Christmas Light Installation in Westlake Hills, TX
Rooflines, wrapped live oaks and full front displays for Westlake Hills homes, designed around the city's lighting rules, kept lit all season and taken down in January. Text a few photos and get a price without a site visit.
Christmas lights for Westlake Hills homes, start to finish
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| What do you install? | Rooflines and ridgelines, wrapped live oaks and crape myrtles, bushes, wreaths and garland, porches, walkways and entrance walls |
| What does it cost? | Single-story front roofline from $500, two-story from $1,100, full front from $1,800. $500 minimum. See prices |
| Trees? | $150–$250 for a small or medium trunk, up to $5,000 for a boom-lift live oak. Tree light wrapping |
| City rules? | Holiday lights are exempt from the city's lighting ordinance from Thanksgiving Day to January 8. What that means |
| When do they come down? | January 2 to January 15, with timers set to stop by January 8 on request |
| Landscape lighting too? | Yes, designed to the city's 11 pm curfew and shielding rules. More below |
| How do I get a price? | Text daytime photos of the front of the house and each tree to (737) 777-9099 |
What we light in Westlake Hills
Most Westlake Hills displays start with the roofline and one or two big trees, then add bushes, a wreath and the entry. Every install includes a design for your house, commercial-grade lights and clips, the install, service if anything goes dark, and takedown in January.
Rooflines and ridgelines
C9 LED bulbs on commercial wire, cut to each run so lines end cleanly at corners and peaks. Clips are matched to stone, tile, metal or shingle.
Wrapped live oaks
The trees are the reason Westlake looks the way it does. Trunks and limbs are wrapped by hand at an even spacing so the whole tree glows.
Entries, wreaths and garland
Lit wreaths and garland on doors, gables and porch rails, sized to read from a street that may sit well below the house.
- A custom design for your house, sent back with your quote
- Commercial-grade LED lights and clips, supplied by Sapien
- Installation by our own crew, without drilling into stone or stucco
- A timer set for the nights you choose, inside the city's holiday window
- Service during the season if lights we installed go out
- Takedown between January 2 and January 15
We do plug-in seasonal lighting only. If a display needs a new outdoor outlet or circuit, that is a job for a licensed electrician, and we'll tell you before install day. Everything else about our seasonal service is on the Christmas light installation page.
West Lake Hills' lighting rules, and how we plan around them
West Lake Hills is one of the few Austin-area cities with a detailed outdoor lighting ordinance, written to keep the hills dark at night. Holiday lights get their own exemption, but it has dates and limits, and they shape how a display should be planned.
| Rule (Article 24.03) | What we do |
|---|---|
| Holiday decorations are exempt from the lighting rules from Thanksgiving Day to January 8 | Install early, switch on Thanksgiving night |
| The exemption can end if a neighbor complains and the city inspector finds light trespass onto other property | Aim lights at your house and trees, not the neighbors' windows |
| Ground-mounted holiday floodlights must be shielded from other properties and streets, and no brighter than 1,260 lumens | Shielded, low-output fixtures only |
| After January 8, outdoor lights must meet the ordinance's shielding and brightness rules again | Timer set to stop by January 8 on request; takedown January 2–15 |
What this means for your display
Warm white rooflines and wrapped trees fit the rules well, because the light stays on the house and in the tree. What gets neighbors calling the city is light pointed at them: bright floodlights, projectors aimed across a slope, or a display left running into mid-January.
On hillside lots your house may look straight into a neighbor's living room, so we pay attention to what's visible from below and across the street. If something in your plan could be a problem, we'll say so with your quote.
This summary is based on the City of West Lake Hills Code of Ordinances, Article 24.03, Outdoor Lighting, adopted May 28, 2014. The city can change its code, so check the current version or ask the city if you're unsure. Your HOA may have its own dates too.
What's different about lighting a Westlake Hills home
Hills and steep lots
Many homes sit above or below the street on sloped, terraced lots. Ladder placement, how the display reads from the road, and where the power runs all depend on the grade, so include a photo that shows it.
Big, old live oaks
Mature oaks shade most Westlake lots, which makes trunk-and-limb wraps the signature look. Very tall trees can need a boom lift, and a lift needs room to park on a narrow or steep drive.
