give your bathroom a makeover, these changes should be at the top of your list.
- When undergoing a bathroom renovation, it’s crucial to create a stylish and polished appearance. Ironwood Custom Builders can help you achieve this by using our knowledge and expertise in this area.
Our experienced consultants are available to offer valuable advice about how to optimize your budget and space during your bathroom renovation project. We’ll collaborate with you throughout the entire process to build the bathroom of your dreams. Our history of awards and recognition across the country speaks to the exceptional quality you can expect when partnering with us, the top remodeling contractor in Highland. Let us turn your bathroom vision into a reality.
Basement Remodeling Highland, Utah
If you own a Highland home built in the last twenty-five years, you almost certainly have a full basement, and there is a good chance a large part of it is still framing and concrete. That is the cheapest square footage you will ever add, because the foundation, the roof and the exterior walls are already paid for.
A full finish covers framing, electrical, HVAC, insulation, drywall, flooring and a bathroom. The same crews who build our custom homes finish your basement, and we pull every Highland City permit and schedule every inspection as part of the job.
What Highland families actually build down there:
- A real home office, or two. Highland has more residents working in computer and math occupations than 95 percent of places in the United States. That means proper acoustic separation, hardwired network, dedicated circuits and lighting that works on camera, not a desk in the corner of the rec room.
- A multigenerational or in-law suite. Bedroom, full bath and a kitchenette, increasingly common in a city where the average household is large and extended family often lives nearby.
- A legal bedroom with an egress window. Converting storage into code-compliant sleeping space is the single change that most reliably adds appraised value.
- A theater room. Insulation, riser framing and AV rough-in go in while the walls are still open, which is why our theater room builds are much cheaper as part of a finish than as a retrofit.
- A gym. Rubber flooring, mirrored walls, reinforced framing for a rack, and enough ceiling height to press overhead.
- A family room with a wet bar. Still the most requested single feature in Highland basements.
For a fuller walkthrough of scope, permits and sequencing, read our guide to basement remodeling costs and permits, then see all our basement finishing work.
Basement Finishing Ideas
- Theater room
- Rec room
- Wine cellar
- Playroom
- Office space
- Additional bedrooms or bathrooms
- In-law suite
- Storage
Transform your basement into a beautiful living space with our expertise in remodeling and finishing. We possess comprehensive knowledge of the concepts listed above, as well as a variety of other personalized designs. Let us help you add extra square footage to your home today.
Home Addition Remodeling Highland, Utah
Highland is the clearest case in Utah County for building out instead of moving. The city is 8.5 square miles and effectively built out, homes sit on generous lots, and school assignment is stable enough that families do not want to risk it. Highland students feed Lone Peak High School, and Highland is part of the new Central District created when voters approved splitting Alpine School District, with the new districts beginning operations for the 2027 school year. Nobody wants to trade that for an extra 400 square feet somewhere else.
We design and build additions that read as original construction. That means matching roof pitch and rooflines, sourcing siding, stone and trim to the existing envelope, and carrying interior finishes through so the transition is not obvious. Structural engineering, the Highland City permit, and every subcontractor runs through one Ironwood project manager.
The additions we build most often in Highland are primary-suite additions, second-story additions over original single-level homes, garage expansions and shops, sunrooms, covered outdoor living, and accessory dwelling units for extended family. If you are early in the process, our roundup of home addition ideas and our breakdown of what drives primary suite addition cost are the two most useful things to read first. When you are ready, see the full range of home additions we build.
Luxury Home Builder Highland, Utah
uildable ground in Highland is scarce, which is exactly why the lots that do come available are worth building on properly. The city sits between the Wasatch front and Traverse Ridge, roughly thirty miles south of Salt Lake City, with Mount Timpanogos filling the eastern view and American Fork Canyon fifteen minutes away. Homesteaders settled the area in the 1870s, and Scottish immigrants named it for how much the terrain reminded them of the Scottish Highlands.
