Waiting on Recovery Funds? 5 Things You Can Do Now to Be Ready to Rebuild
It's been a long time.
For many Altadena homeowners, the months since the Eaton Fire have been filled with uncertainty — insurance questions, legal decisions, funding gaps and a lot of waiting.
As recovery funds begin reaching more homeowners, the next question becomes: How quickly can I actually get my rebuild moving?
The goal isn’t to rush anyone into construction. It’s to use this time to get prepared — so when your funding is in place, you already understand your lot, your home options, your budget and the team you want behind you.
A practical place to start: Rebuild Jump Start
You don’t have to be ready to build to start getting ready.
Our Rebuild Jump Start Package was created for exactly this stage. It gives homeowners a deeper look at their lot, plan fit, site considerations, early budget guidance, timeline and next steps — without requiring a full construction commitment. Remington Rebuilds
1. Understand your lot
Start with the property itself.
Lot size, setbacks, utilities, slope, access and existing site conditions can all influence what you can rebuild and what it may cost.
A simple first step is to use our Search Your Lot tool to explore your property and see which Remington plans may fit. Search Your Lot
The sooner you understand the lot, the sooner you can narrow the choices that actually make sense.
2. Get clearer about what you want to rebuild
You don’t need every finish picked out, but you can begin answering the bigger questions now.
Do you want to rebuild something similar to your previous home? Smaller? Larger? One story or two? Would an ADU or detached garage help meet your family’s needs?
Remington offers a library of one- and two-story plans, ADUs and garage options designed for Altadena lots. Explore Floorplans & Architecture
And if you already have architectural plans, you may not need to start over. In many cases, our team can review homeowner-provided plans and determine whether they are a good fit for our building process.
3. Understand your budget — and any funding gap
Before funds arrive, try to get as clear as possible about the full rebuilding picture.
That means understanding construction pricing, site-related costs, plan and engineering needs, ADUs or garages, selections and upgrades — not just a base home price.
And if available insurance or recovery funds will not cover the full rebuild, this is also the time to understand whether gap financing may be an option.
Remington Rebuilds is part of the Altadena Land Initiatives Builder Network. Qualifying homeowners may be eligible for zero-interest gap financing to help bridge the difference between available rebuilding funds and the actual cost of construction. ALI says repayment can be tied to future recovery funds or, under the program terms, a future sale or refinance. Eligibility is determined individually.
4. Choose your rebuilding team before you need them
Once the money is in place, you don’t want to spend another several months figuring out who is going to build your home.
Use this waiting period to understand who will actually be responsible for your project: plans, permitting, pricing, purchasing, construction, inspections, communication and warranty.
Remington brings more than 50 years of homebuilding experience and firsthand wildfire rebuilding experience, including more than 130 homes rebuilt after the Marshall Fire. Our team works across planning, permitting, purchasing, construction and warranty as one coordinated homebuilding operation.
5. Know what happens after you say “go”
Receiving funds is a major milestone. But permits, engineering, design decisions, selections and preconstruction work still have to happen before a home can be built.
Understanding that sequence now helps you know what can be done ahead of time — and what still needs to happen once you are ready to move forward.
Be ready when the time comes
Altadena homeowners have already waited long enough.
Preparing now doesn’t mean rushing into a decision. It means doing the legwork so that when your funding picture becomes clear, you don’t have to begin at the beginning.
Know your lot.
Know what you want to rebuild.
Understand the budget.
Know your team.
Know the next step.
You don’t have to be ready to build to get ready to rebuild. We're here to help.