Oak wilt
West Lake Hills limits tree cutting and pruning during oak wilt season. We don't prune, we keep fasteners to a minimum, and you can ask for staple-free wraps. Everything comes off in January.
Limestone, stucco and tile
Stone walls, stucco and clay or metal roofs are common here. We use clips made for each surface and never drill into masonry.
Long, low rooflines
Ranch homes from the 1960s to 1980s sit next to big new builds. A long single-story roofline and a tall two-story front are priced very differently, so photograph the whole front.
Dark streets
West Lake Hills keeps its streets dark on purpose, so a warm white display stands out more here than in town. A little light goes a long way.
Christmas light installation prices in Westlake Hills
Westlake Hills is priced the same as the rest of the Austin area. These are Sapien's typical 2026 starting points, front of house.
| Scope | Sapien 2026 price |
|---|---|
| Single-story roofline, front | From $500 |
| Two-story roofline, front | From $1,100 |
| Full front: roofline, trees, bushes, wreath or garland | From $1,800 |
| Small or medium tree, trunk only | $150–$250 |
| Large live oak, trunk or trunk plus some limbs | $500–$1,000 |
| Very large oak, multiple branches | $1,500–$3,000 |
| Boom-lift or maximum wrap | Up to $5,000 |
| Removal only (lights someone else put up) | Usually about 20% of the install cost |
| Minimum job | $500 |
Your quote depends on feet of roofline, height, slope and trees. More detail: Christmas light installation cost in Austin and what it costs to wrap a tree.
How it works in Westlake Hills
Text us photos
Daytime photos of the front of the house from the street, each tree, and your outdoor outlets, to (737) 777-9099. A shot that shows the slope helps.
Get a design and price
We mark up what we'd light and send back the plan and the price. Most homes never need a site visit.
Install in October or November
Earlier dates are easier to get. The lights go up and stay off until the night you pick.
On Thanksgiving night
The timer switches the display on at dusk from Thanksgiving, November 26, 2026, inside the city's holiday window.
All season
If lights we installed go out, text or call and we come back to fix them.
Off by January 8, down by the 15th
We can set the timer to stop by January 8, then take everything down between January 2 and 15.
Trees take the longest install slots, so if live oaks are on your list, book early. The month-by-month plan is in our Austin holiday lighting timeline, and here's what a good quote should show.
What our customers say
Every review below is from Sapien Lighting's Google listing, word for word. Read them all on Google.
Landscape lighting in Westlake Hills
Sapien also designs and installs landscape lighting: uplit live oaks, moonlighting from the canopy, path and step lights on terraced yards, patios and pet areas, and shadow mapping that plans each light around how the sun and shadows fall on your property.
In West Lake Hills, landscape lighting has rules that holiday lights don't. Under the city's ordinance, residential landscape lights have to be off by 11 pm, each fixture is capped at 800 lumens, fixtures must be fully shielded so the light source can't be seen from other properties, walkway lights are capped at 385 lumens each, and every lot has a total lumen allowance. New construction also needs an outdoor lighting permit.
That suits a good design anyway: low, warm, shielded light that shows off the trees and stone without glare. We design to the ordinance and set the timers for you. Landscape lighting is quoted per property. See our landscape lighting page and how shadow mapping works.
About West Lake Hills
West Lake Hills is a small, wooded city about six miles west of downtown Austin, on the hills above the west bank of Lake Austin. Most people just call it Westlake.
- Founded in 1953. The city was incorporated on September 9, 1953. Its founder and land planner was Emmett Shelton, and the Redbud Trail bridge that links Westlake to Austin is named the Emmett Shelton Bridge.
- A volunteer start. In the early 1960s residents chipped in to buy the city's first fire engine and firefighting gear.
- Small and residential. About 3,444 people lived here at the 2020 census, on roughly 3.6 square miles. The population was 714 in 1960.
- Eanes ISD. It is the only city entirely inside the Eanes Independent School District, home of Westlake High School.
- Hill Country edge. The city sits on the eastern edge of the Edwards Plateau, along Bee Caves Road (FM 2244), Redbud Trail and Westlake Drive, between Lake Austin and Loop 360.
