Cedar has been the default siding choice on Whatcom County homes for generations, from the older neighborhoods of Bellingham to farmhouses outside Lynden and cabins on Sudden Valley's hillsides. It looks right here, it takes stain beautifully, and it's a renewable local material. It also asks more of a homeowner than most other siding types once you factor in this region's weather. If you're pricing a cedar siding replacement, the honest answer is that the number depends less on square footage alone and more on what your crew finds once the old siding comes off.
For a straightforward cedar siding replacement — tear-off, house wrap or rainscreen, new cedar siding, and a field-applied or factory finish — most Whatcom County homeowners land in a broad mid-to-upper range per square foot of wall area once material grade, labor, and finish are all included. A typical single-family home in Bellingham, Ferndale, or Blaine can end up anywhere from the low tens of thousands to well into the thirty-thousand-plus range for a full re-side, and that's before any hidden rot repair is factored in. Larger homes, homes with a lot of trim detail, or properties on Lummi Island and the San Juans where materials and crews travel by ferry tend to sit at the higher end.
These are ranges, not quotes. The only way to get an actual number is a walk-around inspection, because so much of the cost on a cedar project is determined by what's happening behind the existing siding, not by the siding itself.
| Cost Factor | Typical Low | Typical High |
|---|---|---|
| Cedar grade (knotty vs. clear/vertical grain) | Standard knotty | Premium clear grain |
| Tear-off & disposal of existing siding | Minimal, single layer | Multiple layers, older homes |
| Sheathing & framing rot repair | Spot repairs at a few sections | Extensive rebuild behind window and roof-wall intersections |
| Rainscreen / drainage plane system | Basic housewrap only | Full vented rainscreen assembly |
| House complexity | Simple rectangular footprint | Multiple gables, dormers, bump-outs |
| Finish (stain vs. paint, factory-prefinished vs. field-applied) | Single-coat field stain | Factory-prefinished, multi-coat paint system |
| Site access | Standard mainland lot, road access | Island/ferry logistics, steep Sudden Valley or foothill driveways |
Whatcom County's weather is the biggest hidden factor in any cedar project. This is a place with a long wet season, wind-driven rain that comes hard off Bellingham Bay and the Strait of Georgia, and enough sustained moisture that moss and algae will colonize an unmaintained wall within a few seasons. When a crew pulls old cedar siding off a house that's thirty or forty years old, it is common — not rare — to find soft sheathing, rotted corner boards, or compromised framing around windows and roof-to-wall intersections where wind-driven rain has been finding its way in for years. That discovery changes the price after the bid was written, which is why a serious contractor writes rot repair into the contract as an allowance rather than pretending it won't happen.
A second cost driver is how the wall is built back up. Many Whatcom County homes are now going back together with a rainscreen — a small air gap behind the siding that lets any moisture that does get past the cladding drain and dry out rather than sitting against the wood. It costs more in labor and furring strips than stapling housewrap and going straight to siding, but on a property that catches direct wind-driven rain, it's often the difference between siding that lasts and cedar that starts cupping or rotting again within a decade.
Grade of cedar matters too. Clear, vertical-grain cedar with few or no knots costs meaningfully more than standard knotty-grade boards, and it holds a stain finish more evenly over time. Finish choice is its own line item: a factory-prefinished cedar product costs more up front but saves a maintenance cycle, while field-applied stain is cheaper initially but needs to be renewed on a regular schedule to keep the wood protected from Whatcom County's persistent rain.
Finally, geography inside the county affects labor and logistics. Jobs on Lummi Island or the San Juans carry ferry costs and scheduling constraints that mainland jobs in Ferndale or Lynden don't. Properties in the foothills toward Deming and Kendall see more freeze-thaw cycling through the winter, which puts extra stress on fasteners, caulked joints, and any siding that wasn't detailed with enough room to move seasonally — worth asking a contractor about specifically if that's your area.
