Planning guide · updated October 2026
In San Luis Obispo County, the first permit question is simple: is the lot inside one of the seven incorporated cities, or in the unincorporated county? That fork decides who reviews your plans, which portal you use, and how coastal and fire-zone rules stack on top. Here is the plain map for custom homes, remodels and ADUs.
The short answer
Inside Arroyo Grande, Atascadero, Grover Beach, Morro Bay, Paso Robles, Pismo Beach or San Luis Obispo, the city’s building and planning staff issue the permits. Everywhere else—Templeton, Nipomo, Cambria, Avila Beach, Los Osos, rural North County and the rest—goes through San Luis Obispo County Planning & Building via the PermitSLO portal. We confirm which path applies on a free lot walk before design. Call 805-712-8993.
1. City or county?
Seven cities vs unincorporated PermitSLO
San Luis Obispo County has seven incorporated cities. Inside those city limits, the city’s community development staff review planning and building. Outside them, San Luis Obispo County Planning & Building is the agency, and applications for unincorporated work go in through the PermitSLO portal.
City building departments (incorporated):
- Arroyo Grande — City of Arroyo Grande Building Division
- Atascadero — City of Atascadero Building Division
- Grover Beach — City of Grover Beach Building Division
- Morro Bay — City of Morro Bay Building Division
- Paso Robles — City of Paso Robles Building Division
- Pismo Beach — City of Pismo Beach Building Division
- San Luis Obispo — City of San Luis Obispo Building & Safety
Unincorporated (County via PermitSLO): Templeton, Nipomo, Cambria, Avila Beach, Los Osos, Cayucos, Santa Margarita, Creston, San Miguel, San Simeon, Oak Shores and other rural parcels. Same County department; same PermitSLO portal.
Our San Luis Obispo County hub walks the county-wide picture. A free lot walk confirms the agency for your APN before anyone draws walls.
2. Planning vs building
What usually comes first
Most new homes, and many larger additions, need a planning or land-use step before a building permit. Planning answers whether the project fits the zoning, setbacks, height, parking, oak or habitat rules, and any discretionary permit the site triggers. Building plan check answers whether the construction documents meet the California Building Standards Code and local amendments.
- Planning / land use first. Plot plan or land-use permit (minor use permit, conditional use permit, coastal development permit, design review where required), plus any conditions of approval.
- Then building permit. Structural, architectural, energy (Title 24), mechanical/electrical/plumbing as required, soils and other reports the site calls for, then plan check, fees, permit issuance and inspections.
- Simpler scopes. Some interior remodels or like-for-like work can go straight to building with little or no planning. The city or County tells you which path your scope needs; we check early so the schedule is honest.
On our process we put the permit path and a written schedule in front of you before you sign. Sister studio Harrod Drafting & Design draws permit-ready plans so design and construction pricing stay in one conversation—or we build to plans you bring from another designer.
3. Coastal development permits
Coast towns and the appeal zone
Lots near the ocean often sit in the California coastal zone. A new home or a larger addition there usually needs a coastal development permit under the local coastal program. Cities with coastal zone land (Morro Bay, Pismo Beach, and parts of other shore communities) administer that review inside city limits; unincorporated coast towns such as Cambria, Cayucos, Avila Beach and Los Osos go through the County.
Some decisions inside the coastal appeal zone can be appealed to the California Coastal Commission. That is not a reason to avoid the coast; it is a reason to budget extra review time and to settle coastal questions before you buy the lot or finalize the design.
Salt air, wind and sandy or bluff soils also shape the details on the house itself. We sort those with the coastal path on the first walk.
4. Fire hazard severity zones
What the map changes on the house
Much of rural San Luis Obispo County, and the hills around towns such as Atascadero, Templeton and San Luis Obispo, is mapped in fire hazard severity zones. Look up the parcel on the CAL FIRE Fire Hazard Severity Zone maps; we confirm it on the site walk.
When a lot is in a mapped zone, the house is built to California’s wildfire building standards (long known as Chapter 7A, now carried in the California Wildland-Urban Interface Code): Class A roof, ember-resistant vents, ignition-resistant exterior walls, windows and decks, plus defensible space. That affects materials and sometimes access for fire apparatus. See our guide to building in a fire hazard severity zone for the house-level detail.
Hillside lots add soils, foundations, retaining walls and drainage on top of whatever permit agency owns the parcel. See building on a hillside lot.
5. Fees and schedules
What we do not invent here
Permit, plan-check, school and impact fees vary by city or County and by the size and type of project. Fee schedules change. We do not publish dollar amounts in this guide. During estimating we pull the current schedule from the agency that owns your parcel and put those line items in the written estimate with everything else.
