Full HVAC System Replacement — AC and Furnace Together

Full HVAC system replacement in Los Angeles — replacing the AC and the furnace at the same time — costs $9,000 to $18,000 in 2026 for a typical 2-to-5-ton split system or packaged unit. This page is for homeowners whose AC and furnace are both 15+ years old and have hit end-of-life within the same window. Bundling the work captures meaningful labor and rebate efficiencies. Call EA Mechanical at (818) 988-9060.

The bundling discount is real: replacing both units in one visit saves roughly 10 to 15 percent versus sequencing them a year apart, because the lineset, electrical disconnect, drain pan, and HERS test only get touched once. The trade-off is the larger up-front cost — most homeowners who can absorb it choose to bundle, and most who cannot choose to lead with the unit closest to failure (usually the AC in summer, the furnace in winter).

If you are bundling and your home runs on LADWP electric service, a heat pump replacing both units is often the right financial move — it eliminates the gas furnace entirely, captures the LADWP $2,500/ton rebate, and removes the gas-meter dependency. See /blog/heat-pump-installation-cost-los-angeles-2026/ for the side-by-side. We will spell out the gas-vs-heat-pump math at the free assessment.

Bundling Logic — Why It Saves Money

• Single mobilization — one crew, one set-up day, one HERS test, one permit fee instead of two.
• Shared infrastructure — refrigerant lineset, condensate drain, electrical disconnect, and ductwork connections only get touched once.
• Single rebate paperwork batch — LADWP, SoCalGas, and SCE rebate forms processed together rather than sequenced.
• Matched pairing — modern condenser/coil/furnace combinations are AHRI-rated as a system; mismatched-vintage equipment loses some efficiency.
• Lower disruption — one week of project, then done for 15+ years.

Sequenced vs All-At-Once

If both units are clearly past end-of-life, all-at-once usually wins on total cost. If the AC is dying but the furnace has 5 more good years, sequencing makes financial sense — you get the cooling capacity you urgently need now, and the furnace replacement gets its own SoCalGas rebate cycle in a few years. EA Mechanical will tell you honestly which path the math points to for your specific equipment ages and condition. Call (818) 988-9060.

Heat Pump as the Bundled-Replacement Wildcard

When you are already replacing both units, the marginal step to a heat pump (which handles both heating and cooling in one piece of equipment) is smaller than at any other moment in the system's life. The LADWP $2,500/ton rebate, the federal IRA 25C heat-pump tier, and the elimination of the gas-line dependency frequently make heat pumps the lower lifetime cost path for LA homes. We will give you side-by-side numbers — see /blog/heat-pump-installation-cost-los-angeles-2026/ for the analysis.

Project Timeline and Permit Reality

A bundled AC + furnace replacement typically takes 2 to 4 working days on site, plus 5 to 10 working days for permit pull, HERS test, and final inspection. Both units are commissioned together; refrigerant charge and combustion safety tests run on the final day. EA Mechanical pulls a single mechanical permit for the project and stays on site through inspection. Call (818) 988-9060 for a written project timeline.