Published October 2026
If you are rebuilding after the January 2025 Eaton or Palisades fires, a like-for-like rebuild is still the fastest path. Here is what that means in LA County and the City of Los Angeles in 2026, how self-certification works, and where the new Zone 0 rules stand.
The short version
- LA County (including Altadena): like-for-like means the same size, location and use. Eaton Fire rebuilds may grow by 10% or 200 sf, whichever is greater; Palisades Fire rebuilds by 10%.
- City of Los Angeles (Pacific Palisades): under the Mayor’s Executive Order 1, a rebuild up to 110% of the old footprint and height skips City Planning review and permit clearances, except for designated historic resources.
- City deadlines: building permits by January 13, 2032, and work finished within three years of the permit.
- Both the County and the City run self-certification pilots that let licensed professionals certify code compliance in place of a full plan check.
- Zone 0: the state Board of Forestry approved the ember-resistant zone rules on August 19, 2026. They apply once the state finishes its administrative review.
Like-for-like, County and City
In unincorporated LA County, a like-for-like rebuild is exempt from current zoning standards. It still has to meet today’s building, fire and health codes. The floor plan can change, and the house can be smaller.
In the City, EO 1 allows the rebuilt house to sit in substantially the same place and reach up to 110% of the old footprint and height. Go past that and you are back in normal zoning and review.
Self-certification
- LA County launched its pilot on May 20, 2025. California-licensed architects and engineers with at least three years of code responsibility in the county, and professional liability insurance, can self-certify plans for single-family homes, garages and ADUs lost in either fire. Hillside and liquefaction sites are out. The County audits at least 20% of self-certified plans, and Regional Planning, Public Health and Fire still review.
- City of Los Angeles started its pilot in June 2025 for Palisades rebuilds and later opened it to civil engineers as well as architects. Other City department approvals still apply.
Zone 0 and ember resistance
Zone 0 is the first 5 ft around a building. The state rules approved in August 2026 ban new combustible fencing in that zone and require clearing combustible mulch, wood chips, leaves and similar material. They apply across State Responsibility Areas and in locally designated very high fire hazard severity zones.
New construction must comply once the rules take effect. Existing homes get a phase-in of three to five years. Rebuilds in hazard zones already have to meet the building code’s wildfire chapter, so design the first 5 ft with the house, not after it.
What to watch out for
- Going bigger changes the path. More than 10% (or 200 sf in the Eaton area) means standard review.
- Know your jurisdiction. Altadena is County. The Palisades is mostly City. The rules differ.
- A different program may fit better. On an eligible vacant lot, SB 1123 can allow several small homes in place of one.
How we use it
Our Mariposa Complex in Altadena took the second path. It rebuilds three homes along a shared driveway under SB 1123, each with an attached ground-floor ADU, three stories with roof gardens. It won the 2026 AIA Pasadena & Foothill Rebuild Design Award for The Most Collaborative Process. Read the Mariposa case study.
A post-fire rebuild in Altadena: three homes, three ADUs, one lot.
Planning a rebuild?
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