Oakland building permits

Building department

Phone

(510) 238-3891

Office hours

NOT ASSERTED. Oakland runs a One-Stop Permit Center described as a collaboration between Fire, Planning & Building and the Department of Transportation, with digital services through the Online Permit Center; specific counter hours and address are not stated here. The Building Counter number is (510) 238-3891, which the City also gives for 'general questions about Building permit applications or processing issues'.

Website

Official site

Codes adopted

California publishes its building standards as Title 24, adopted by state agencies and republished on a three-year cycle. A city or county may change those standards only after its governing body makes an express finding that the change is reasonably necessary because of local climatic, geological, or topographical conditions, and no change becomes operative until the finding and the change have been filed with the California Building Standards Commission.

• California Building Standards Code as adopted locally, together with Oakland Municipal Code Titles 15 and 17. NO EDITION YEAR IS ASSERTED HERE: the only edition figure available came from a web search summary rather than from a City page, and a search summary is not a source.

Permit types & fees

• Residential Building Combination Permit (RBC)

  Oakland folds the trades into one permit for residential work. For 'building or remodeling a house, duplex, or ADU (Accessory Dwelling Unit)' the MEP work 'should be included in a Residential Building Combination Permit (RBC)'.

  See fee schedule→

• Electrical Permit

  Oakland issues electrical work as its own MEP permit: 'If you're doing any mechanical, electrical, or plumbing work, you usually need a separate permit for each type of work. These are called MEP Permits and they are different from a Building Permit.'

  See fee schedule→

• Plumbing Permit

  Oakland issues plumbing work as its own MEP permit: 'If you're doing any mechanical, electrical, or plumbing work, you usually need a separate permit for each type of work. These are called MEP Permits and they are different from a Building Permit.'

  See fee schedule→

• Mechanical Permit

  Oakland issues mechanical work as its own MEP permit: 'If you're doing any mechanical, electrical, or plumbing work, you usually need a separate permit for each type of work. These are called MEP Permits and they are different from a Building Permit.'

  See fee schedule→

• Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) Permit

  Oakland defines the unit and then splits it into named categories: 'An Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) is a small, self-contained home on the same property as a Single-Family or Multi-Family residence.' and it must include 'everything needed for independent living, like a kitchen, bathroom, and sleeping area.'

  See fee schedule→

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