Title 24 Compliance Checklist for Remodels & Additions
Title 24 — California's Building Energy Efficiency Standards, Title 24, Part 6 of the California Code of Regulations — applies to nearly every permitted remodel, addition, and ADU in the state. This checklist walks the whole paper trail in order: permit date, CF1R, HERS / ECC testing, CF2R, CF3R, final inspection.
By Roman Leonelli, CEO & Certified HERS / ECC Rater — CHEERS Rater #RCN13486. Published .
The checklist at a glance
Title 24 compliance isn't one inspection — it's a sequence of documents and field tests that have to happen in a specific order. Miss a step and the permit doesn't get finaled. Here's the whole sequence:
- 1. Confirm your code cycle. The permit application date decides it: on or after January 1, 2026 means the 2025 Energy Code; earlier applications stay on the 2022 code.
- 2. Get the CF1R approved at plan check. The Certificate of Compliance is the energy design document — the building department won't issue the permit without it.
- 3. List the HERS measures your scope triggers. Duct leakage, refrigerant charge, airflow, QII — the CF1R names every field test your project owes.
- 4. Have the installer file the CF2R. The Certificate of Installation is the contractor's signed statement of what actually went in.
- 5. Book the HERS / ECC verification — the CF3R. An independent certified rater tests the work, then registers the Certificate of Verification.
- 6. Close it out at final inspection. The inspector signs off once the work matches the registered paperwork set.
The checklist, step by step
Step 1 — Your permit application date picks the code
The 2025 Building Energy Efficiency Standards took effect January 1, 2026. The California Energy Commission's rule is exact: buildings whose permit applications are applied for on or after January 1, 2026 must comply with the 2025 Energy Code. Applications filed before that date stay on the 2022 code for the life of the project.
The date on your permit application — not the date construction starts — decides which Energy Code your project follows. A remodel permitted in December 2025 and built through 2026 is a 2022-code project from start to finish.
One more 2026 change worth knowing: the CEC renamed the code-compliance side of the HERS (Home Energy Rating System) program. As of January 1, 2026, the raters who field-verify Title 24 measures are called ECC raters — Energy Code Compliance — under the CEC's Energy Code Compliance Program. Same tests, same registries, new name. You'll see "HERS" and "ECC" used interchangeably for a while, including by us.
Step 2 — Get the CF1R into plan check
The CF1R (Certificate of Compliance) is the energy design document, usually prepared by an energy consultant running Title 24 calculations. It shows how the project complies — either the prescriptive path (a fixed recipe of component efficiencies) or the performance path (an energy model that lets you trade measures off against each other). Most remodels and additions of any complexity use the performance path.
If the project includes any field-verified measures, the CF1R must be registered with an approved data registry before the building department accepts it. ERE registers through CHEERS, which the CEC approved as an ECC provider and 2025-code data registry in November 2025.
Step 3 — Know which HERS / ECC measures your scope triggers
The registered CF1R lists every field verification your project owes. The common ones on remodels and additions:
- Duct leakage testing — triggered by replacing or installing HVAC equipment or ductwork. See duct leakage testing.
- Refrigerant charge verification — for air conditioners in climate zones 2 and 8–15; under the 2025 code, heat pumps need it in all 16 climate zones per the CEC's What's New for 2025 fact sheet.
- Cooling-coil airflow and fan efficacy — airflow and fan-watt measurements on ducted cooling systems.
- QII (Quality Insulation Installation) — insulation and air-barrier verification before drywall, prescriptively required on additions over 700 square feet and standard on new homes and ADUs. See QII verification.
- Mechanical ventilation (IAQ) — whole-dwelling ventilation airflow on new dwellings, including ADUs.
- Building envelope leakage — a blower-door test, when the energy model takes the air-leakage credit.
Wondering what the testing itself runs? We've broken down published market pricing in our HERS test cost guide.
Step 4 — The installer's CF2R
After installation, the contractor files the CF2R (Certificate of Installation) — a signed statement that what was installed matches the approved CF1R. For HERS-verified measures, the CF2R has to be registered on the data registry before the rater can verify, so a missing CF2R is the single most common thing holding up a HERS appointment. Ask your contractor to confirm it's registered when you book the test.
