In most California cities, converting an existing attached or detached garage into an ADU does not trigger the Title 24 solar mandate. Because the structure already exists, the project is treated as an alteration, not new construction. There are a few important edge cases — and adding solar voluntarily often still makes financial sense.
Title 24 § 150.1(c)14 applies to newly constructed low-rise residential buildings. A garage conversion that reuses the existing roof, walls, and slab is classified as an addition/alteration under § 150.2, which has no PV mandate.
Some scopes push the project back into 'new construction' territory. If your plans show any of the following, the building department will likely require Title 24 PV.
Even when exempt, many homeowners add a small ADU PV system because the federal 30% tax credit, NEM 3.0 self-consumption, and rental-tenant electricity costs make a sub-$10K system pay back in 5–8 years.
No. LADBS follows the state Title 24 standard, which exempts garage conversions from the PV mandate.
No, plumbing additions don't trigger the PV mandate. Only new conditioned floor area beyond the alteration thresholds does.
Yes — and it qualifies for the 30% federal solar tax credit. We offer the same fixed-price packages whether solar is required or optional.