A complete cedar siding bid should spell out, in writing, what happens at every stage of the job, not just the finished product. At minimum, look for:
Alpine Exteriors writes each of these into a proposal before work starts, specifically because the rot-repair allowance is where surprise costs usually come from on older homes in this region.
The widest range you'll see between bids on the same house usually isn't about the cedar — it's about what's included around it. A lower number often means a thinner rainscreen or none at all, a smaller (or absent) rot-repair allowance, or a lighter trim package. Before comparing dollar figures, line up each bid's scope side by side: same cedar grade, same weather barrier system, same finish schedule. If one bid is noticeably lower, ask specifically what's excluded — tear-off, disposal, permits, and rot repair are the four places corners get cut most often.
It's also worth confirming licensing and insurance directly rather than taking a business card at face value. Washington's Department of Labor & Industries maintains a public contractor lookup where you can verify an active license and bond status. Alpine Exteriors' Washington contractor license number is ALPINI751OW, and any legitimate siding contractor working in Whatcom County should be able to give you theirs without hesitation. Ask how weather delays are handled in the schedule, too — with this much annual rainfall, a realistic contractor will build some slack into the timeline rather than promising a fixed date that a wet week will blow through.
Most contractors, Alpine Exteriors included, can point homeowners toward financing options — contractor-arranged payment plans, home equity lines of credit, or manufacturer-backed financing programs tied to specific cedar or engineered siding products. Terms and qualification vary by lender, so it's worth comparing more than one option rather than accepting the first offer in a sales meeting.
On the insurance side, standard homeowner's policies generally don't cover siding replacement for wear, age, or gradual moisture damage — the kind of slow rot that develops behind cedar over years of exposure to wind-driven rain is typically treated as a maintenance issue, not a covered loss. Sudden, identifiable storm damage is a different conversation, and if you believe a specific wind event caused the damage, document it with photos and get a written scope of damage from your contractor before filing a claim. Also budget for Washington state sales tax on both labor and materials, which some verbal estimates leave out of the headline number.
It depends on how much upkeep you want to take on. Cedar generally costs more up front than fiber cement and needs a recurring maintenance schedule — stain renewal, moss and algae treatment, and prompt attention to any spot where the finish has worn through — to hold up against Whatcom County's wet season. Homeowners who want the traditional look and are willing to stay on top of maintenance tend to be satisfied with cedar; homeowners who want to set it and mostly forget it often end up happier with fiber cement instead.
Timelines vary with house size, complexity, and how much rot repair turns up once tear-off starts, but most single-family homes take a few weeks from start to finish. Rain is the biggest schedule variable in this region — cedar and any exposed sheathing shouldn't be left uncovered in wet weather, so a contractor working here will plan around forecast windows rather than pushing through a storm.
Sometimes, if the damage is limited and the remaining cedar is in reasonably good condition and a color/weathering match is achievable. But if rot has spread behind multiple wall sections — which is common on older homes that have taken wind-driven rain for years — patch repairs can end up costing more per square foot than a full re-side once labor mobilization and partial-wall detailing are factored in. A contractor should be honest with you about which situation you're in after inspecting the framing, not just the visible siding.
It can, particularly if your re-side is paired with new insulation or if the scope of work triggers a permit review under current Washington State Energy Code requirements for the building envelope. Continuous insulation and air-sealing details behind new siding are increasingly part of code-compliant re-side work in this state, which is one more reason the wall assembly behind the cedar — not just the cedar itself — belongs in the conversation with your contractor and, where applicable, your local building department.
Ranges are useful for planning, but the only way to know what your specific home will cost is an in-person look at the siding, the trim, and what's likely happening underneath after years of Whatcom County weather. Alpine Exteriors serves homeowners across Bellingham, Ferndale, Lynden, Blaine, Birch Bay, Sudden Valley, and the islands, and can walk your property, flag likely rot areas before tear-off begins, and put together a written quote that spells out exactly what's included. Reach out to schedule an inspection and get a straight answer on what your cedar siding replacement will actually cost.