Permits
How long permits actually take in Los Angeles
Nearly everything written about this online is somebody's recollection of one project presented as a rule. This page only uses two kinds of number: deadlines written into California statute, and targets a public agency publishes about itself. Where neither exists, it says so rather than guessing.
The useful thing to understand first is that plan check speed is rarely what determines when you break ground. Correction cycles are. A submittal that comes back three times spends far more calendar in the queue than one that comes back once, and that is largely in the hands of whoever prepared the drawings.
Deadlines written into state law
What California actually requires
These apply in every city on our service list, from Los Angeles to Thousand Oaks, because they are state law rather than local policy.
ADUs must be approved or denied in 60 days
California Government Code section 65852.2 requires the permitting agency to approve or deny an application for an accessory dwelling unit within 60 days of receiving a complete application, where there is already a dwelling on the lot. If the agency does not act within that window, the application is deemed approved. This is a statutory deadline with a consequence attached, not an internal service goal.
Completeness must be determined in 15 business days
SB 543 took effect on 1 January 2026 and requires the agency to determine whether an ADU application is complete within 15 business days of submittal. If they do not respond, the application is deemed complete, which starts the 60-day clock running regardless.
ADU review is ministerial
A conforming ADU is not subject to discretionary review, a public hearing, or CEQA. The agency checks the drawings against objective standards and that is the process. There is no forum in which a neighbor's objection can be heard, which is exactly what the legislature intended when it wrote the statute.
Impact fees do not apply below 750 square feet
State law exempts accessory dwelling units under 750 square feet from impact fees. This is a cost rule rather than a timing one, but it explains why a great many ADUs in California are built at almost exactly that size.
Inside the City of Los Angeles
The counter route most homeowners never hear about
LADBS publishes review targets for residential plan check and operates a tiered system rather than a single queue. The part most homeowners never hear about is the counter route.
Expanded Counter Plan Check handles projects too involved for a quick counter review but smaller than a full plan check submission, which includes a great many medium-sized residential additions. Plans are reviewed the same day they are submitted, typically in two to three hours, at the Metro, Van Nuys, West LA, South LA and San Pedro offices.
Whether a specific project qualifies depends on its scope, and the determination is made by LADBS rather than by us. But it is worth asking about before assuming an addition means months of waiting, because for the right project it can mean an afternoon.
Where the time really goes
What actually consumes the calendar
Correction cycles, not review speed
Every round of corrections is a fresh wait in the queue. A complete, coordinated submittal that comes back once is dramatically faster than a thin one that comes back three times, even though the agency's per-review time is identical.
Whether you trigger a second review body
Hillside review, historic or landmark district review, coastal jurisdiction, HOA architectural committees and design review boards each add their own queue on top of building plan check. Knowing which apply to your parcel before design is most of what keeps a schedule intact.
Whether the application was complete
An incomplete application does not start any clock, statutory or otherwise. This is the most common and most avoidable delay in the entire process.
Which jurisdiction you are in
West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Pasadena, Glendale, Burbank, Santa Clarita and Thousand Oaks each run their own building departments with their own workloads. They do not publish comparable turnaround figures, and anyone quoting you exact day counts across all of them is working from memory rather than from data.
Straight answers
Permit questions we get asked
How long does it take to get a room addition permit in Los Angeles?
There is no honest single answer, and be sceptical of anyone who gives you one. For an ADU, state law caps the decision at 60 days from a complete application. For a conventional addition inside the City of Los Angeles, some projects qualify for same-day counter review through LADBS while others go through full plan check with correction cycles. What reliably shortens it is a complete, coordinated submittal.
Is the 60-day ADU deadline real?
Yes, and it has teeth. Government Code section 65852.2 requires approval or denial within 60 days of a complete application, and if the agency fails to act the application is deemed approved. The pressure point is the word complete, which is why SB 543 added a 15 business day deadline for the agency to tell you whether it is.
Can I get a permit over the counter?
Sometimes, inside the City of Los Angeles. LADBS runs an Expanded Counter Plan Check process for projects larger than a quick counter review but smaller than full plan check, and it covers a meaningful share of medium-sized additions. Review happens the same day, usually in two to three hours. Eligibility is LADBS's call, but it is always worth asking.
Why do different contractors quote such different timelines?
Because most are quoting from their own recent experience rather than from published data, and their recent experience may be a different city, a different project size or a different year. Departments speed up and slow down with staffing. Treat any specific day count as an anecdote unless it comes with a source.
Does a bigger project take longer to review?
Not always in review time, but usually in total. Bigger projects have more drawings and more disciplines to coordinate, which means more surfaces for a correction, and each correction is another cycle. The number of review rounds matters more than the size of the submission.
We handle this part
Plan check corrections come back to us
We produce the drawings, submit them, and work every correction through to approval. Permit fees are passed through at cost as their own line so you can see exactly what the city took.
Tell us about your project
Send us the shape of it and we'll call you back, usually the same day. You will talk to someone who builds these, not a scheduler.
Ready to talk about your addition?
Tell us what you are picturing and we will tell you what it takes to build it, what your city will allow, and where the money actually goes.