Deck Building
The flat back yard in Ballard waiting for the entertaining deck. The Bellevue split-level whose old 12x16 cedar platform has outlived its 1990s lifespan. The Mercer Island hillside lot where the deck plan needs stamped engineering. The Capitol Hill condo with a south-facing terrace and the building manager requiring a structural memo before any framing happens. The Snoqualmie home where the homeowner is deciding between cedar and composite for the new build. Deck building is the new-construction trade — framing the structure from the post bases up, decking it with the chosen material, railing it to code, capping the rail, fascia-ing the rim, and flashing the ledger if it ties to the house. Handis self-performs all nine service families below — composite, cedar, pressure-treated, PVC, hardwood ipe, multi-level and elevated, floating ground-level, rooftop and condo, and hillside engineered. Permits and stamped engineering on builds that need them are pulled and coordinated by Handis as the general contractor. Peak season is April through September; we book the dry-window calendar early. From $8,000 for a floating ground-level deck to $80,000 for a multi-level engineered hillside build.
Services
What Deck Building Covers
Deck building is the new-construction side of the deck trade — framing a structure from the post bases up, decking it with the chosen material, railing it to code, capping the rail, and flashing the ledger where the deck ties into the house. Nine service families below covering the full Puget Sound spectrum: the budget pressure-treated builds, the traditional Northwest cedar builds, the modern low-maintenance composites (Trex, TimberTech, Fiberon, Deckorators), the premium PVC and hardwood ipe builds, the multi-level and elevated builds on flat lots, the floating ground-level builds that need no permit, the rooftop and condo builds with their building-management coordination, and the Eastside hillside builds that require engineered footings and stamped drawings. Handis self-performs every cut, every joist hanger, every flashing detail. Permits and engineering on builds that warrant them are pulled and coordinated by Handis as the general contractor.
Composite Deck
Capped polymer over a wood core or solid polymer boards from the four major brand lines we install — Trex, TimberTech, Fiberon, Deckorators. Low maintenance, no annual staining, 25 to 50-year manufacturer warranties depending on the line. The modern Seattle standard for new builds where the homeowner does not want the maintenance cycle. Handis frames, decks, hidden-fastens, rails, caps, and flashes. The composite-deck service hub lists the four brand variants below. From $28,000 for a Fiberon or Deckorators build to $68,000 for a premium TimberTech build on a larger footprint.
Composite Deck — Trex, TimberTech, Fiberon, Deckorators
Cedar Deck
Western red cedar decking and framing — the traditional Northwest material. Warm color new, ages silver-gray on the surface, takes stain well, needs annual or biennial stain to hold its color. Cedar 5/4 by 6-inch decking on PT framing is the standard build; full-cedar framing is an upgrade option for premium builds. Lasts 15 to 30 years on a Pacific Northwest deck with regular maintenance. From $18,000 for a standard 200 to 300-square-foot build to $40,000 for a larger build with cedar railing, cap rail, fascia, and stair detailing.
Cedar Deck — western red cedar decking, PT or cedar framing
Pressure-Treated Deck
Pressure-treated southern yellow pine decking and framing — the lowest-cost build. Treated with copper-based preservative (ACQ or MCA) for ground-contact and wet-exposure durability. Lasts 15 to 25 years with annual staining and proper fastener selection (hot-dipped galvanized or stainless — regular galvanized corrodes against the ACQ chemistry within years). The right choice when budget is the driver and the homeowner accepts the annual maintenance cycle. From $14,000 for a standard build to $28,000 for a larger build with PT railing and stair detailing.
Pressure-Treated Deck — ACQ-treated SYP, hot-dipped galvanized or stainless fasteners
PVC Deck
Cellular PVC decking — fully synthetic, no wood core. The most weather-resistant deck material on the market, with the longest manufacturer warranties (50-year limited residential is common). Slip-resistant texture, color-through construction (scratches do not show a wood core underneath), and the easiest to clean. Premium pricing matches the premium material. From $32,000 for a standard build to $70,000 for a larger build with premium railing and detailing.
PVC Deck — cellular PVC, lifetime-class warranties
Hardwood (Ipe) Deck
Tropical hardwood ipe (also known as Brazilian walnut) decking — the premium natural-wood option, denser and harder than oak, with 50+ year life expectancy when oiled annually. The most expensive material we install. Aesthetic appeal is the dark rich grain that ages to a silver patina if left unoiled. Stainless-steel fasteners or hidden fasteners required — ipe is too hard for standard deck screws. From $40,000 for a standard build to $80,000 for a larger build with ipe railing and cap rail.