Location. Highland lots back onto open space, canal trail corridors and the Alpine Country Club, and the eastern side of the city gets the Timpanogos view that no amount of money buys back later. Sites are limited, so when one opens up the design needs to be ready.
Customization. A production plan cannot solve for two people working from home in computer and math careers, a household of six, and a great room built for extended family gatherings. A custom plan can. Start in our home plan design library and we will adapt from there.
First owner. No inherited DIY electrical, no deferred roof, no discovering someone tiled over a leak. Everything is new and everything is documented.
Energy efficiency. Utah moved to the 2024 International Energy Conservation Code on July 1, 2026. Building new lets you go past minimum compliance on envelope, glazing, mechanical and solar, which a 2004 house cannot retrofit to without gutting it.
Ironwood has won across nearly every Parade of Homes category, and we cap the number of builds we accept each year so your project actually gets attention. Call 801-893-7820, or look at what is available now and our custom home process. Neighboring Utah County communities we build in include Alpine and Lehi.
Why Choose Ironwood Custom Builders in Highland?
Ironwood has been recognized repeatedly as one of Utah’s best custom home builders and remodelers, including Parade of Homes awards, Salt Lake Home Builders Association Builder of the Year, and Best of Utah recognition. Four things separate us in Highland specifically:
- Highland City permitting, not Utah County. Highland runs its own building division, so plan review, fees and inspections work differently here than in unincorporated Utah County or across the line in Salt Lake County. Our project managers file with Highland City directly and know the current code cycle, including the codes that took effect July 1, 2026.
- A real number before you commit. Our pre-construction process is detailed enough that surprises are rare. You approve a line-item scope, not a range.
- One project manager. You talk to the same person from design through final walkthrough. No chasing trades, no contradictory answers.
- On time and on budget. We build schedules we can actually hold, and if something changes you hear it from us that week, not at handover.
See finished work in our project gallery, read about our team and process, then call 801-893-7820 or contact us online for a free consultation at your Highland home.
Ironwood Custom Builders Google Map
Directions from Highland to Ironwood Custom Builders
Highland, Utah Zip Codes
84003, 84062
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a permit to remodel or build in Highland, Utah?
Yes, for nearly any project involving framing, structure, electrical, plumbing, mechanical or new habitable space. Highland operates its own building division, so your permit goes through Highland City rather than Utah County, which only handles unincorporated land. Ironwood files every application and schedules every inspection as part of the job. Note that Utah moved to the 2024 International Building, Plumbing, Mechanical, Energy Conservation and Existing Building codes on July 1, 2026, with the Residential Code remaining on the 2021 edition.
Can I build an ADU in Highland, Utah?
Highland City requires an Accessory Dwelling Unit registration in addition to the building permit itself, and existing ADUs need a certificate of occupancy tied to an approved permit. That two-step process catches a lot of homeowners off guard. We handle both. See our ADU construction services for what is involved.
What kinds of homes does Ironwood remodel in Highland?
Mostly large houses built during Highland’s growth years. The city went from 1,864 housing units in 2000 to 4,761 in 2020, so roughly six in ten Highland homes are now twenty to twenty-five years old. Highland also has a higher share of four and five-plus bedroom houses than 98 percent of communities in America. That combination means most of our work here is opening up compartmentalized floor plans, replacing original kitchens and baths, and finishing basements that were left as concrete and framing at build.
Should I add on to my Highland home or move?
Highland is 8.5 square miles and effectively built out, so there is very little new inventory absorbing growing families. Lots are generous and school assignment is stable, with Highland students feeding Lone Peak High School. Highland is also part of the new Central District created when voters approved splitting Alpine School District, with the new districts beginning operations for the 2027 school year. For most families we talk to, adding square footage to a house they intend to keep beats giving up the lot.
How long does a remodel take in Highland?
A kitchen remodel typically runs 8 to 12 weeks from demolition to final walkthrough. A full basement finish runs 10 to 14 weeks. A primary bathroom is usually 4 to 6 weeks. Timelines depend on scope, material lead times and plan review. We set a detailed schedule at the start and update you as it moves.
