Permanent lighting guide

What permanent holiday lighting actually costs

Permanent lighting is priced on one number: the linear feet of roofline you actually light. Exterior Prime publishes that rate at $30 per linear foot, measured on site and confirmed in writing, so the estimate you approve is the invoice you pay. Below are worked totals for the roofline lengths most Manteca and Lathrop homes land on.

Updated September 1, 2026 · Exterior Prime professionals, Manteca & Lathrop

Short answer

Permanent holiday lighting costs $30 per linear foot of roofline actually lit. A 90-foot single-story front elevation is $2,700, a typical 150-foot Manteca or Lathrop home is $4,500, and a 260-foot full wrap on a two-story home is $7,800. The rate covers channel, sealed modules, transformer, controller and labour.

Published rate: $30 per linear foot of roofline lit
Front elevation only (90 ft): $2,700
Typical whole-home run (150 ft): $4,500
Two-story full wrap (260 ft): $7,800
Ongoing seasonal cost: $0 — no take-down, no re-hang

Why the price is per linear foot and nothing else

Linear feet is the only input that scales with material and labour, so pricing on it keeps quotes honest and comparable between houses.

Every foot of lit roofline consumes the same channel, the same module spacing, the same wire and roughly the same labour minute. Square footage of the house does not predict that; a sprawling single-story can carry more roofline than a tall, compact two-story. That is why an Exterior Prime professional measures the perimeter that will be lit rather than quoting from a photo.

The $30 figure is not a starting point that grows. It covers the aluminium channel, the sealed RGB modules, the low-voltage transformer, the controller and the labour to install and program them. What changes a total is scope: adding a return, a second-story gable or a detached garage adds feet, and you see the new number before anyone orders material.

Worked totals for common Central Valley rooflines

Most homes in Manteca and Lathrop fall between 120 and 200 linear feet, which puts them between $3,600 and $6,000 installed.

A 90-foot job is usually a front elevation only: eaves plus the two gable rakes that face the street, at $2,700. It is the most common first step for homeowners who want holiday presence without wrapping the whole house.

A 150-foot job at $4,500 is the workhorse. On a typical Manteca tract home that covers the front elevation, both side eave runs and the porch return, which is everything visible from the street or the driveway.

At 200 feet ($6,000) and 260 feet ($7,800) you are wrapping a two-story facade including second-story eaves, or including a detached garage and a rear patio line. Those are the jobs that need the full day and, on the two-story elevations, a second ladder position per gable.

How it compares to paying for seasonal lights every year

Seasonal install-and-remove services in the Central Valley typically run $600 to $1,400 per season, so a permanent system usually passes break-even in year four to six and then costs nothing.

Seasonal pricing repeats forever, climbs with labour costs, and buys you nothing in January. It also concentrates every install into six weeks, which is why December bookings are the hardest to get and the most expensive per foot.

A permanent system is one capital cost with no take-down, no re-hang, no storage and no ladder work by the homeowner. Because the same hardware runs warm white for everyday evenings, orange for Halloween, red and green for December and school colours on game night, the value is spread across the whole year rather than five weeks of it.

Neither option is right for everyone. If you plan to sell inside two years, seasonal service is the cheaper answer. If you are staying, the maths and the ladder-safety argument both favour permanent.

Manteca and Lathrop specifics

Permanent holiday lighting cost in Manteca, CA

Manteca homes in 95336 and 95337 most often measure 130 to 170 feet for a full front-and-sides layout, which lands between $3,900 and $5,100 at the published rate. Newer two-story north-side homes with multiple gables push past 200 feet.

Because measurement happens before anything is ordered, Manteca homeowners regularly trim a quote by dropping a rear patio run they would never see from the street — a change of feet, not a change of rate.

Christmas light pricing in Lathrop, CA

River Islands elevations in Lathrop tend to measure cleanly — long runs, few returns — so a 150-foot $4,500 layout often covers more visible frontage there than the same footage does on an older Mossdale home with a broken roofline.

Lathrop homeowners comparing quotes should check that a competitor's figure includes the transformer and controller. At $30 per foot, Exterior Prime includes both, so there is no second invoice after install day.

permanent holiday lighting cost: questions Central Valley homeowners ask

Exterior Prime charges $30 per linear foot of roofline actually lit, measured on site before install. That rate includes the aluminium channel, sealed RGB modules, the low-voltage transformer, the controller and the labour to install and program the system, so the approved figure is the final invoice.

Copy link to this answer: How much does permanent holiday lighting cost per foot?

Most homes measure 120 to 200 linear feet, which is $3,600 to $6,000 installed. A front elevation only is around 90 feet, or $2,700. Two-story full wraps that include second-story eaves and a detached garage reach 260 feet, or $7,800.

Copy link to this answer: What does a typical Manteca or Lathrop home cost?

There is no annual install or removal fee, because nothing comes down. Running cost is electricity only: a full 150-foot system on a dusk-to-11pm schedule draws less than a typical porch floodlight over a month thanks to 24-volt LED modules.

Copy link to this answer: Are there ongoing costs after installation?

Over time, yes. Seasonal install-and-remove service in the Central Valley runs roughly $600 to $1,400 each year and repeats forever. A permanent system is a one-time cost that typically passes break-even in the fourth to sixth season and then keeps working the rest of the year.

Copy link to this answer: Is permanent lighting cheaper than seasonal light installation?

Only if the scope changes. The measured linear-foot count is written down and confirmed with you before any material is ordered, so the only way the total moves is if you add or remove roofline — a rear patio run, a gable, a detached garage — at the same $30 per foot.

Copy link to this answer: Does the quote change after the measurement?

Staging is common and costs nothing extra. Many homeowners light the front elevation first at around $2,700, then add side runs or a rear patio line in a later visit. Because the transformer and controller are sized at the first visit, later additions plug into the existing system.

Copy link to this answer: Can I finance or stage a permanent lighting install?

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