Step 5 — Third-party verification: the CF3R
A certified HERS / ECC rater — independent of the installing contractor, by regulation — comes out, runs the required tests, and registers the CF3R (Certificate of Verification) with the registry. This is what ERE does. We test, we give you results the same day, and we register the passing CF3R with CHEERS so it's on file when the inspector asks. You can book the verification online or call (310) 807-4800.
If a measure doesn't pass on the first visit, it gets fixed and retested — we wrote a separate guide on what happens if you fail a HERS test.
Step 6 — Final inspection
The building inspector finals the permit when the field work matches the registered document set: CF1R approved at plan check, CF2Rs from the installers, CF3Rs from the rater. Inspectors increasingly pull these straight from the registry. If a permit has been sitting open because the paperwork chain broke somewhere, that's a solvable problem — it's exactly what our final inspection and closeout service exists for.
What different projects trigger
Every project is governed by its own CF1R, but these are the typical patterns we see across Los Angeles, Orange County, and the Inland Empire:
| Project | Paperwork | HERS / ECC tests usually triggered |
|---|---|---|
| Furnace or AC change-out (existing ducts) | CF1R-ALT, CF2R, CF3R | Duct leakage test at the alteration target (typically 15% of system airflow); refrigerant charge in climate zones 2 and 8–15 — all zones for heat pumps under the 2025 code |
| Full HVAC replacement with new ducts | CF1R-ALT, CF2R, CF3R | Duct leakage at the new-system target (typically 5%), cooling-coil airflow, fan efficacy, refrigerant charge |
| New ADU | New-construction CF1R, CF2R, CF3R | QII before drywall, duct leakage, refrigerant charge, cooling airflow, mechanical ventilation (IAQ) |
| Addition over 700 sq ft | CF1R for the addition, CF2R, CF3R | QII (prescriptively required above 700 sq ft) plus any HVAC tests the new equipment triggers |
| Window replacement | CF1R-ALT, CF2R | Usually none — prescriptive U-factor / SHGC limits, paperwork only |
Frequently asked
Which Energy Code applies to my remodel?
The code in force on the date your permit application was filed. Applications filed on or after January 1, 2026 follow the 2025 Energy Code; applications filed before that date stay on the 2022 code, even if construction runs into 2026 or beyond. The application date — not the construction start date — controls.
What are the CF1R, CF2R, and CF3R?
They are the three Title 24 compliance documents. The CF1R (Certificate of Compliance) is the energy design document approved at plan check. The CF2R (Certificate of Installation) is the installing contractor's signed statement of what was actually built. The CF3R (Certificate of Verification) is the independent HERS / ECC rater's field-test results. All three are registered electronically — ERE registers through CHEERS.
Does a furnace change-out trigger Title 24?
Yes. Replacing a furnace, air conditioner, or air handler is an alteration under Title 24, so it needs a permit, a CF1R-ALT, an installer CF2R, and — in most cases — a duct leakage test verified by a HERS / ECC rater on a CF3R. Skipping the test is the most common reason change-out permits never get finaled.
Do replacement windows need a HERS test?
Usually no field test. Like-for-like window replacements follow prescriptive U-factor and SHGC limits and are documented on a CF1R-ALT and CF2R, but they don't normally trigger HERS field verification. Larger glazing changes that go through the performance path can change that — check the CF1R.
When does an addition need QII?
QII (Quality Insulation Installation) is prescriptively required for additions over 700 square feet, and smaller additions often take it as a performance credit to make the energy model pass. If QII is on your CF1R, a HERS / ECC rater has to inspect the insulation and air barrier before the drywall goes up.
Working through this checklist on a real project?
Send us the scope and the CF1R if you have one. We'll tell you exactly which tests your project owes, schedule the verifications around your build, and register the paperwork with CHEERS — same-day results, across LA, Orange County, and the Inland Empire. Call for a fixed quote.