Clearing a lot for a build is a different job from clearing pasture. There is a survey, there is a site plan, and there are almost always trees on that plan the city expects to still be standing when the inspector turns up. Getting that wrong is expensive in a way that clearing an acre of cedar never is.
So we start with the plan rather than the machine. Send us the site plan and the tree survey if you have them.
What lot clearing costs
| Lot | Price | Scope |
|---|---|---|
| Quarter acre, light cover | $2,500 – $4,000 | Pad, drive and fence lines cleared and grubbed. |
| Half acre, moderate | $4,000 – $6,500 | Same, plus brush and scrub across the build envelope. |
| Full acre, heavy cedar | $6,500 – $9,000 | Grubbing, haul-off, protected trees fenced. |
| Tree protection fencing | $400 – $1,200 | Per lot. Often required by the city before work starts. |
Grubbing is what separates this from ordinary land clearing. A building pad cannot have root balls under it, so stumps come out rather than getting ground flush, and the ground finishes graded. That costs more and there is no way around it if something is getting built.
Tree protection is not optional
Austin requires protective fencing at the critical root zone of preserved trees before site work begins, and inspectors do check. The critical root zone is roughly a foot of radius for every inch of trunk diameter, so a 24-inch live oak needs a 24-foot radius kept clear.
Inside that fence: no vehicles, no material storage, no spoil piles, no washing out concrete. Compacting the soil over a root zone kills the tree slowly enough that nobody connects it to the build, and then you have a dead protected tree and a conversation with the city. We install the fencing and we will tell your crews where not to park.
Permits and the tree survey
Inside Austin, any tree 19 inches or more in diameter is protected wherever it stands, including on an empty lot, and 24 inches and above is a Heritage tree. A tree survey is normally part of the permit set, and removals have to be approved before anything is cut. Mitigation, meaning replanting inches or paying into the city’s fund, is common.
Round Rock and Georgetown run their own ordinances with their own thresholds and their own mitigation maths. Unincorporated county land in Hays or Williamson often has none at all. Check before you close on the land, not after: a lot with three Heritage live oaks across the buildable area is a different property from what the listing suggested. The permit guide has the thresholds.
How the job runs
- Site plan and tree survey, or we arrange the survey.
- Walk the lot, tape the keepers, agree the clearing limits against the plan.
- Protective fencing goes up at the critical root zones before any machine moves.
- Clear and grub the pad, drive and fence lines. Haul off or mulch, per the plan.
- Rough grade, then a walk-through before the builder takes the site.
Questions from builders and owners
How soon can you clear a lot?
The machine work on a typical quarter-acre Austin lot takes one to two days. The permit is the long pole, not the clearing. Removing protected trees can take several weeks to approve, so start that the moment you have a site plan rather than when the excavator is booked.
Do you grub the stumps or grind them?
Grub, anywhere something is going to be built or graded, because a root ball left under a pad will rot and settle. Grinding is fine for areas that stay as lawn or planting, and it is cheaper. We usually do both on one lot, grubbing the building envelope and grinding whatever falls outside it.
Can you work around a tree we want to keep?
Yes, and the fencing matters more than the cutting. Protect a radius of about one foot per inch of trunk diameter, so 24 feet for a 24-inch oak, and keep everything out of it: no parking, no storage, no spoil. Most preserved trees in Austin are not killed by the clearing, they are killed by six months of compaction afterwards.
Do you carry insurance for commercial sites?
Yes, general liability and workers’ compensation at {{INSURANCE_AMOUNT}}, and we send a certificate naming your entity as additional insured before we mobilise. Most Austin general contractors want that on file before a subcontractor sets foot on site, so ask for it early rather than the morning of.
Where we clear lots
Across the growth corridor: Austin, Leander, Georgetown, Hutto, Kyle, Buda, Round Rock, Cedar Park, Pflugerville and Lakeway.