Permits are the part of remodeling that homeowners dread and contractors get asked about first. The anxiety is usually less about the paperwork than about the unknown: how long will this hold everything up, and what happens if we just skip it?
Here is a plain explanation of how the process works in Los Angeles, what it costs, and roughly how long each stage takes.
What needs a permit
The line is simpler than people expect. You need a permit when work affects structure, electrical, plumbing or mechanical systems. That covers additions, ADUs, wall removal, rewiring, moving plumbing, new HVAC, and most meaningful kitchen and bathroom work.
Generally exempt: painting, wallpaper, flooring, cabinet refacing, and replacing a fixture with the same type in the same location. Minor repairs that do not touch structure are typically fine.
The grey area is bigger than either list suggests, and LADBS is the authority on your specific case. When we are unsure, we ask rather than assume — it costs a phone call and saves a red tag.
What it costs
For a typical residential remodel, expect permit fees in the range of $500 to $5,000 or more, scaling with the declared value of the construction. Plan check fees run roughly 40–65% of the permit fee on top of that.
Two things worth knowing. First, these are paid to the city and are separate from what your contractor charges — if a bid does not mention permits, ask whether they are included. Second, fees are driven by project valuation, so a larger project costs more to permit, but not proportionally more.
How long it takes
This is the question that actually matters for planning.
- Express permits — same day. For straightforward work like a water heater swap or a simple electrical job, these can often be pulled over the counter.
- Standard residential plan check — roughly 15 to 25 business days. Call it three to five weeks for a normal remodel or addition.
- Complex projects — four to eight weeks. Structural changes, larger additions, hillside lots, or anything that pulls in a second agency.
Those are review times, not total times. Plan check frequently comes back with corrections. Your designer revises, resubmits, and waits again. A realistic plan is to treat the first review as one round of a conversation rather than a decision.
What you have to submit
For most residential projects:
- Two sets of plans
- Structural calculations, where structure is affected
- Title 24 energy compliance forms
- CALGreen checklist
- A soils report, if the site calls for it
Applications go through the LADBS ePlanCheck portal, in person at an LADBS office, or over the counter for express work.
What actually causes delays
In our experience the hold-ups are rarely the city being slow for its own sake:
Incomplete drawings. The most common cause by a distance. Plans that are missing details get corrections, and each correction cycle costs weeks.
A second agency. Planning, Fire, Public Works or the Bureau of Engineering can each add their own review. Hillside properties and anything near a flood or fault zone attract extra scrutiny.
Pre-existing unpermitted work. This one catches people out. If the city looks at your property and finds a previous owner enclosed a patio without a permit, that can become your problem before your project moves forward.
Owner-driven changes. Changing the design after submission usually means starting the review again.
The case against skipping it
People do it. It is worth being clear about what you are taking on.
Unpermitted work does not disappear — it waits. It surfaces when you sell, when an appraiser measures the house, when an insurer investigates a claim, or when a neighbor complains. At that point the options are retroactive permitting, which usually costs more than doing it right, or removing the work.
There is a practical dimension too. Unpermitted square footage does not count toward your home in an appraisal, and lenders can balk. The money you saved on fees comes back out of the sale price, often with interest.
How to keep it moving
A few things genuinely help:
- Invest in complete drawings. Paying a bit more for thorough plans is the cheapest schedule insurance available.
- Start permitting early. Run design and permitting in parallel with material selection rather than in sequence.
- Deal with existing issues up front. If you know something was done without a permit, raise it at the start rather than letting plan check find it.
- Freeze the design before submitting. Changes after submission are expensive in time.
After the permit: inspections
Getting the permit is the halfway point. The permit authorizes the work; inspections confirm it was done correctly, and they happen in a fixed sequence tied to construction stages.
The critical concept is rough inspection — the point where framing, plumbing, electrical and mechanical are complete but still open and visible. An inspector needs to see this before drywall goes up. Close a wall before it has been signed off and you may be opening it again.
A typical residential remodel runs through something like: foundation or slab work if applicable, then framing, then rough plumbing, electrical and mechanical, then insulation, then drywall, then final. Each stage is scheduled with LADBS and each has to pass before the next begins.
Two practical implications for your schedule. First, inspections are booked in advance and a missed or failed one costs days, not hours. Second, a well-run job sequences trades so that everything needing a given inspection is ready at the same time — that coordination is a large part of what a general contractor is actually for.
ADUs are treated differently
If your project is an ADU rather than a general remodel, the rules are more favorable and worth knowing.
California has spent several years compressing ADU approval timelines. Applications that sit unapproved and undenied past the statutory window can be deemed approved, and cities are required to run pre-approved plan programs with faster turnarounds for standard detached units. Owner-occupancy requirements have been narrowed considerably — for detached ADUs they were removed, and for junior ADUs they now generally apply only where the unit shares bathroom facilities with the main house.
The practical upshot: if you are choosing between framing a project as a remodel or as an ADU, the ADU path is often faster through plan check. That is a real consideration and one worth raising with your designer early, because it can influence how the project is drawn.
These rules are relatively new and continue to shift. Confirm the current position for your property before relying on any of it.
Who pulls the permit matters
One detail that catches homeowners out: permits can be pulled by a licensed contractor or by the property owner as an owner-builder.
Owner-builder permits look appealing because they seem to save money. What they actually do is transfer liability. As owner-builder you take on responsibility for the work, for the people performing it, and for code compliance. If something goes wrong, the exposure is yours rather than a licensed and insured contractor’s.
Be wary of any contractor who asks you to pull the permit yourself. It is occasionally legitimate, but it is more often a sign that they are unlicensed, or that they would rather the inspection record not carry their name.
We handle this part
For most of our projects we manage permitting end to end — drawings, submission, corrections and inspections — so it is not something you have to learn. If you are planning a room addition, an ADU or a remodel in the Valley or greater LA and want to know what your project will require, get in touch and we will walk you through it.
This article is general information about a process that changes over time and varies by property. Confirm requirements for your specific address with LADBS.