Pre-Approved (Shelf-Ready) Plans
Also: shelf-ready plans · standard plans
Pre-approved or shelf-ready plans are ADU designs a jurisdiction has already vetted for code compliance. Building from a pre-approved set can shorten plan check from the 60-day state maximum to roughly 30 days, and lowers design cost. The City of Sacramento and Sacramento County both publish pre-approved ADU plan programs.
Pre-approved plans trade some customization for speed and savings. They're ideal for standard lots; complex or sloped sites may still need a custom design. For a Sacramento homeowner, the City of Sacramento and Sacramento County programs publish vetted plan sets, so the structural, energy (Title 24), and code review is largely done before the homeowner ever applies — which is what compresses plan check from the 60-day state maximum toward roughly 30 days. The catch is fit: a flat interior lot in a city like Elk Grove or Citrus Heights usually takes a shelf-ready plan as-is, while a sloped foothill parcel or an irregular older lot often needs a custom set to handle grading, drainage, and siting.
Go deeper:Sacramento ADU rules & permit timeline
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