We had a duplex client in the Bay Area last fall—new construction, everything buttoned up, CO₂ detectors installed, final electrical signed off by the third-party inspector. The GC filed notice of completion on a Tuesday. Then we waited. Four weeks. The building department kept saying "we'll get to it," but meanwhile the owner had two tenants ready to move in November 1st and a construction loan ticking at 9%. By the time the inspector showed up in mid-November, the owner had burned an extra month of interest and lost the first wave of rent. That kind of delay just became illegal in California.
AB 1308, which took effect January 1, 2026, requires building departments to conduct inspections within 10 business days of receiving a notice of completion for certain residential projects. If they don't, it's a violation of the Housing Accountability Act—the same statute that cities actually fear because it carries mandatory attorney's-fee awards and can override local denials. For the first time, California put an enforceable deadline on the end of the permit process, not just the beginning.
Who AB 1308 Covers
The 10-day clock applies to 100-percent residential buildings where no dwelling exceeds 40 feet above grade. Specifically, it covers new residential construction of one to 10 units and additions to existing buildings with one to nine units that add more units (up to 10 total). That scope captures nearly every ADU, every detached casita, every duplex, triplex, and small multifamily project we draft in California. It does not cover mixed-use buildings, single-family remodels that don't add units, or mid-rise projects above 40 feet.
The 40-foot threshold is measured from grade, not from the first habitable floor, so a typical two-story ADU or three-story townhome fits comfortably under the cap. A four-story podium project probably won't. The law is aimed at the housing types that state legislators want to move faster: backyard cottages, missing-middle infill, and the kind of small multifamily that pencils on standard residential lots.
What the 10-Day Deadline Actually Means
Once you file a notice of completion—the formal request for final inspection—the building department has 10 business days to show up. Not 10 calendar days, so weekends and holidays don't count. If day 10 falls on a Friday and they haven't scheduled you, Monday is day 11 and the city is in violation of the Housing Accountability Act.
What does an HAA violation get you? The Housing Accountability Act allows developers to sue and recover attorney's fees if a local agency violates the statute. It's not an automatic fine, but it gives you a credible enforcement tool. If your client is sitting on a finished ADU in San Diego or a triplex in Sacramento and the building department is two weeks past the deadline, your land-use attorney can send a letter citing AB 1308 and the HAA. Most cities will schedule the inspection within 48 hours of that letter, because they know HAA litigation is expensive and they usually lose.
We're not litigators, but we've watched enough permit fights to know that cities respond to statutory hammers. AB 1308 created one.
Why This Matters More Than Plan-Review Timelines
California already has SB 35 and other laws that set deadlines for approving housing projects. AB 1308 is different because it governs the inspection after construction is done. That's the moment when your client has the most money on the line—the GC has demobilized, the loan is in its final draw, and every day of delay costs rent or sale proceeds.
A three-week slip during plan review is annoying. A three-week slip after you've filed for final inspection is a financial emergency. If you're a general contractor with a crew rolling onto the next job, you can't send them back for a punch-list fix if the city takes a month to tell you what's wrong. If you're an ADU buyer trying to get a tenant in before the first mortgage payment, every week past completion is money out of pocket.
AB 1308 doesn't speed up plan review, and it doesn't fix understaffed building departments. But it does mean that once you're done building, the city has to close the loop in two weeks. For projects in the one-to-ten-unit range, that's the part of the timeline that's been most unpredictable—and now it's the most predictable.
What Happens If You Fail the First Inspection
The 10-day clock is for scheduling the inspection, not for issuing the certificate of occupancy. If the inspector shows up on day eight and red-tags your electrical panel, you still have to fix it and call for a re-inspect. The law doesn't say the city has to re-inspect in another 10 days, so expect the normal queue for corrections. The penalty is for not showing up, not for failing you.
That said, if you've done permit-expediting or plan review with us, you know we build correction cycles into the schedule. AB 1308 makes the first-inspection date predictable, which means you can plan your punch-list window and your contractor's availability. You're not waiting in limbo wondering if the city will show up next Tuesday or next month.
How We're Adjusting Timelines for California Clients
When we deliver permit-ready drawing sets for ADUs, duplexes, or small multifamily in California, we now tell clients to budget 10 business days from notice of completion to final inspection—and to file the notice as soon as the GC says the site is ready. If you're conservative, add a few days for the city to process the notice itself, but the statute is clear: the clock starts when they receive it, not when they acknowledge it.
For projects near a lease date or a sale closing, we recommend filing the notice even if there are minor punch-list items left, as long as life-safety systems are done. The inspector will catch the loose outlet cover, but you've locked in your inspection date. You can fix small stuff and call for a same-day re-inspect if the department allows it, or schedule the correction and re-inspect within the normal window. Either way, you're not burning three weeks waiting for the first visit.
The Bigger Picture: HAA Enforcement for Housing Production
AB 1308 is part of a 2026 package of California housing laws that incrementally tighten the screws on local agencies that slow down residential development. AB 253 lets small projects hire private plan-checkers if the city doesn't issue a timeline within 30 days. SB 79 overrides local height and density limits near major transit in eight counties. AB 920 mandates online permit portals for cities over 150,000.
None of these laws are silver bullets. But together they create a statutory framework where delays have consequences and developers have recourse. For the kind of infill housing California says it wants—ADUs, casitas, triplexes, transit-oriented apartments—AB 1308 removes one of the last unpredictable variables: the final-inspection wait.
If you're planning a one-to-ten-unit residential project in California and you want your permit set drafted to pass the first review, talk to us. We work in all 50 states, but California's new timelines mean accuracy up front pays off faster than it used to.