LA Knob and Tube publishes these figures so you can plan before anyone visits. Whole-house knob and tube replacement in the Los Angeles area typically costs $10 to $20 per square foot of living area for the wiring itself, and a national budgeting range for a typical house is $12,000 to $35,000. Panel upgrades and plaster restoration are usually extra. Where a house falls depends mostly on how many circuits are still live and how open the attic and crawlspace are, which is what a knob and tube inspection maps.
Typical ranges
| Work | Range | Range type | What it covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whole-house knob and tube replacement | $10 to $20 per sq ft | Typical LA-area range | Branch wiring for the finished living area; excludes panel and finish restoration |
| Whole-house knob and tube replacement | $12,000 to $35,000 | National budgeting range | A typical single-family house; patching and panel work vary |
| Panel upgrade, 100 to 200 amps | $2,500 to $5,500 | Typical LA-area range | Same location, no meter, mast or utility-side work |
| New or replaced outlet | $150 to $350 each | Typical LA-area range | One receptacle on an existing circuit, outside a rewire |
These are budgeting ranges, not quotes. LA-area figures for whole-house work sit slightly below national ones at the low end, which may be optimistic for a house with tight access, so the national range is the safer number for a first budget. Partial replacement, inspection and plaster restoration have no single range here because the published figures for them disagree too widely to be useful. The factors below explain how to think about them.
What moves the price
| Factor | Why it changes the price |
|---|---|
| Number of live knob and tube circuits | Each circuit is a new cable run, new connections at the panel and often new boxes |
| Attic and crawlspace access | A tall, clear crawlspace lets first-floor circuits come up from below; a shallow or crowded one means more wall openings |
| Plaster or drywall | Plaster on wood lath is slower to open cleanly and to patch than drywall |
| Stories and layout | Second floors and rooms with no open space above or below need longer or harder routes |
| Panel capacity | A full or undersized panel can add a panel upgrade, and sometimes a service upgrade with the utility |
| Patching and paint | Closing openings, matching texture and repainting can be quoted in, quoted separately or left out |
| Finished ceilings and historic trim | Coved ceilings, picture rails and original trim take more care to work around |
| Insulation and attic conditions | Blown-in insulation over old runs slows attic work and affects what has to be replaced; see attic insulation |
| Occupied home | Working around furniture and keeping most of the house powered adds protection and sequencing |
What’s inside a Los Angeles knob and tube replacement price
Part of every rewiring price is set by figures anyone can look up. The table shows those public inputs next to the parts that have no public figure.
| Part of the price | What sets it | Local figure |
|---|---|---|
| Electrician labor | The local wage for licensed electricians and how many hours the access allows | Mean $39.57 an hour in the Los Angeles metro, against $34.37 nationally (BLS) |
| Code-required protection | The California Electrical Code requires arc-fault protection on replaced circuits in living areas and tamper-resistant receptacles | Breaker or outlet-type AFCI on each replaced living-area circuit |
| Permit and inspection | Fees set by the city’s building department | LADBS: see the LADBS permit fee calculator; Pasadena: $78 processing fee, $28 for the first 10 outlets or fixtures, $8 each after, $21 per breaker (City of Pasadena fee schedule) |
| Panel and service | Panel capacity and whether the utility has to change the service | LADWP says it generally charges no installation fee when existing service can carry the new demand; Pasadena Water & Power lists $1,238.19 for a 200-amp overhead service |
| Plaster restoration | Number of openings, plaster or drywall, texture and paint | No public figure; check it as a separate line on the quote |
| Access and protection | Crawlspace height, attic clearance, occupied rooms | No public figure; set by the walk-through |
Electricians in the Los Angeles metro earn a mean $39.57 an hour, about 15% above the $34.37 national mean, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That gap explains part of why LA rewiring costs more than national averages. A wage is not a billing rate, though: the hourly rate a contractor charges also carries licensing, insurance, vehicles, supervision and overhead. Restoration labor shows a smaller gap, with LA plasterers earning about 2.5% above the national mean.
Permit fees
In the City of Los Angeles, the electrical permit is issued by LADBS, and nearly every house rewire permit is an express permit without plan check. LADBS fees are charged per circuit, panel and service, with surcharges, and the department’s online fee calculator gives the current total for a given scope. Pasadena, Glendale and South Pasadena charge their own fees. The Los Angeles rewiring permit guide explains who can pull the permit and what the inspections check.
Panel upgrades and the utility
A rewire does not always need a new panel, and a new panel does not remove any knob and tube. When the existing panel is full, outdated or too small for the new circuits, a 100 to 200 amp panel upgrade in the same location typically runs $2,500 to $5,500 in the LA area. Moving the panel, replacing the mast or changing the service adds utility work. LADWP generally does not charge to install an upgraded service its existing lines can carry, while Pasadena Water & Power publishes fixed charges for new services. The panel upgrade vs rewiring guide explains when each is needed.
Incentives and programs
No current program in the LA area pays for knob and tube replacement on its own.
| Program | What it covered | Status for knob and tube work |
|---|---|---|
| Federal energy efficient home improvement credit (25C) | Panel upgrades installed with qualifying equipment | Ended for property placed in service after December 31, 2025 (IRS) |
| California home electrification rebates (HEEHRA) | Heat pumps for single-family homes; panel and wiring upgrades in multifamily buildings | Fully reserved statewide; not accepting new reservations (TECH Clean California) |
| LA Housing Department Handyworker program | Minor repairs for qualifying seniors and residents with disabilities | Excludes major electrical work (LAHD) |
| LA Mills Act program | Property tax relief for designated historic properties, with rehabilitation commitments | Lists electrical system replacement as qualifying rehabilitation work; new applications are on hold while the city reassesses the program (LA City Planning) |
The Mills Act is not a rebate, but for an owner of a designated historic house it can make a full rewire part of a contract that lowers property taxes. The historic homes guide covers how it works, and the main knob and tube guide explains why older systems are replaced at all.
Illustrative budgets
These examples apply the ranges above to made-up houses. They are illustrations, not quotes.
| Illustrative house | Wiring at $10 to $20 per sq ft | Possible additions |
|---|---|---|
| 1,100 sq ft one-story bungalow, tall crawlspace | $11,000 to $22,000 | Patching; a panel upgrade if the panel is full |
| 1,600 sq ft two-story house, plaster throughout | $16,000 to $32,000 | More patching for second-floor routes; panel upgrade |
| 1,400 sq ft house, half already rewired in a remodel | Priced by the circuits in scope | Partial job; see partial replacement |
Getting a quote you can compare
Two quotes for the same house can differ by thousands because they cover different things. An insurer’s requirements, covered in the California insurance guide, can also change the scope. Ask each quote to list the circuits in scope, the openings planned, whether patching and paint are included, the permit, and whether any knob and tube stays. The rewiring quote checklist has the full list, and the cost estimator shows how the factors above move a whole-house figure. When you want a number for your house, call or request an estimate, and the walk-through starts with the circuit map.