FAQ

A permit expediter (also spelled expeditor) is a paid professional — $5,000 to $15,000 for an ADU — who walks your paperwork through LADBS, has personal relationships with plan checkers, and handles corrections on your behalf. They are useful for complex projects or for owners who simply don't want to learn the system. PermitPathLA is the free self-serve alternative: we surface the same zoning checks, overlay flags, plan-set requirements, and step-by-step LADBS workflow that an expeditor would walk you through, in your browser, for your specific address. If your project is genuinely complex (hillside grading, Coastal Commission, HPOZ board approval), you can still hire a real expediter at the end. We just save you from paying one to tell you basic things that the data already knows.

No, and anyone who says yes is lying. We surface the rules, data, and steps so you can make a confident, informed decision. Final approvals come from LADBS and your council district.

City of Los Angeles is fully supported, the wizard works for any LA City address. For LA County independent cities (Calabasas, Beverly Hills, Burbank, Santa Monica, etc.) and unincorporated areas (Topanga, Altadena, etc.) we currently show a partial coverage page with jurisdiction info, FEMA flood data, and a link to the right planning authority. Full wizard support for those is coming.

Yes. Our property search at /search lets you browse LA real estate filtered by ADU buildability. Each listing is scored against lot size, zoning, overlays, and year built, so you can find homes already set up for an ADU build before you make an offer. You can also run the wizard on any address you're considering, even before close of escrow.

Yes. Feasibility lookup, the permit wizard, the cost calculator, the standard plans browser, the property search, and the printable title sheet are all free to use. If we ever add paid services (like full plan-prep), they'll be clearly optional.

No. Everything works without signing in. The wizard saves your progress in your browser's local storage so you can come back to the same property without losing what you entered. We also offer an optional 'save your progress' email that includes a one-click resume link if you want to pick up on a different device.

Almost. California state law (Gov Code §65852.2, expanded by AB-2221 in 2022 and SB 1211 in 2024) lets virtually every residential lot in LA add at least one ADU by-right. SB 1211 also lets multifamily lots stack up to 8 detached ADUs depending on lot size. Exceptions are narrow: a few non-residential zones, parcels deep inside Alquist-Priolo earthquake fault zones, or properties with active deed restrictions that pre-date 2020. Run your specific address through the wizard to see what's allowed on your lot.

Detached: a separate small structure on your lot, up to 1,200 sqft. Attached: added to your existing house, up to 50% of the primary home's living area (capped at 1,200 sqft). JADU (Junior ADU): up to 500 sqft inside the existing house footprint with its own entrance. You can have one ADU + one JADU on the same single-family lot under current LA rules. SB 1211 (2024) allows multiple detached ADUs on multifamily-zoned lots.

LADBS targets 60-day plan check on ADU permits and offers same-day or 5-day issuance for ADUs built from a pre-approved standard plan (YOU-ADU or any LADBS-licensed designer plan). In real-world practice through 2025-2026, custom-designed ADUs run 4 to 7 months from submittal to building permit because plan check has been running behind the target. Hillside lots add 2 to 4 weeks for geotech and soils review. Properties in HPOZ overlays add 2 to 3 months for HPOZ board approval. Coastal Zone properties add 3 to 9 months for California Coastal Commission permitting. The fastest legal path remains a pre-approved standard plan on a flat, overlay-free lot.

ADUs 750 sqft or smaller skip several fees that kick in at larger sizes: LAUSD's school impact fee (~$5/sqft), LA's residential development impact fee, and sewer capacity charges. The savings can be $5K to $15K vs. an 800-sqft ADU. If you don't strictly need the extra space, sizing down can be a meaningful cost reduction. The wizard's prep-submittal step flags this when you enter your proposed sqft.

Hillside-area lots in LA City need a Hillside Grading Permit alongside the ADU permit, plus a geotechnical soils report. Construction costs typically run 15-25% higher than flat-lot equivalents due to foundation work, terracing, and access. Properties in the Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone (VHFHSZ) also need fire-rated wall and roof assemblies per CA Building Code Chapter 7A, ignition-resistant exterior materials, and defensible-space landscaping. Both overlays are automatically detected when you run an address through the wizard.

