Pricing For Excavation and Land Services in Colorado

What mountain property work actually costs across Jefferson County, Clear Creek, and Colorado’s Front Range. These are starting prices based on typical conditions. Your final number depends on your site, your terrain, and what the job requires.

What Mountain Property Work Costs

Starting prices for excavation, driveways, land clearing, and drainage work in Colorado. Every property is different, so these numbers reflect typical conditions. Your estimate will depend on your terrain, your access, and what the job actually takes to get done.

Basement Excavation

Starting at $25 per cubic yard – can reach $100+ depending on conditions.

The biggest factor is volume: how much material comes out of the ground. After that, it comes down to how hard the dig is.


What drives the price up:

  • Rocky or clay-heavy soils
  • Bedrock or large boulders requiring hammering or blasting
  • Tight site access for equipment and trucks
  • Deeper excavation depths
  • Soil that needs to be hauled off-site rather than reused

Driveway Renovation

Starting at $3,500+ — varies with driveway size, length, and location.

This is for existing gravel or dirt driveways that have deteriorated and need to be brought back to working condition.

What’s included in a typical renovation:

  • Cutting high spots, filling low areas, removing ruts
  • Regrading the full surface for proper drainage
  • Compacting the existing subgrade
  • 3 inches of fresh road base, gravel, or recycled asphalt
  • Final compaction with a vibratory roller

New Driveway on Undeveloped Land

Typically $10,000 to $50,000+

New driveway construction on raw land has the widest price range of anything we do. No two mountain properties have the same access conditions.

What affects the price:

  • Total length and width
  • Slope, grade, and switchback requirements
  • Soil and rock conditions
  • Tree and stump removal along the route
  • Rock hammering or blasting
  • Culverts and drainage features
  • County permits, surveys, and engineering

Land Clearing

$3,500 to $6,500 per acre

Price depends on how dense the vegetation is and how difficult the terrain is to work.

Key cost factors:

  • Slope and topography
  • Tree density, size, and root systems
  • Boulder and rock presence
  • Equipment access to the clearing area
  • Whether material goes off-site or gets reused on your property

Utility Trenching

Starting at $19 per linear foot

Covers water, sewer, electrical, gas, irrigation, and drainage piping.

Price increases with:

  • Greater trench depth and width
  • Rocky or hard-packed soil
  • Limited equipment access
  • Hand digging near existing utilities
  • Compaction or bedding material requirements

French Drains

Starting at $40 per linear foot

Used to manage surface and subsurface water around homes, foundations, driveways, and sloped properties.

Every install includes:

  • Trench excavation
  • Filter fabric
  • Perforated drain pipe
  • Washed drain rock
  • Proper slope to discharge point

What Affects Pricing on Mountain Properties?

Yellow mini excavator removing tree roots

Mountain properties and undeveloped land cost more than urban lots. That's the reality of working in high-country terrain, and it's built into every estimate we provide.

A few factors show up on almost every estimate we write:

Soil and rock conditions: rocky ground takes longer and requires heavier equipment

Mountain vs. flat terrain: steeper sites mean more planning, more machine time, and more labor

Site access: how easily we can get equipment and trucks to the work area

Hauling distance: how far material needs to travel on or off site

Volume — total cubic yards or linear feet of work

Permits and engineering: county requirements that add time and cost before ground breaks

Season and weather: frozen ground, mud, and snow all affect scheduling and efficiency

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Erin Sillasen
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Mtn Land Services: leveled out three areas, built retaining walls, and graded all areas to protect all structures. Seamless, high quality work and great communication. Mountainside Land Service listened to what I wanted and executed the vision perfectly. Made knowledgeable suggestions and were never pushy. Would work with them again anytime. Thank you to Jason and his team.
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Tyler Roark
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Great experience working with Jason. Good communication throughout the process, great end product, very pleased!
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Jeff Franklin profile picture
Jeff Franklin
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Our gravel driveway in Fraser had potholes and poor grading. Mountainside Land Services did an A+-top-notch job of refinishing the drive--it looked like you could spread a picnic blanket on it. And Jason was a pleasure to work with. He took care of everything without the need for a f-2-f meeting: site visit, quote, convenient scheduling, flexibility, photos when the work was done. And his price was very reasonable, below other quotes, and well worth it. Thank you, Jason. Two thumbs up!
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Bettsy
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We had excavation, regrading, and other landscaping and finishing work done by Jason / Mountainside Land Services. He was professional and relaxed throughout the process. He took the time to understand what we wanted, and made some excellent suggestions as well. Could not be happier with the outcome. Tabernash, CO, Grand County.
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Alek S profile picture
Alek S
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Jason and his team did a great job with the landscaping at one of my homes. He went above and beyond to make sure everything was up to my standards. He was very professional and was able to meet my deadline.
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Boris Vukovich
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Jason McKee and Mountainside Land Services resurfaced a large gravel driveway for me and did some landscaping and tree planting. Jason was great to work with and did an excellent job! He went the extra mile to make sure I was completely satisfied and happy with the work. I look forward to working with him again.
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J Z
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Jason responded very quickly to my voicemail and came to the job site on schedule, as promised. He is very professional and knowledgeable. I would highly recommend Mountainside for landscaping needs.
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Sarah Vendors
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Jason was amazing to work with. He was very prompt not only replying to texts and emails but on the job site as well. The whole crew did absolutely beautiful work. They are all very professional and accommodating to whatever new issues came up on that needed to be addressed. I would recommend Jason and Mountainside Land Services to anyone.
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Joe Evans
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Excellent job, so professional and followed through as promised. He did what he said he would which is a rare these days for contractors we have had. We're so happy with the driveway.
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Denis Malov
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5 Stars – Excellent Work and Professional Service We recently hired Mountainside Land Services to help protect our barn from flooding, and we couldn’t be more pleased with the results. They built a well-constructed berm and raised the surrounding grade to divert water away from the structure. In addition, they installed a water collection box with piping to safely drain excess water away from the area. From start to finish, Jason is professional, efficient, and clearly experienced. He took the time to understand the layout of our property and designed a solution that addressed both our immediate needs and long-term drainage. The quality of work speaks for itself — everything was completed on time, and the site was left clean and tidy. Highly recommended for anyone looking for dependable, thoughtful excavation work!

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These numbers give you a starting point. The only way to get an accurate price is a site review. We provide free consultations and detailed estimates. Tell us about your property, your project, and your timeline. We’ll walk you through the process and give you a clear number.
Serving: Colorado’s mountain properties in Park, Summit, Clear Creek, Gilpin, Jefferson, Douglas, Arapahoe, Adams, Elbert, and Broomfield Counties