Permits, Plans & Approvals: What Happens Behind the Scenes

Permits are the single most confusing part of a Bay Area remodel for most homeowners. Scope varies. Timelines swing. Every city handles things slightly differently. And a process that looks like paperwork on the outside often determines whether your project starts in March or in July.

Here's a grounded explanation of how permitting actually works for Peninsula homeowners — what's required, how long it takes, and where delays come from.

Do you need a permit?

Yes, for anything beyond purely cosmetic work. Specifically, these trigger a permit in every Bay Area city we work in:

• Moving or adding plumbing fixtures
• Moving or adding electrical circuits, panels, or outlets
• Removing or relocating any wall (load-bearing or not)
• Adding square footage, including ADUs, additions, and garage conversions
• Replacing windows where size or location changes
• Water heater replacement (yes, even a like-for-like swap)
• HVAC replacement or relocation
• Roofing replacement

Cosmetic work — paint, flooring, cabinet replacement in the same footprint with the same plumbing, countertop swap — typically does not require a permit. But the moment you relocate a sink, you're in.

The three stages of permitting

Stage 1: Plan preparation

Before anything is submitted, the plans have to be complete. For a simple bathroom, that might be a 6-page set. For an ADU, it's typically 25–40 pages including structural, energy, and mechanical drawings. We prepare these during the design phase.

Stage 2: Submittal and plan check

We submit the plans to the city's building department. They assign them to a plan checker (or sometimes multiple — structural, planning, mechanical). The plan checker reviews against code, zoning, and local amendments. They either approve, or they return comments ("corrections").

Most projects get at least one round of corrections. Nothing wrong with that — it's the system doing its job. We respond to corrections and resubmit. Each round typically adds 1–3 weeks to the timeline depending on the city.

Stage 3: Permit issuance

Once plan check clears, the city issues the permit. Fees are paid (varies by project scope and jurisdiction), and we can legally start work.

Typical timelines by city

These are real ranges from projects we've permitted in the last two years. Your scope and the city's current backlog can push these up or down.

• Burlingame — bathroom/kitchen: 4–7 weeks; addition/ADU: 10–16 weeks
• San Mateo — bathroom/kitchen: 5–9 weeks; addition/ADU: 12–20 weeks
• Hillsborough — bathroom/kitchen: 6–10 weeks; addition: 14–24 weeks (design review often required)
• Palo Alto — bathroom/kitchen: 6–12 weeks; ADU: 12–18 weeks; addition: 16–28 weeks
• Redwood City — bathroom/kitchen: 4–8 weeks; ADU: 10–14 weeks
• South San Francisco — bathroom/kitchen: 3–6 weeks; ADU: 8–14 weeks
• Daly City — bathroom/kitchen: 4–7 weeks; ADU: 10–16 weeks
• San Bruno — bathroom/kitchen: 4–6 weeks; ADU: 10–14 weeks

Hillsborough and Palo Alto consistently have the longest timelines on the Peninsula. Hillsborough has strict design review and in many neighborhoods architectural committee approval. Palo Alto's review queue tends to be long regardless of scope.

HOAs and design review

If you live in an HOA, there's often an architectural review process that runs in parallel with — or before — city permitting. Every HOA is different. Some approve a re-roof in a day. Others take a month or more for any exterior change. It's worth flagging an HOA early so its guidelines can be factored in.

Hillsborough isn't technically an HOA but has a design review process that functions similarly. Many Atherton and Portola Valley neighborhoods also have it.

Inspections during construction

Once the permit is issued and work starts, the city comes back multiple times to inspect. A typical kitchen or bathroom has 4–6 inspections:

• Rough plumbing — before walls are closed
• Rough electrical — before walls are closed
• Rough mechanical (HVAC) — if applicable
• Framing — if walls were moved
• Insulation — before drywall
• Final — after everything is complete

Additions and ADUs have more: foundation, structural steel, shear wall nailing, and various energy inspections. Each inspection must pass before the next phase proceeds. A failed inspection usually means a correction and a re-inspection 2–5 days later.

Why permits cause delays

Most permit delays fall into one of these buckets:

• Incomplete plans — the plan checker bounces it back for missing details
• Zoning or setback issues — common on additions and ADUs, especially in older neighborhoods with tight lots
• Structural engineer review timing — for anything structural, their review adds time
• City backlog — plan checkers are people; some cities have more demand than staff
• Revisions during construction — if you change something mid-project, we re-submit and wait for re-approval
• HOA delays — often running on their own slower clock

Things people get wrong about permits

• "We'll just skip the permit" — this catches up with you at resale, during an appraisal, or when something fails
• "The contractor handles everything" — we do most of it, but you sign the permit and the permit is in your name if you're the owner
• "Permit fees are the contractor's overhead" — they're pass-through costs paid to the city and vary a lot by scope
• "The permit slows the project down" — the permit is the project. Skipping it creates bigger problems later

The honest summary

Permitting adds time, and it adds cost. It's also what makes your remodel insurable, financeable, and resaleable. The good news: after you've been through it once, it's less mysterious the second time. Our team handles the paperwork, helps schedule the inspections, and coordinates with the city so most of this happens without you in the middle of it.

If you're planning a project in a specific Peninsula city and want a realistic permit timeline for your scope, we can walk through it during the free consultation. Knowing whether you're looking at six weeks or sixteen changes how you plan the rest of your year.