- Dark at night. In 2014 the city adopted one of the area's most detailed outdoor lighting ordinances, to keep its skies dark. How that affects your lights.
Sources: Handbook of Texas, Wikipedia, City of West Lake Hills Code of Ordinances.
Map of West Lake Hills
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors. View larger map
Westlake Hills and nearby areas we serve
West Lake Hills sits just west of downtown Austin, between Lake Austin and Loop 360, along Bee Caves Road and Redbud Trail. We install throughout the city and the rest of 78746 and the Eanes ISD area:
- West Lake Hills
- Rollingwood
- Rob Roy
- Davenport Ranch
- Eanes
- Lost Creek
- Barton Creek
- Bee Cave
- Lakeway
- Austin
- And nearby: just ask
Rollingwood, Rob Roy, Davenport Ranch and the Austin parts of 78746 have their own rules and HOAs, and they aren't covered by West Lake Hills' ordinance. Tell us your address and we'll plan for what applies to you.
Westlake Hills Christmas lights: frequently asked questions
Do you install Christmas lights in Westlake Hills?
Yes. Sapien Lighting & Installation puts up seasonal Christmas lights on homes and businesses across West Lake Hills and the rest of 78746, including Rollingwood, Rob Roy, Davenport Ranch and the Eanes area. Text photos of your house to (737) 777-9099 for a price.
How much does Christmas light installation cost in Westlake Hills?
The same as the rest of the Austin area. With Sapien in 2026, a single-story front roofline starts at $500, a two-story front roofline starts at $1,100 and a full front (roofline, trees, bushes and a wreath or garland) starts at $1,800. The minimum job is $500, and each tree is priced on its own.
What does it cost to wrap a live oak in Westlake Hills?
A small or medium tree, trunk only, is $150 to $250. A large live oak, trunk only or trunk plus some limbs, is $500 to $1,000. A very large oak with multiple branches is $1,500 to $3,000, and very tall wraps that need a boom lift run up to $5,000. Steep or terraced yards can change how a tree is reached, so send a photo that shows the slope.
Does West Lake Hills have rules about Christmas lights?
Yes. The city's outdoor lighting ordinance (Code of Ordinances Article 24.03) exempts holiday decorations from its lighting rules between Thanksgiving Day and January 8, unless a neighbor complains and the city inspector finds the lights shine onto other property. Ground-mounted holiday floodlights must be shielded so the bulb can't be seen from other properties or the street, and can't exceed 1,260 lumens.
Can my lights go up before Thanksgiving?
Yes. We can install in October or early November and set the timer so the lights stay off until Thanksgiving night, Thursday, November 26, 2026. That keeps your display inside the city's holiday window and gets you a better choice of install dates.
When do you take the lights down?
Takedown runs from January 2 to January 15. Because the city's holiday exemption ends January 8, we can set your timer to stop by then if your lights will still be up.
Can I get permanent Christmas lights in West Lake Hills?
Yes. Sapien installs permanent track lights in West Lake Hills. Because they stay on the house all year, the city treats them as everyday outdoor lighting outside the Thanksgiving to January 8 holiday window, and its ordinance calls for shielded fixtures and caps how much light a property gives off. We design your permanent lights around that: tucked under the eave and aimed at the house, warm white, dimmed, and on a schedule, with color shows saved for the holidays. We go over the plan for your house with your quote.
Do you do landscape lighting in Westlake Hills?
Yes: uplit live oaks, moonlighting, path and step lights, patios and shadow mapping. Every design is planned around the city's ordinance, which sets an 11 pm curfew for landscape lighting, a per-fixture lumen limit and fully shielded fixtures. Landscape lighting is quoted per property.
Will you trim my trees?
No. Sapien doesn't prune. West Lake Hills limits tree cutting and pruning during oak wilt season, and the Texas A&M Forest Service warns against wounding oaks, so we wrap around the tree as it is and remove everything in January.
Are you insured?
Yes. Sapien is fully insured, with general liability coverage on every job. HOAs and businesses can request a certificate of insurance.
Get your Westlake Hills Christmas light quote
Text a few daytime photos of the front of your house and any trees to (737) 777-9099, and tell us the night you want them on. Prefer to talk? Call us, 9 am to 11 pm daily.