Coastal Zone lots (parts of Venice, Pacific Palisades, San Pedro, etc.) need California Coastal Commission permitting in addition to LADBS, which adds 3 to 9 months and significant additional paperwork. Properties in a Historic Preservation Overlay Zone (HPOZ, common across NELA, Hollywood, West Adams, and other historic neighborhoods) need design review and approval from the HPOZ board before LADBS will issue plans. Both are surfaced automatically when you enter your address.

No. California's AB 976 (2023) permanently removed the owner-occupancy requirement for ADUs. You can build an ADU and rent it out to a non-family tenant without living on the property yourself. Short-term rentals under 30 days are restricted by LA's Home-Sharing Ordinance regardless, so the typical rental path is a 30-day-or-longer lease.

Usually no. California state law (AB 670 and follow-up legislation) removed parking requirements for ADUs in most situations: within a half-mile of public transit, in a historic district, on a one-way street, or where on-street parking is permitted at night. Most LA lots qualify under at least one exception. The wizard surfaces parking status when relevant for your address.

Wide range. A free YOU-ADU plan with budget finishes on a flat lot can come in around $130K to $200K all-in. Custom designed, mid-finish, on a typical flat LA lot: $200K to $350K. Hillside or VHFHSZ lots add 20-30%+. HCD-approved prefab (Connect Homes, Cover) runs $190K to $350K turnkey. Non-HCD prefab (Abodu, Villa Homes, etc.) typically lands $278K to $498K all-in. Use the cost calculator at /calculator for a per-lot estimate. The calculator factors in your specific lot's hillside / VHFHSZ overlays, your home's age (older homes need utility upgrades), and lot coverage (tight sites add cost).

It varies enormously by neighborhood. Based on LA County Assessor data, properties with an ADU are associated with a median ~44% higher assessed value than non-ADU single-family homes in the same area, but the per-zip-code premium ranges from ~11% in Woodland Hills to over 80% in Sherman Oaks and 160%+ in Brentwood. These are observational comparisons, not a guarantee that adding an ADU directly adds $X. The wizard surfaces your zip's specific premium when you reach the cost step, so you can see your area's number.

No. California's Prop 13 caps annual reassessment growth at 2% on existing properties. When you add an ADU, only the NEW construction is assessed at its current market value, your existing house keeps its existing Prop 13 base. So if your home is assessed at $400K under Prop 13 and you add a $300K ADU, your new total assessed value is roughly $700K, not a fresh market reassessment of the whole property. Property tax goes up by roughly 1% to 1.25% of the new construction value per year (~$3,000 to $3,750 annually on a $300K ADU).

Pre-approved standard plans, also commonly called Permit Ready ADUs or PRADUs, are designs already vetted by LADBS. Same-day or 5-day permit issuance, fastest legal path from contract to building permit. The City of LA's free YOU-ADU plan (455 sqft) is the cheapest PRADU option. LADBS also licenses 80+ designer PRADU plans (ADU1 through ADU96) from various firms for $2K to $8K. Browse them at /standard-plans. HCD-approved prefab (Connect Homes, Cover) skips LADBS plan check entirely because the unit is factory-certified.

Yes. Common paths include HELOC (home equity line of credit), construction-to-permanent loans, cash-out refinance, and ADU-specific products from lenders like RenoFi, Spring EQ, and Aliquot. Each has different rate structures, draw schedules, and approval criteria. The cost calculator can help you size the financing need; for lender-specific conversations the financing-broker form below puts you in touch with our affiliate who covers LA-area ADU financing.

Live from public sources: LA Planning's NavigateLA (zoning, overlays, parcel), LA County DPW (jurisdiction, FEMA flood), LADBS PermitLA (permit history), and California fire-hazard / liquefaction layers. Nothing is scraped from private sources. Lot stats on neighborhood pages are computed from these layers; aggregate market stats use US Census + LA County Assessor data.

We email you the requested checklist immediately, send occasional updates relevant to your permit journey, and may follow up with related resources. We don't sell your email. If you opt in (separate checkbox on the form) we may share your details with one of our affiliated contractors or firms to help you with your project.

Only if you explicitly opt in via the call/text consent checkbox on the lead forms. By default we never call or text. That's a federal TCPA rule and we respect it.