Hardwood (Ipe) Deck — tropical hardwood, stainless or hidden fasteners
Multi-Level / Elevated Deck
Decks with two or more levels at different heights, or single-level decks elevated more than 8 feet above grade, requiring stamped structural engineering and more elaborate footing systems. Common on lots where the back yard slopes away from the house or where the floor of the home sits well above grade. Each level is a separate framed structure tied together with stairs. From $35,000 for a two-level build on a moderate elevation to $80,000 for a complex multi-level build on a sloped lot.
Multi-Level / Elevated Deck — two or more levels, stamped engineering
Floating / Ground-Level Deck
Detached deck sitting at or near grade, typically under 30 inches above the ground at any point and not attached to the house. Below Seattle DCI's permit threshold for most jurisdictions (verify with your specific city). The simplest build — no ledger, no railing required by code if under 30 inches, often supported on adjustable deck blocks or shallow piers instead of full-depth concrete footings. From $8,000 for a 200-square-foot floating deck to $18,000 for a larger build with steps and a transition platform.
Floating / Ground-Level Deck — sub-30-inch detached, deck blocks or shallow piers
Rooftop & Condo Deck
Decks built on existing rooftops, condo terraces, and over occupied space below. The complication is structural — the building below was not always designed for the deck load, and most condo associations and rooftop projects require a structural memo or stamped drawings showing the building can carry the loaded deck weight. Pedestal-paver systems over membrane roofing are common; framed wood decks on roof curbs are the alternative. We coordinate the building management or HOA review and pull the permit. From $25,000 for a standard rooftop pedestal-paver deck to $60,000 for a larger framed wood deck on a complex roof.
Rooftop & Condo Deck — pedestal pavers, framed wood, building-management coordination
Hillside / Sloped-Lot Deck
The Eastside specialty — decks on sloped lots where the grade drops away from the house and engineered footings are required by the soil bearing and the loaded deck weight. Helical piers, augered concrete piers with steel post bases, or driven structural piles depending on the soil report and the engineer's drawings. The footing system IS the deck on these builds; the framing is the easier part. Stamped engineering and Seattle DCI (or appropriate jurisdiction) permit on every build. From $35,000 for a moderately sloped lot to $80,000 for a complex multi-level hillside build.
Hillside / Sloped-Lot Deck — engineered footings, stamped drawings, helical or concrete piers
Deck Building Pricing
Final pricing depends on square footage, material selection, the existing site conditions (flat lot vs slope, attached vs freestanding, ground-level vs elevated), railing material, and whether stamped engineering is required. Each variant page below has detailed pricing for that material or build type. Engineering, Seattle DCI permit fees, and licensed-electrical or licensed-gas portions are pass-through line items named in the project total. Request a free in-home estimate for an accurate quote.
Tell us the lot, the square footage you have in mind, and which material direction you are leaning — we will quote the project including engineering, permits, and licensed-sub coordination.
Why Homeowners Book Handis for Deck Building
A deck is a small structural engineering project disguised as a carpentry job. The frame carries 40 pounds per square foot of live load by IRC, plus the deck weight itself, plus the wet snow and rain loads the Puget Sound puts on it. Multiply by the deck footprint and you are routinely above 10,000 pounds of design load on a mid-size deck — all of it transferred through the joists into the beams, the beams into the posts, the posts into the footings, the footings into the soil. Any one of those load paths failing means the deck moves or eventually drops. The catastrophic deck collapses that hit the news every summer are not random — they are almost always a ledger failure (un-flashed and rotted, or nailed instead of bolted) or a post-base failure (rotted post against wet soil with no concrete pier). Handis builds for the full load path. Framing inspected before deck goes on; flashing inspected before siding closes back. The permit and the engineering are not bureaucratic friction — they are the third-party check that the structure adds up.
Permit and engineering as part of the project — pulled by Handis
Decks over 30 inches above grade, attached decks of any height, multi-level builds, hillside builds, large overhangs, and any build that triggers Seattle DCI (or your jurisdiction's) deck thresholds get a permit under Handis's general-contractor license. Stamped engineering — when the build needs it — is coordinated with a licensed structural engineer on our regular bench. Engineering fees and permit fees are pass-through line items on the quote, named line by line, never marked up.
