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Permit guides

ADU Permits in Richmond: a Homeowner's Guide

What you can build, which permits you need, and how the review actually works — in plain language.

Last updated October 2026. Rules change; always confirm current requirements with the city or county before you build.

Who handles your permit

ADU permits in Richmond run through the Community Development Department — Planning & Building Services, at 450 Civic Center Plaza, Richmond, CA 94804, (510) 620-6705. Applications are filed online through the city's ADU page. The process is ministerial — no discretionary review and no public hearing — and state law caps the review at 60 days once the application is complete. Use one of the city's preapproved ADU plans and the city aims to review yours in 30 days.

What you can build

Richmond's ADU info sheet (current as of 2025) is more generous than state minimums on unit count, and water comes from EBMUD:

Multifamily lots get even more: up to 8 detached ADUs (not exceeding the existing unit count) plus conversions of unused space up to 25% of units. Two ground rules from the city: the ADU may not be sold separately from the main house, and it may not be used as a short-term rental.

Richmond's preapproved ADU plan library

The city's standout feature is a library of preapproved ADU master plans (designed by Opticos Design) — including 1-bedroom Contemporary and Tudor styles and a 2-bedroom Spanish Revival — published as full digital permit sets. You save design fees and the review drops to 30 days. The plans still need site-specific work: you decide where the unit sits on your lot, a civil engineer or general contractor prepares the foundation details, and you bring in a Title 24 energy consultant plus a HERS rater. The city's ADU guidebook even includes a how-to for drawing your own site plan. Even with preapproval, reviewers still verify placement, setbacks, utilities, and fire access for your specific property.

What goes into the submittal

• Complete plan set in PDF (minimum 22"x34" when printed, 11"x17" allowed for smaller projects), each sheet stamped/signed by the architect and/or engineer as required.
• Title sheet: project address, scope description, applicable codes, and sheet index.
• Civil/grading plan stamped by the civil engineer of record: property boundaries, building location (new buildings must be located on-site by a licensed surveyor), distances to property lines, and fire-rated wall/eave callouts.
• Floor plans showing rooms, dimensions, windows and doors, panel locations, MEP fixtures, access, and stair/guardrail details per the city's dwelling requirements.
• Title 24 energy compliance — and for preapproved plans, the site-specific foundation details.

Where applications usually get stuck

• Licensed surveyor siting is skipped. Richmond requires new buildings to be located on-site by a licensed surveyor — hire one before plans are finalized.
• Fire-rated wall/eave notes missing near property lines (R302.1) — a classic plan-check correction on tight East Bay lots.
• Incomplete plan sets. The city's minimum-content list is long; missing items are the main reason the 60-day clock never starts.
• Richmond hills properties need fire and grading attention — the hills are in the wildland-urban interface.
• Multifamily unit-count math (up to 8 detached + conversions up to 25% of units) gets complicated — confirm the allowed count with planning before designing.
• Rent control: Richmond's rent stabilization program covers housing built before Feb 1, 1995 — a brand-new ADU is generally exempt, but rental rules still apply; confirm with the city's Rent Program if anything is unclear.