California — Los Angeles, Altadena, Orange County, San Diego, Sacramento

Land use, entitlement, and permitting built for California’s regulatory patchwork

Every California market on this site runs its own municipal code, its own department, and its own permitting portal. JDJ works across all of them, coordinating entitlements, permit expediting, and due diligence with the same hands-on approach in Los Angeles as in Sacramento.

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CALIFORNIA Markets California Los Angeles Altadena / Palisades Orange County San Diego Sacramento

California Service Offerings

What JDJ Handles Across California

01. Entitlements & Land Use

Zoning verification and municipal code compliance review before you commit to a site

Multifamily and mixed-use site feasibility (density, setbacks, parking)

Density bonus applications under state and local programs

Zoning Variance

02. Permit Expediting

ADU and JADU permitting

Multi-trade plan review coordination (building, electrical, mechanical, plumbing)

Submittal management and corrections tracking through each jurisdiction's portal (LADBS, EPIC-LA, myOCeServices, DSD, Accela)

Change-of-use and adaptive reuse permitting

Certificate of occupancy coordination and final sign-off scheduling

03. Due Diligence & Feasibility

Title and deed restriction research

Pre-development feasibility studies and site screening before you buy

Zoning and code conflict identification before plan check

Post-disaster rebuild guidance for fire-affected and hazard-zone parcels

Local Relevance

What actually shapes a project here

The issues, timelines, and project types that come up most often when we work in California.

LOS ANGELES
Multifamily permitting activity and ADU volume have both climbed sharply in recent years, with 2024's SB 1211 now allowing up to 8 detached ADUs on qualifying multifamily lots. The most common issue JDJ sees is parking and density assumptions that do not survive contact with LAMC.

Altadena and Pacific Palisades
Both communities are still in active rebuild status following the January 2025 Eaton and Palisades fires. As of early 2026, roughly 2,600 residential rebuild permits have been issued across the two areas combined, with several thousand more under review. Because these are unincorporated communities, rebuilds route through LA County's Department of Regional Planning and Public Works Building & Safety rather than LADBS, using the EPIC-LA portal and, in many cases, Chapter 7A fire-hardening standards. Regional Planning's zoning review for a like-for-like rebuild typically runs three to six weeks, longer for hillside or historic parcels.

San Diego
DSD is one of the busiest permitting departments in the state, processing tens of thousands of permits annually. Its online permitting system has been under active upgrade, so confirming current portal status before submittal is part of JDJ's standard process here.

Orange County
With 34 incorporated cities plus unincorporated county land, the county's biggest due diligence question is jurisdictional: which department actually reviews a given parcel. OC Development Services, under OC Public Works, handles unincorporated-area permitting through the myOCeServices Land Management System; incorporated cities each run their own department and portal.

Sacramento
The Community Development Department reviews both planning entitlements and building permits through the Citizen Access (Accela) portal. Sacramento's Title 17 Planning and Development Code governs zoning, with the city continuing to expand ADU-friendly provisions in line with state law.

FAQ

Questions we hear most in California

Q. Is California permitting the same in every city?

No. Each California city and county runs its own governing code, department, and submittal portal. Los Angeles uses LADBS and the LAMC, San Diego uses DSD and the San Diego Municipal Code, and Sacramento uses the Community Development Department and Title 17. State housing laws like the Density Bonus Law and ADU statutes apply everywhere, but local implementation varies by jurisdiction.

Q. Do Altadena and Pacific Palisades go through the City of Los Angeles?

No. Both are unincorporated communities within Los Angeles County, so permits are reviewed by LA County’s Department of Regional Planning and Public Works Building & Safety through the EPIC-LA portal, not by LADBS.

Q. How long does a fire rebuild permit take in Altadena right now?

As of early 2026, LA County’s Regional Planning zoning review for a like-for-like rebuild typically takes three to six weeks, with longer timelines for hillside or historic parcels. Full permit issuance timelines vary by project complexity and contractor availability.

Q. Who handles permitting in Orange County?

It depends on the parcel. Unincorporated county land goes through OC Development Services (part of OC Public Works). Land within any of Orange County’s 34 incorporated cities goes through that city’s own planning or building department instead.

Q. Does JDJ work in California cities beyond these five?

JDJ’s core California coverage is Los Angeles, Altadena/Pacific Palisades, Orange County, San Diego, and Sacramento. Contact JDJ directly to confirm coverage for other California markets.

Land use, entitlement, and permitting built for California’s regulatory patchwork

Markets covered

Los Angeles, Altadena/Pacific Palisades, Orange County, San Diego, Sacramento

Governing framework

State housing law layered under city and county codes

Coordination model

One JDJ team, market-specific code fluency