IRC ledger schedule, through-bolted, Z-flashed, bottom-plate-inspected
Every attached-deck ledger Handis builds is through-bolted with 1/2-inch hot-dipped galvanized or stainless lag bolts at 16-inch on-center staggered top/bottom per the International Residential Code ledger schedule (IRC R507.9.1.3), Z-flashed under the siding with the flashing leg tucked behind the weather-resistive barrier, and the bottom plate of the wall behind the ledger gets opened, inspected, and replaced if there is rot. A ledger bolted to a rotted bottom plate is the failure mode behind most catastrophic deck-collapse incidents.
Post bases on concrete piers, never wood against wet soil
Every post on a Handis-built deck sits on a galvanized or stainless steel post base anchored into a poured concrete pier (or onto a helical pier cap on the engineered builds). Wood directly against wet Puget Sound soil rots from the bottom up — measured in years, not decades. The post-base hardware lifts the post off the concrete by 1 inch, lets the wood drain and dry between rains, and the concrete pier carries the load down to undisturbed soil at the depth the engineer (or the prescriptive code on standard builds) calls for.
Honest material guidance on the booking call
We will tell you on the booking call which material direction makes sense for your budget, your deck life expectancy, and your appetite for the maintenance cycle. PT for the lowest-cost build with annual staining accepted. Cedar for the traditional Northwest look with biennial staining accepted. Composite for the low-maintenance new-build standard with the 25 to 50-year warranties. PVC for the premium long-warranty option. Ipe for the highest-end natural-wood option. We do not push the most-expensive material we sell — we recommend the right one for the project.
Honest licensed-trade handoff, named on the quote
Low-voltage stair and rail lighting (12-volt landscape transformers) stays in Handis scope. Any new line-voltage outdoor outlet, the 240V circuit for a hot tub on the new deck, any hardwired pergola fixture, or any gas line for a fire feature routes to a licensed Washington L&I electrician or licensed gas fitter — named on the quote with the permit owner identified. We are not licensed electricians or gas fitters and we do not pretend to be.
Insured, background-checked, written project warranty
Handis carries general liability and workers' compensation; every carpenter has cleared a background screening before the first job. One-year warranty on decking, railing, cap rail, fascia, and finishes; two-year warranty on structural framing (joists, beams, posts, ledger flashing) on full new builds. If any structural member fails inside two years, we come back and replace it at no extra charge. The licensed-electrical and licensed-gas portions carry their own L&I-trade warranties.
Estimate
Tell us the lot (flat back yard, sloped hillside, rooftop or condo terrace), the deck attachment (attached to the house, freestanding, multi-level), the rough square footage you have in mind, the material direction (PT, cedar, composite, PVC, ipe — or undecided and want a recommendation), the railing material preference, and any add-ons (stairs to a lower level, built-in benches, hot-tub pad, low-voltage lighting). We send a clear estimate with engineering, permits, and licensed-sub portions named line by line.
Customer Reviews
Recent deck building reviews from real Handis customers across the Puget Sound.
New 480-square-foot Trex Transcend deck on our flat back yard in Ballard. Capped cedar railing on three sides, low-voltage step lights at the stairs, mitered fascia. Handis pulled the Seattle DCI permit, framed in five working days, decked and railed in three more. Passed final inspection on the first walk-through. The cap rail is dead flat across 24 feet.
Multi-level cedar deck on our Mercer Island hillside, three different elevations following the slope down to the lawn. Handis brought a structural engineer in on visit two, stamped drawings two weeks later. Helical piers went in before any framing — they showed me the inspection log from the pier installer. Six weeks total including engineering and permit. Through one winter now with zero movement.
Pressure-treated deck rebuild in Renton, replacing a 1992 build that had rotted at the posts and the ledger. Handis demoed the old deck, inspected the wall behind the ledger (rotted bottom plate, replaced), rebuilt to current code. Used the stainless-steel fasteners they explained were necessary for the new ACQ-treated PT — apparently regular galvanized corrodes against the new chemistry. Came in at $19,500 for a 240-square-foot build with full PT railing.
360-square-foot composite deck (TimberTech Vintage) in Sammamish, attached to the back of the house. We had been getting bids from $42,000 to $58,000 — Handis quoted $46,500 with the cap-rail and aluminum railing upgrade included. They were the only contractor who opened the wall behind the proposed ledger location on the estimate visit to inspect the bottom plate. That alone earned the job.
Floating ground-level cedar deck — 12 by 18 — in our Queen Anne back yard, sitting about 14 inches off the lawn. No permit needed at that height. Handis used adjustable deck blocks and double 2x8 beams, no ledger to the house. Three working days from delivery to finished. Looks like it belongs there.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Handis deck building — pricing, materials, permits, timeline, engineering, and what fits your lot and budget.