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Housing Construction Codes

A Handbook for Local Governments

The Division of Codes and Standards in the Department of Housing and Community Development is pleased to provide this handbook as a means of assisting local government with the training of building code enforcement personnel. Improved awareness of the state laws, regulations, and building standards, will improve compliance, reduce housing construction costs and delays, and reduce the number of complaints by designers and builders.

The Department encourages each Building Department to require all personnel, including any utilized private entities and special inspectors, who perform plan examination and or field inspection activities to read this handbook. Further, the Department encourages each Building Department to issue all such personnel a copy of the California Building Standards Code discussed in this handbook, and a copy of any enacted local ordinances making modification thereto. These steps will help to ensure uniform application of statewide standards that are adopted to benefit both builders and residents, as well as local standards adopted to ensure health and safety in specific geographic areas.

This handbook does not address maintenance and abatement issues, which are to be the subject of a future handbook issuance.

Readers of this handbook may find it beneficial to begin with the Glossary provided in Chapter 7, especially personnel beginning their study of building codes.

The photographs provided herein depict completed and under-construction single- family homes, multiple family dwellings, and hotels.