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If you work in the construction industry, you know that time is money. Architects and Construction Managers are in a race to meet permitting deadlines so that they can avoid delays in construction start-dates and grand openings. With the mad dash to submit project plans for permit approval, details are easily overlooked. Permit applicants with missing plan sets, signatures, and other criteria are typically rejected by jurisdictions and required to come back and submit their plans again. To reduce permit delays caused by re-submittals, we recommend paying close attention to detail. What items do we look at?

Wet vs. Electronic Seals & Signatures

Jurisdictions may require a “wet signed and sealed” signature on application documents. This means that the licensed architect or engineer provides a physical seal/stamp and signature on specified submittal documents such as the calculations, drawings, specifications, reports, etc. Other jurisdictions allow applicants to provide electronic seals and signatures from the architect/engineer in which they add the stamp digitally. It is important to understand this distinction and to determine which jurisdictions require which type of signature.

Number of Plan Sets

Applicants need to provide enough sets of plans to account for the different departments that will review them. For example, a jurisdiction may specify that a client submits three sets of the same plans so that they can be separated between the mechanical, plumbing, and electrical departments. Without the correct number of plan-sets, an applicant will probably need to re-submit, adding to their permitting timeline.

Plan Check Fee

Many jurisdictions require that applicants pay their application fees upfront. If an applicant comes unprepared, the city planners may hold on to the application without reviewing it until the proper fees are paid. Therefore, we recommend that applicants know their fees upfront so that they can have a check in-hand and ready to deliver when going in to apply.

At Permit Advisors we complete comprehensive due-diligence so that we can provide our clients with detailed checklists regarding the information and documentation they need to submit their permit application. We provide detailed quality control by reviewing all plans and documents in the submittal package for our clients so that we can ensure that the package is 100% ready for review. These solutions help us avoid many last-minute issues that may arise during the plan check process so that we exist proactively rather than reactively.

About Permit Advisors

Permit Advisors Inc. is a complete permit, entitlement consulting, and expediting firm based out of Beverly Hills, CA. We go beyond just submitting plans, as you may have experienced with previous expediters. We have established strong relationships with officials of many municipalities and have numerous time and cost saving strategies that we implement to efficiently complete projects. We aim to secure all permits as quickly as possible. We keep track of all aspects of the permitting process and make sure that the project is given full attention by everyone on the team. We responsibly update clients and ensure that lines of communication are open between the jurisdiction, consultants, and the client. Contact us today for a consultation www.permitadvisors.com.