For Michael Harrod’s published rough ranges on the house itself (not permit fees), use the Central Coast custom home cost guide and the SLO County custom home cost guide. Those pages carry the only per-square-foot tiers we publish.
Rural North County lots without city or district water and sewer also need well and septic steps under County Environmental Health. See building with a well and septic in North County.
6. How we run the permit path
Design, County or city, and the yard
Harrod Built is a family general contractor (CSLB #986950) based in Paso Robles. We build custom homes, remodels, additions and ADUs across San Luis Obispo County, and we pull permits with the agency that actually owns the parcel—city or County.
- Plans. Harrod Drafting & Design draws permit-ready house, remodel and ADU plans, or we build to a set you bring.
- Construction. We carry the project through plan check, inspections and a written schedule on our process.
- Outdoor living. Sister company Paso Robles Landscaping plans landscaping, pools and outdoor rooms with the house so the yard is not an afterthought.
Not sure which agency owns your parcel? We walk lots for free and sort city vs county, coastal and fire-zone steps before design gets expensive. Call 805-712-8993 or contact us.
Before you file
A short SLO County permit checklist
- Is the APN inside one of the seven cities, or unincorporated?
- If city: which building and planning portal does that city use?
- If unincorporated: are you set up on the PermitSLO portal?
- Does the scope need planning / land use (or a coastal development permit) before building plan check?
- Is the parcel in the coastal zone or a mapped fire hazard severity zone?
- Water and sewer: city/district service, or well and septic?
- Have you walked the lot with a builder before you commit to a design?
We answer all seven on a free walk. Start with the San Luis Obispo County page and the fire or well guides if those apply, then call us.
Who issues building permits in San Luis Obispo County?
Inside the seven incorporated cities, the city building department issues the permit. Unincorporated areas—including Templeton, Nipomo, Cambria, Avila Beach, Los Osos and rural North County—go through San Luis Obispo County Planning & Building via the PermitSLO portal.
What is PermitSLO?
PermitSLO is the County’s online application portal for planning and building in unincorporated San Luis Obispo County. City projects use each city’s own portal or counter process, not PermitSLO.
Do I need a coastal development permit?
Often, yes, if the lot is in the coastal zone and the work is a new home or a larger addition. Cities administer coastal permits inside city limits; the County handles unincorporated coast towns. Some appeal-zone decisions can go to the California Coastal Commission.
How do fire hazard zones change the permit path?
They mainly change the construction standards and materials (wildfire / Chapter 7A requirements) and defensible space, not which agency issues the permit. Look up the parcel on the CAL FIRE Fire Hazard Severity Zone maps; we confirm it on the first site walk.
Can you walk my lot before I buy or design?
Yes, and it is free. We confirm city vs county, coastal and fire-zone steps, water and sewer, and what the schedule is likely to depend on before design gets expensive. Call 805-712-8993.
Planning guides
Budget and planning guides
What a custom home costs on the Central Coast
Rough per-square-foot ranges for SLO, Monterey and Santa Barbara counties, and what moves a home between them.
Cost to build a custom home in SLO County
What drives the budget on a Central Coast custom home, and how to get a real number.
ADU cost on the Central Coast
Detached, attached or conversion: what moves the price of an ADU or guest house.
Home remodel cost in Paso Robles & SLO County
Kitchens, baths, whole-home remodels and additions: the cost drivers we see.
Building on a hillside lot
Soils, foundations, retaining walls, drainage and access: what a sloped lot adds before the house begins.
How long it takes to build a custom home
The phases from lot to move-in, what sets the pace, and how long our own recent homes took to build.
Building with a well and septic in North County
Wells, septic under the County LAMP, Paso basin and will-serve letters: what a rural North County lot needs before the house.
Building in a fire hazard severity zone
What Chapter 7A (and the California Wildland-Urban Interface Code) change on the roof, vents, walls, windows, decks and landscape.
Build or buy a custom home on the Central Coast
Honest comparison: custom new build vs buying an existing home in SLO, Monterey and Santa Barbara counties.
Coastal development permits in SLO County
Cambria, Cayucos, Morro Bay, Pismo Beach and Avila Beach: exempt vs CDP vs Minor Use Permit, and Coastal Commission appeals.
Start your project
Building in SLO County? Tell us about the lot and the permit path.
A few details help us call you back with useful answers about budget, schedule and permits.
805.712.8993michael@harrodbuilt.com
1345 Riverside Ave, Paso Robles, CA 93446
CSLB License #986950
