When should I order a Title 24 report?

Once the layout, window sizes and equipment are settled, and before the permit drawings are final. On most projects the certificate has to be approved before the permit is issued, and a change found at that stage is cheaper on paper than on site.

Is the code edition set when construction starts?

No. It is set by the date the permit application is made, and the building department decides how that date is established. If a permit expires before any construction, a new application is checked against the code in force on the new date.

Does an HVAC changeout need an approved CF1R before the permit?

Not always. For a residential alteration that needs field verification, where the department does not require plans, Part 1 lets the certificate be approved before the final inspection instead of before the permit. The registered HVAC certificate is then presented at final.

What happens if an ECC test fails?

The installer corrects the work and the ECC-Rater retests it. The passing CF3R is then entered in the registry. Until it is, the final inspection on a house or duplex cannot be completed.

The Title 24 Timeline: From Sketch to Final Inspection

Title 24 runs in six stages, always in the same order: the application date locks the code edition, the CF1R is drafted and then approved before the permit issues, installers sign CF2Rs as they build, an ECC-Rater tests what the CF1R lists, and the final inspection checks all of it against the building.

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No state rule says how many weeks any of this takes. Each building department sets its own plan review pace (see how long plan check takes), and builders set theirs. What Title 24 does fix, in Part 1, Section 10-103, is the sequence, and stalls happen when one stage is still unfinished as the next begins. Here it is, stage by stage, for a typical residential job, with each one's usual sticking point.

Stage 1: the application date locks the code

When: on the day you apply, earlier than many owners assume. Section 10-103(d)1 ties permit approval to the Part 6 edition in force on that date: the 2025 Energy Code for anything applied for from 1 January 2026. HCD's notice on the 2025 codes, Information Bulletin 2025-03 of 22 September 2025, says local government generally establishes what counts as the application date, so ask your department how it does so.

Sticking point: a lapsed permit. Where a permit expires with nothing built, a fresh application is judged under whichever code is current on its own date, and the energy documents follow. See expired permits.

Stage 2: drafting the CF1R

When: while the drawings are being finished, after layout, glazing and equipment stop changing. The CF1R lists every energy feature the building relies on. If any feature needs field verification, the certificate is registered with an ECC-Provider data registry and carries two electronic signatures, one from its documentation author and one from whoever takes responsibility for the design (10-103(a)1A v–vi). Our ordering guide lists what to settle first.

Sticking point: missing schedules, a layout still in flux, or a signature request left unanswered. Where registration applies, both signatures must be electronic, so the submittal waits for them.

Stage 3: plan review

When: between application and permit. Under 10-103(a)2A, the department approves the certificate, by stamp or authorised signature, before it issues the permit. If drawings are required, the certificate goes onto them, as a copy of the registered version where registration applies, and the drawings must show matching features (10-103(a)2B). Reviewers may also request supporting material, including the software input file (10-103(a)2C).

HVAC changeouts can take a shorter route. For a residential alteration needing field verification, where no plans are required, approval of the certificate can wait until final inspection instead of preceding the permit.

Sticking point: correction letters. Mismatched values, a form that does not fit the scope and an unregistered certificate top the list; see 15 Title 24 mistakes.

Stage 4: building it, and the CF2Rs

When: feature by feature as work proceeds. Whoever is in charge of each installation, or an authorised representative, signs a certificate of installation quoting the permit number (10-103(a)3); low-rise residential projects register these too. Each must be posted or available for inspections, and where later work will conceal something, 10-103(a)3F lets the department demand its certificate once that portion is done. The CEC manual's typical sequence includes an insulation visit after installation but before drywall, matching R-values to the CF1R, although the order of visits is local.

Sticking point: substitutions. Under 10-103(a)2B, a changed window, insulation product or heat pump that may break compliance sends the design back for re-approval. Unregistered CF2Rs also stall the next stage.

Stage 5: ECC field verification

When: once systems are in and their CF2Rs registered, ahead of final. An independent ECC-Rater tests whatever the CF1R lists and records results on a CF3R (10-103(a)5), through the same registry. No CF3R may be signed for a home lacking a registered CF2R, except within a sample group. Failures go back to the installer for correction and are retested before a passing CF3R is entered.

Sticking point: late booking, or a retest. Commercial and other nonresidential projects also run acceptance tests at this point (10-103(a)4); see what happens after your report.

Stage 6: final inspection and handover

When: last of all. The inspector checks installed work against the approved plans and certificate, and checks that required CF2Rs and CF3Rs are available. For Group R-3 buildings, which include houses and duplexes, Section 10-103(d)2 says final inspection is not complete until that consistency and compliance are verified. No occupancy certificate issues for a new building until its CF3Rs arrive; an alteration needs only a signed-off final. Copies of every certificate, with operating and maintenance information, then stay in the building for its owner (10-103(b)).

Sticking point: a missing CF3R, or a certificate that no longer matches the installed equipment.

Reading the timeline backwards

Since each stage feeds the next, plan from the date you need the final and count back. Testing needs finished, registered installations. Installation needs a permit. A permit needs an approved certificate, which needs a settled design. Every sticking point above sits at one of those joins. On a job with no field verification, Stage 5 drops out and the chain is one link shorter. The Title 24 checklist shortens the first, and Title 24 compliance explains why each step exists.