Express Permit or plan check
LADBS issues "permits for simple projects, which do not require plan check" as Express Permits. Its Express Permits bulletin (read 24 October 2026) lists the remodel and repair jobs that qualify:
| Job | Express Permit item | Limit |
|---|---|---|
| Kitchen or bathroom remodel | Building item 2 | Residential, "no structural changes" |
| Window and door change-out | Building item 1 | Same size and type; NFRC-certified dual glazing |
| Replace drywall | Building item 22 | "No new walls added"; houses and duplexes only |
| Water, termite or dry-rot repair | Building item 16 | Under 10% of the building's replacement cost |
| Fire damage repair | Building item 17 | Maximum 10% of replacement cost |
| Replace damaged framing members | Building item 14 | Under 10% of replacement cost; houses and duplexes |
| Wall and floor insulation | Building item 28 | Houses and duplexes |
| Finish work on an expired permit | Building item 9 | Only if inspection finds it at least 75% complete |
Anything past those limits (removing a wall, adding floor area, repair over 10% of the building's value, handrails) goes to plan check through ePlanLA. Plan check and permit fees are set on the project valuation; LADBS publishes a fee calculator but no flat remodel fee. Electrical, plumbing and mechanical work in the remodel are separate LADBS permits.
Who can pull it
A licensed contractor normally takes the permit through PermitLA and files LADBS's subcontractor form listing every sub on the job. For the electrical part, LADBS's Express Permits page answers the question of whether a homeowner can get an electrical permit with "If you have resided in the house for 12 months or more."
Inspections are requested through LADBS's online inspection request; the permit is finished when its status reads Permit Finaled.
What 21,914 Los Angeles remodel permits show
| Measure | Los Angeles remodels and repairs |
|---|---|
| Issued October 2024 to September 2026 | 21,914 (22% of LADBS building permits) |
| October 2024 to September 2025 / October 2025 to September 2026 | 11,229 / 10,685 (−5%) |
| Finished, permits issued October 2024 to September 2025 | 73.1% (0.1% expired) |
| Usual days, issue to final (middle half) | 85 (44–169) |
| Usual declared value (middle half) | $7,000 ($3,000–$17,000) |
| Busiest / quietest month (index, 100 = average) | October (117) / February (88) |
| ZIPs with the most | 90272 (728), 90042 (548), 90049 (536), 90065 (507), 91344 (504) |
The top two ZIPs say a lot: 90272 and 90049 border the January 2025 Palisades fire area, so part of this category is fire and smoke repair. A remodel permit open past six months is slower than three in four, worth a call to the contractor about the final. Monthly counts are on Los Angeles remodel permits, days for every kind of work on how long a Los Angeles permit takes, and the totals on Los Angeles permit statistics.
Before you hire
Check the contractor's CSLB license (how to check a contractor's license in California) and look up existing permits on the house with the Los Angeles building permit search or Los Angeles permits. Rules elsewhere: do I need a permit for a home remodel, a kitchen remodel and a bathroom remodel; national prices in home remodel cost.
What this does not tell you
Only building permits are in the LADBS file we use; a remodel's electrical and plumbing permits are kept separately and not counted. The file names no contractor. The declared value sets the fee and is far below what most remodels cost.
How we know this
Express Permit items and the homeowner electrical answer are quoted from LADBS's Express Permits page and bulletin, read 24 October 2026. Our counts are the LADBS building-permit file on data.lacity.org, read 18 October 2026: permits issued October 2024 to September 2026 that we classify as remodels and repairs; finished share and days use permits issued October 2024 to September 2025.
Numbers come from public permit records in 57 cities, data through October 18, 2026. Nobody paid to be on this page and nobody can.
Questions
- Do I need a permit to remodel a kitchen or bathroom in Los Angeles?
Yes. LADBS lists 'Kitchen/bathroom remodel for residential buildings (no structural changes)' as an Express Permit, issued without plan check. Moving or removing a bearing wall takes the job out of Express and into plan check. Electrical and plumbing work need their own permits.
- Can I replace windows in Los Angeles without plan check?
Yes, if it is a same-size, same-type change-out on a residential building. That is an Express Permit item, and LADBS requires dual glazing labeled and certified by the National Fenestration Rating Council.
- How long does a remodel permit take in Los Angeles?
The usual remodel and repair permit issued October 2024 to September 2025 reached final 85 days after issue, and the middle half took 44 to 169 days. 73.1% had finaled by October 2026.
- Can a homeowner pull an electrical permit in Los Angeles?
LADBS's Express Permits page answers 'If you have resided in the house for 12 months or more.' Otherwise the electrical part of a remodel goes on a licensed electrical contractor's permit.
- Which Los Angeles ZIP codes have the most remodel permits?
90272 (Pacific Palisades) had 728 remodel and repair permits from October 2024 to September 2026, much of it repair after the January 2025 fires, then 90042 (548) and 90049 (536).
Build your own list
Pick your city and the kind of work. Every firm with a permit on record, sorted by what you value.
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