Timelines · Permit-ready plans
How Long Does It Take to Get Permit-Ready Plans?
Quick answer
With a traditional engineer, drafting a standard residential permit set typically takes 3 to 14 business days, and city review adds another 1 to 8 weeks on top of that. NALO HQ handles the drafting stage in about 30 minutes to an hour, so your plans reach the building department sooner. City review time still applies, but a complete, code-compliant set reduces the corrections that usually stretch a timeline out for weeks.
Timing Usually Decides When You Can Start
If you're planning a patio cover, deck, or small addition, timing usually decides when you can start. The question isn't just "how long do permit drawings take to make?" It's how long the whole process takes, from your first sketch to a stamped approval in hand.
Here's a clear breakdown of permit drawing turnaround time, what actually slows projects down, and how permit-ready plans fit into your overall project timeline.
Two Different Clocks: Drafting Time vs. City Review Time
A lot of confusion around building permit plans turnaround time comes from mixing up two separate stages.
Drafting time is how long it takes to produce your permit-ready drawings, the site plan, elevations, structural details, and calculations.
City review time is how long your building department takes to check those drawings against local code once you submit them.
These are not the same clock, and a fast drafting process doesn't shorten a slow city review. But a well-prepared, code-compliant set does reduce the chance of corrections, which is usually what actually stretches a timeline out for weeks.
How Long Do Permit Drawings Take With a Traditional Engineer?
With a traditional structural engineer, drafting time for a standard residential permit set typically runs anywhere from 3 to 14 business days once the engineer has your project details in hand. Simple projects land on the shorter end. Additions and larger structures with more coordination take longer.
That's before your city even begins reviewing the plans. Add another 1 to 8 weeks for the initial review, depending on your jurisdiction and project complexity. If the city sends back corrections, which happens often when plans have small inconsistencies, add another round of review on top of that.
For a homeowner building a patio cover or deck, this often means waiting 3 to 6 weeks or more before construction can even begin, not counting the time it takes to find and hire the right engineer in the first place.
How Long Does It Take With NALO?
NALO HQ generates permit-ready plans in about 30 minutes to an hour. That's the drafting stage handled in a single sitting, not spread across days of back-and-forth with an engineer's office.
Here's the process:
- Enter your address. Your city's exact setbacks, height limits, and required sheet list load automatically.
- Answer plain-language questions. Describe your project's dimensions and materials. No engineering background needed.
- Upload your photos and survey. These are used to place your structure accurately on the site plan.
- Download your plans. A 10-sheet, permit-ready PDF formatted for your city's building department.
City review time still applies once you submit, since that part is controlled by your local building department, not by how the plans were drafted. But starting review sooner, instead of waiting days or weeks for drafting, moves your whole project timeline forward.
Why Permit-Ready Drawings Still Get Sent Back
Even fast drafting doesn't guarantee a clean approval if the plans themselves have gaps. The most common reasons permit drawings get corrections are:
- Missing or unlabeled setback dimensions
- Numbers that don't match between sheets
- Structural details that don't meet your city's specific code requirements
- Sheets your building department requires that were left out of the set
NALO HQ validates every input against your city's actual code the moment you enter it, and builds every sheet from the same project data. That's designed specifically to prevent the mismatches and missing sheets that slow down city review.
What If the City Sends a Correction Anyway?
Sometimes a city reviewer flags something specific to local interpretation. If that happens, upload the correction notice to your NALO HQ dashboard. Affected sheets get regenerated within 1 to 2 hours, free of charge if the correction was caused by an error in the NALO HQ plan.
That kind of fast turnaround matters more than people expect. A one-day fix keeps your permit moving. A two-week wait for a redraft from an engineer's office can push your whole project into the next season.
Why Faster Drafting Matters for Contractors
If you run multiple jobs a month, drafting delays stack up fast. Waiting a week per project for an engineer to draft permit drawings means your crew sits idle between jobs, and your client's project timeline slips before construction even starts.
Cutting drafting time from days to about an hour means you can submit for permit review the same day you finalize a project scope, keeping your schedule full and your clients informed.
Frequently Asked Questions
With a traditional engineer, drafting typically takes 3 to 14 business days depending on project complexity. NALO HQ generates permit-ready plans in about 30 minutes to an hour.
Drafting is only part of the timeline. City review adds another 1 to 8 weeks depending on your jurisdiction. Faster, more accurate drafting reduces the chance of corrections that extend that review period.
Sometimes a reviewer flags something specific to local interpretation rather than an actual error. This is uncommon, but when it happens, a fast correction turnaround keeps the project on schedule.
Not directly, since that timeline is set by your building department. Submitting a complete, code-compliant set without common errors like missing dimensions or mismatched sheets is the best way to avoid adding extra weeks through corrections.
No. Plans are validated against your city's exact code requirements in real time and drawn to NCS/AIA standards, the same format your building department expects.
NALO HQ regenerates affected sheets within 1 to 2 hours of receiving your correction notice, at no cost if the issue came from the NALO HQ plan.
No. NALO's permit plans cost $119, compared to the $800 to $3,000 typically charged for engineer-drafted drawings, with a fraction of the wait time.
Get Your Permit-Ready Plans Started
Faster drafting means you spend less time waiting and more time building. NALO HQ generates permit-ready plans for your patio cover, deck, or ADU in about 30 minutes to an hour, built to your city's exact codes from the start. Join the waitlist to get started.