Cityview and Montage Launch New Homebuilding Effort

Two Los Angeles-area developers are joining forces to help post-wildfire rebuilding efforts in Altadena.

Century City-based Cityview and Calabasas-based Montage Development are partnering to create Genesis Builders, a new venture that will offer preapproved home designs and full-service construction management to homeowners in the Eaton fire burn zone looking to rebuild after the January blazes, L.A. Business First reported.

In addition to design and construction management, Genesis Builders will guide homeowners through the full rebuilding process, including securing approvals for site plans, with fixed pricing and a 10-year warranty on the homes.

Genesis’ home plans will be preapproved by Los Angeles County as a way of streamlining the permitting process. The firm “guarantees homes will be completed in 12 months or less” once they get the green light, according to Business First.

Homeowners who work with Genesis will be able to choose from six home plans ranging from 1,250 to 2,200 square feet and four different architectural styles: Mediterranean, traditional, craftsman or bungalow. The homes are designed to withstand future blazes with features like Class A-rated roofing materials; fire sprinklers; fire- and ember-resistant eaves, gutters and foundation vents; stucco siding; and concrete slabs. Homeowners will also be able to get real-time project tracking and construction reporting via progress photos.

Base prices for the homes will range from $670,000 to $880,000 depending on floor plan and architectural style. In December 2024, prior to the fires, the median home sale price in Altadena was about $1.3 million, according to Redfin. Buyers will also have the option to personalize their abodes, including adding accessory dwelling units. Some fire victims are planning to live in temporary ADUs on their lots as they await insurance payouts and permanent home construction projects.

Genesis isn’t the only homebuilder in the Los Angeles area offering turnkey solutions for fire victims.

Case Study 2.0, for example, is bringing together about 40 architects to design up to 50 different floor plans that can be submitted to the county for preapproval. It carries on the legacy of the original Case Study homes that were largely built in Los Angeles County during the baby boom.

Other firms, such as Plant Prefab, Azure Printed Homes and Ark Container Homes, are offering pre-fabricated homes in the form of 3D-printed houses, shipping containers and modular housing.

Across the county, the Pacific Palisades could get a boost thanks to two newly announced executive orders from Mayor Karen Bass designed for the Palisades.

Emergency Executive Order 8 will further streamline the permitting process for those seeking to rebuild bigger than before, while Executive Directive 13 will launch a preapproved standard plan pilot program for single-family homes, creating a public-facing, virtual library of preapproved, code-compliant designs such as those offered by Genesis and Case Study 2.0 to fast-track rebuild projects.

“While our recovery is on track to be the fastest in modern California history, I know that nothing will erase the unimaginable pain and loss that the Palisades community has endured,” the mayor said in a statement. “With debris removal months ahead of expectations, construction underway, and new action taken today to further streamline the rebuilding process, we continue to push forward in our all out effort to get families home.”

So far this year, Los Angeles County has issued 130 rebuilding permits, with 116 of those being in the Eaton burn zone, according to the county’s permitting progress dashboard. — Chris Malone Méndez