How much does Title 24 compliance cost?
Our service is a flat $200 per project, billed once at checkout. The fee covers the entire workflow from upload through a signed CF1R you can submit with your permit set — including compliance verification, CHEERS registration, and the designer-signature flow.
How long does the whole process take?
Most projects are documentation-ready within about 24 hours of upload. Final delivery depends on how quickly the responsible designer signs the CF1R that CHEERS emails to them — that step is between CHEERS and your designer.
What if my plans are messy or hand-drawn?
The PDF only needs to be legible — clear floor plans, elevations, and a coversheet with the address are enough. We will not pause to ask for clarifications: the design is generated from the information you provided, exactly as we read it. The Confirm step before payment is your one chance to correct anything we extracted, so review window counts, bedrooms, climate zone, and ceiling height carefully there.
What's the difference between the three design options?
Prescriptive is the standard code path — walls, windows, heating, cooling, and water heating all match the baseline numbers in the code book for your climate zone.
2x4 Performance keeps the familiar 2x4 R-15 wall framing and compensates with upgraded windows, roof, and equipment.
2x6 Enhanced steps the walls up to 2x6 R-21 cavity insulation so the rest of the design can ease back. Full breakdown on the Title 24 explained page.
Do I get to choose the HVAC and water heater?
Yes. After we analyze your plans, you select your preferred HVAC system and water heater type from a list of common residential equipment. We honor your selection if it pencils out for your climate zone and envelope; if it doesn't, we'll surface a firm-default lineup that will pass.
Can I get revisions after I select a design option?
Customer-initiated changes aren't possible — once you lock in, your inputs, plans, and design choice are final from your side. A different design path after selection requires a new project at the standard $200 fee. The Confirm step before payment is your last chance to correct anything we extracted.
What's the refund policy?
All sales are final. The flow is intentionally built so you see exactly what we extracted from your plans before Stripe is involved — upload, classify, sign in, analyze, and confirm the project details. Once payment is captured at checkout the $200 fee is non-refundable. We may grant refunds at our sole discretion in cases of clear billing errors or other exceptional circumstances; see the Terms of Service for the full policy.
Who actually signs the CF1R?
The CF1R is signed by the project's Responsible Person — typically a California-licensed architect or engineer, except that B&P Code §§ 5537 and 6737.1 also let an unlicensed designer or builder take responsibility for wood-framed single-family homes up to two stories, and small (≤4-unit) two-story wood-framed multifamily buildings. You give us the designer's name and email during the workflow, and CHEERS sends the signature request directly to them once your project is registered.
Why does the climate zone matter so much?
California has 16 climate zones, and the prescriptive numbers (insulation R-values, window U-factors and SHGCs, roof assembly) all change by zone. Your project's ZIP code determines its climate zone, which we look up automatically. See the climate zones page for what changes between them.
Does this include solar / PV sizing?
Yes, when your project requires it. Newly-constructed homes and detached ADUs carry a Title 24 §150.1(c)14 PV requirement — we calculate the required kW from your conditioned floor area and dwelling-unit count using the state's prescriptive table, and the resulting kW lands on the CF1R that gets delivered with your compliance package. Additions, alterations, and attached ADUs are exempt under §150.2(a), so no PV is required and none is shown on the CF1R. Either way, we don't sell or install panels; your contractor uses the kW value on the CF1R when sizing the system.
Does this work for ADUs and additions?
Yes — newly-constructed single-family homes, attached and detached ADUs, additions, and additions-with-alterations are all supported. The flow asks you to pick a scope at the Confirm step, and we route the project through the right Title 24 baseline (Newly Constructed vs. Addition+Alteration). Pure alterations are also supported.