BULA HOMES

BULA HOMES No shortcuts, no surprises.

Whether we're building a home from the foundation up, remodeling a kitchen or basement, or fitting a bathroom for safe aging-in-place, the work is done right the first time and build to last.

07/31/2026

Four things that decide whether a basement suite is straightforward or expensive.

Ceiling height comes first. Measure from the concrete floor up to the bottom of the joists. Under about 6'7" and you're into lowering the floor, which means underpinning or bench footing. That's the biggest number on most quotes, and people find out about it way too late.

Egress is second. Every bedroom in a suite needs a window big enough to climb out of. If there's no opening in the poured concrete yet, that's a concrete cutting crew, a lintel, and a window well with proper drainage. It's not a small line item, so count your bedrooms after you know where the windows can go, not before.

Third is water. White chalky residue at the base of the walls, dark staining near the floor, or a musty smell a couple days after rain all mean moisture is getting through. Drywall over top of that just hides the problem until it's mould. Check your downspouts and how the ground slopes away from the house. In older Burnaby homes the perimeter drain might still be clay tile from the seventies.

Fourth, nothing gets covered until it's been inspected. If anyone offers to board over rough-in early to save time, that's costing you money later.

19 years of hands-on experience in Burnaby and around Metro Vancouver.

Send us a photo of your basement and we'll tell you what you're actually dealing with.

07/26/2026

This is a concept design, not a finished job, showing what a typical 1970s Burnaby garage looks like once it's cleared, ground, coated, and fitted out properly. Same walls, same overhead door, same footprint. Nothing structural.

The part people get wrong is thinking they need to get rid of stuff. You don't. Almost everything on that floor fits on a wall or a shelf. Once it's off the concrete you get the whole slab back, and that's a parking spot or a workshop or just somewhere to put the recycling without turning sideways.

Order of operations if you're doing it yourself: empty it completely, fix the concrete, coat the floor, then mount storage. People do it backwards and end up working around their own cabinets.

19 years of hands-on experience and the epoxy is still the one step I'd tell you to hire out. It's unforgiving about prep and temperature, and Vancouver humidity doesn't help.

Send us a message if you want to know what your garage could do.

07/23/2026

That empty wall under your stairs? Wasted space.

Here's what it could become — a built-in wine display with glass doors and lit shelves.

📐 Concept design — this exact video is a visualization, but it's the kind of project a renovation can actually deliver.

Would you add this to your home, or would you use that space for something else? Tell us below 👇

07/19/2026

Who says the kitchen has to be inside? 🔥
Turned this backyard into the ultimate cooking spot. Grill, counters, storage, the works. And yes, it'll survive the rain.

Got a backyard that needs some love? Shoot us a message.

📍 Burnaby, Vancouver, BC

Design concept for anyone still working from the kitchen table.It's a small cedar clad office pod tucked at the back of ...
07/17/2026

Design concept for anyone still working from the kitchen table.

It's a small cedar clad office pod tucked at the back of the yard. A big sliding door, a proper desk inside, and warm light for the grey mornings we get out here. The commute is about twelve steps, and when the day is done you close the door and leave work behind you.

This is a concept, not a finished project, but it's the kind of thing we love designing for Burnaby lots with a bit of unused yard. If you've been thinking about it, message us and we'll talk it through.

You know the kitchen. Honey oak cabinets, a tile countertop with grout you gave up scrubbing, and a big fluorescent ligh...
07/15/2026

You know the kitchen. Honey oak cabinets, a tile countertop with grout you gave up scrubbing, and a big fluorescent light that buzzed a little. Plenty of homes around Burnaby still have one.

Swipe to slide two and you'll see where it can go. Two tone shaker cabinets, a proper island to gather around, and lighting that actually makes cooking pleasant. The walls didn't move and the footprint is the same. It just works the way a kitchen should now.

If your kitchen still belongs to a previous decade, message us. We're happy to talk through what's possible for your space.

An unfinished basement is one of the most overlooked sources of extra living space in a lot of Vancouver homes.Picture t...
07/13/2026

An unfinished basement is one of the most overlooked sources of extra living space in a lot of Vancouver homes.

Picture the same square footage you already have, but instead of bare concrete, exposed pipes, and a storage dumping ground, it's a real family room — proper flooring, finished walls, decent lighting, maybe even a small home office or gym tucked into a corner. The footprint of the house doesn't change at all, but how much usable space you actually have to live in absolutely does.

It's one of those projects that tends to pay for itself in day-to-day livability faster than people expect. If you've got a basement that's basically just storage right now, we'd love to talk through what it could realistically become.

📩 DM us for a quote — let's talk about what it could become.

"How long will this actually take?" is probably the question we hear most often, and it's a completely fair one to ask b...
07/09/2026

"How long will this actually take?" is probably the question we hear most often, and it's a completely fair one to ask before committing to a project.

The honest answer is that it really depends on scope. A bathroom refresh might realistically be done in a few weeks. A kitchen renovation often lands somewhere in the range of a couple of months once you factor in permits, materials, and the actual build. A full home build is its own much longer timeline. What we think matters most is that a contractor should be able to give you a realistic range upfront, not just a vague "it depends" and nothing else.

If you're trying to plan around a move, a baby, a sale, or just want to know what you're getting into, we're happy to give you a straightforward read on timing for your specific project.

📩 DM us — we'll give it to you straight.

This stage of a renovation never looks impressive in photos, but it's honestly one of the most important parts of the wh...
07/07/2026

This stage of a renovation never looks impressive in photos, but it's honestly one of the most important parts of the whole process.

Once the framing is up and before drywall goes in, every wire, pipe, and stud gets checked and double-checked. It's not glamorous work, and none of it will be visible once the finishes go in — but it's exactly the stuff that determines whether a space holds up well for the next twenty years or starts causing problems in five.

We think it's worth showing, even though it's not the prettiest part of the job. If you're curious what actually goes on behind your walls during a project like this, we're always happy to walk through it.

📩 DM us — happy to talk through any project, big or small.

There's a difference between a living room that looks nice in photos and one that actually works for how a family lives ...
07/05/2026

There's a difference between a living room that looks nice in photos and one that actually works for how a family lives in it day to day.

The good ones usually share a few things in common: built-in shelving that earns its space instead of just collecting clutter, a fireplace that acts as a natural gathering point, and warm wood tones that age well instead of feeling dated after a couple of years. It's less about chasing trends and more about getting the bones of the room right.

This is exactly the kind of detail we love building into a project, whether it's a full custom home or a single room refresh. If you've got a living room that doesn't quite feel like "you" yet, we'd love to talk through what could change that.

📩 Book a consultation — link in bio.

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Burnaby, BC

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