About Us

Our story

Gary W. Giesen General Contractor, Inc. is a residential general contractor based in San Rafael, owned and run by Gary Giesen. We build what Marin homeowners actually ask for: kitchen remodels, home additions, and ADUs — plus bathrooms, decks, and windows — across the county, from Novato to Belvedere.

Most Marin homes are older — 1920s to 1960s Craftsman, bungalow, and ranch houses on hillside lots — and most have been added to, opened up, or rebuilt more than once. The difference between a remodel that holds its value and one that becomes a headache is almost never the finishes. It is the framing, the foundation, the permits, and the patience to do the hidden work properly.

We are a small company on purpose. You talk to the people building your house, and the person who prices the job is the person responsible for it.

Licensed, bonded & insured

Three promises

1. Permits done right. Additions and ADUs live or die on permits and plans. We pull them, we follow them, and every job is closed out properly.
2. Written price, no surprises. We look at the house in person and give you a written price for the scope agreed — no allowances hiding the real number.
3. Clean, safe job site. The site is protected, the work is sequenced properly, and the house is cleaned daily. You should come home to progress, not a hazard.

How a project runs

1. Consultation. We talk through what you want built, what the lot allows, and what Marin's rules require.
2. Site visit & written price. We walk the house, measure, and price the agreed scope in writing.
3. Permits & plans. Design, plans, and permits are handled before a wall comes down.
4. Build & walkthrough. We build in sequence, keep the site clean, and walk the finished job with you, point by point, before we call it done.