REAL ESTATE NEWS

A year after the Palisades and Eaton fires destroyed thousands of homes across Pacific Palisades, Malibu and Altadena, rebuilding activity is showing clear signs of acceleration, with more homeowners transitioning from recovery planning to design approvals, permit issuance and early construction.

According to the State of California?s Los Angeles Fires rebuilding tracker, thousands of rebuild-related applications have been submitted across impacted jurisdictions, with permitting activity continuing to rise.

In early January, CalMatters reported that more than 2,600 residential permits had been issued between the Palisades and Altadena, reflecting measurable progress in the rebuild pipeline as the recovery enters its second year.

Momentum Builds as More Projects Move from Planning to Execution

Rebuild progress is increasingly evident on the ground ? not only in debris removal and remediation work, but also in the number of projects now moving into permitting and construction-ready milestones.

While timelines remain site-dependent and homeowners continue to navigate cost considerations, more projects are now advancing into plan approval, contractor selection and permit issuance.

The shift is significant because it signals that rebuilding is entering a more active stage. For many homeowners, reaching this phase has required months of insurance documentation, temporary housing coordination and site preparation before any construction work could begin.

Resilience-First Design Becomes the Rebuild Standard

As more homeowners enter the design and permitting phase, resilience is increasingly shaping how homes are being planned and built in wildfire-prone communities.

Culver City-based architecture firm SPF:architects, which is active in Palisades- and Altadena-area rebuilds, has emphasized that wildfire recovery is changing how homeowners think about design and materials.

In June 2025, SPF:architects Design Principal and Co-Founder, Zoltan E. Pali, FAIA, told GlobeSt.com that the firm expected rebuilding to increase steadily as insurance settlements were finalized and city support mechanisms continued to roll out.

That trend is now bearing out. Rebuilds are increasingly being designed around durability and fire resilience, rather than simply replicating pre-fire housing.

Pali said that concrete and steel strategies can create more ember-resistant building envelopes, offering significantly higher fire performance than conventional wood assemblies.

Innovative, Fire-Resistant Materials Gain Traction in Burn Zones

With resilience becoming a baseline expectation, material selection is assuming greater importance, particularly for homeowners seeking to reduce their fuel load and enhance disaster resilience.

RSG 3-D has gained visibility in the recovery ecosystem for a building panel system designed to be noncombustible and disaster-resistant. The company manufactures a lightweight foam core panel reinforced with steel wire, which is set between concrete layers to create walls, floors and roofs.

For homeowners exploring fire-resistant construction, these assemblies offer an alternative to traditional building systems, balancing durability with practical considerations like lot constraints and overall project cost.

Over the past year, RSG 3-D has expanded rapidly in Los Angeles? burn zones, with roughly 85 ongoing projects today, including dozens of homeowners rebuilding in Pacific Palisades and Altadena.

The company has also positioned its pricing as competitive with conventional wood-frame construction, with panels representing an estimated 5% of total construction costs on a typical project ? a dynamic that may help accelerate broader adoption of noncombustible materials in high-risk fire areas.

Bringing Manufacturing to the Rebuild Site

Beyond resilience-focused design and materials, rebuilding efforts are also driving interest in construction approaches that can reduce uncertainty in schedule and labor.

As rebuilding timelines become a major consideration, alternative construction platforms are gaining visibility, particularly those focused on improving predictability.

Ghost Factory has emerged as a notable player in the recovery ecosystem, with a mobile manufacturing model designed to support rebuilding in the Palisades and Eaton burn zones.

Rather than relying solely on traditional framing schedules, Ghost Factory deploys on-site factories to produce cold-formed steel framing components. The approach is intended to tighten production control, reduce supply chain friction and help projects move from permit issuance to vertical construction more efficiently.

In a rebuilding environment shaped by labor constraints and high demand, the ability to manufacture structural components closer to the job site is increasingly seen as a practical tool to support faster timelines as construction shifts toward more fire-resistant strategies.

New Capital Strategies Help Homeowners Return

As rebuilding moves forward, one of the most important questions remains feasibility, particularly for homeowners navigating rising construction costs and insurance shortfalls.

Another sign of progress is the growth of rebuilding-support platforms that help residents remain in their communities.

Village Rebuild, active in Pacific Palisades, has been working with homeowners facing the gap between insurance proceeds and today?s construction costs, using an equity-partner model designed to reduce financial strain and help families rebuild without being forced to sell.

As rebuilding enters its second year, this approach is becoming increasingly relevant, particularly for longtime residents who want to return but need more support than the traditional rebuild process provides.

Rebuilding Advances, Long-Term Housing Stock Improves

While the scale of loss means recovery will remain a multi-year process, rebuilding now appears to be on firmer footing than it was six-to-nine months ago.

Permitting activity continues to grow, more homeowners are reaching construction-ready milestones and the rebuilding itself is catalyzing improvements in housing resilience across some of California?s highest-risk wildfire zones.

As the region enters year two, the recovery is increasingly defined not only by speed but also by stronger building envelopes, more durable material strategies and new models that help residents return home.

Source: GlobeSt/ALM