Zoning, building permits and septic rules in Long Beach, California

At a glance

Zoning

Yes: city zoning, Title 21, plus Title 22 in specified areas¹

Residential districts

Table 31-1 lists 20 residential districts³

Building permits

Issued by the city's Building & Safety Bureau²

Minimum lot size

Set by district; applies to new subdivisions only⁴

Manufactured homes

Allowed in some residential districts on a permanent foundation⁵

Camping

Banned on public property from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m.; private land not addressed⁶

Septic

Not confirmed inside city limits; the county health department handles unincorporated land⁷

Who to call

Contact details are copied from each office’s official page and were checked against it on October 16, 2026.

Does Long Beach, California have zoning, and what does it mean for lots and setbacks?

Yes. Long Beach applies Title 21 Zoning to land inside the city, and Title 22 Transitional Zoning Code applies in specified areas¹. The residential districts run from R-1-S through RP, and the city's Table 31-1 lists 20 of them; commercial, multifamily and neo-industrial districts sit elsewhere in Titles 21 and 22³.

Lot size and yards depend on the district. Minimum lot area and lot width apply only to new subdivisions, not to building on an existing lot⁴. Front yard depths follow Table 31-2A, so look up your parcel's district before you assume a setback⁸. The Planning Bureau's "what's my zoning district?" lookup is the quickest way to find it⁹. We did not capture the numeric yard depths or the height limits, so confirm both with the Planning Bureau.

Do you need a building permit in Long Beach, and who issues it?

Building permits inside Long Beach come from the city's Building & Safety Bureau, which takes applications through in-person appointments and online permitting and handles plan checks². Los Angeles County Public Works issues building permits for unincorporated Los Angeles County, so the county counter is the wrong office for a Long Beach address¹⁰.

We could not open the city's adopting ordinance or fee schedule, so we cannot state exactly which small projects are exempt, or what fees apply. Call the Permit Center before you buy or start work. California's owner-builder exemption is statewide, but the city decides how it applies at the counter¹¹.

How do septic permits work inside Long Beach?

We could not confirm who issues septic permits inside Long Beach city limits, or whether new septic systems are allowed there at all. Most of a dense city is on public sewer, so a septic question is unusual here and deserves a direct answer before you commit to a parcel.

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health's septic program reviews systems in unincorporated Los Angeles County under its Local Agency Management Program, and that county rule is scoped to unincorporated land, not to Long Beach⁷. Ask the Building & Safety Bureau first². California law also requires a permit for new and replacement septic systems statewide¹².

Can you live in an RV, tiny home or manufactured home in Long Beach?

Manufactured housing is allowed in the R-1 and R-2 districts, plus R-M and R-4-M, when it sits on a permanent foundation⁵. It is not permitted in R-2-A, R-3, R-4 or RP, and mobile home parks need a conditional use permit⁵.

Long Beach bans camping on public property, including rights-of-way and inside a vehicle, between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m., except on property designated for overnight camping⁶. The code section we reviewed does not address camping on private land⁶. We found no tiny-home provision in the sections we reviewed, so ask the Planning Bureau before relying on one⁹.

Building a home in Long Beach: the steps, in order

1. Look up the parcel's zoning district with the Planning Bureau's lookup, then confirm lot area and yards in Table 31-2A⁸⁹.
2. Ask a planner whether your project needs a zoning entitlement or a public hearing⁹.
3. Book a Permit Center appointment or apply online for the building permit and plan check².
4. Confirm the sewer or septic arrangement with the Building & Safety Bureau before you finalize plans².
5. Schedule inspections through the Building & Safety Bureau as work proceeds².

What stays with Los Angeles County, and what to check before you buy in Long Beach

Long Beach's rules apply inside city limits. For land outside the city, use the Los Angeles County page, where the county's unincorporated-area rules are laid out.

Some facts are county-wide figures, not Long Beach figures. Los Angeles County's typical home value is about $888,426¹³, and its effective property tax rate is 0.7%¹⁴. Check floodplain status, driveway or curb-cut rules and utility connections with the city before closing; we could not confirm those for Long Beach.

Watch-outs

• We could not confirm Long Beach's building permit exemptions, fee schedule or septic rules; call the Building & Safety Bureau at the Permit Center before you buy².
• Search results for Long Beach often show Los Angeles County Public Works, which serves only unincorporated areas, not addresses inside the city¹⁰.
• The numeric lot area and yard depths sit in Table 31-2A of the city's code and vary by district, so check the specific district⁴.

Sources

1. LBMC 21.31.205 Units per lot and lot area per unit (Long Beach), quoted and re-checked
2. City of Long Beach Building & Safety Bureau (Permit Center) (longbeach.gov)
3. LBMC 21.31.205 Units per lot and lot area per unit (Long Beach), quoted and re-checked
4. LBMC 21.31.210 Minimum lot area and lot width (Long Beach), quoted and re-checked
5. LBMC 21.31.205 Table 31-1 Uses in Residential Zones (Long Beach), quoted and re-checked
6. LBMC 9.42.110 Camping prohibited in certain areas (Long Beach), quoted and re-checked
7. Local Agency Management Program (LAMP) (2026 county census)
8. LBMC 21.31.215 Yard requirements (Long Beach), quoted and re-checked
9. City of Long Beach Planning Bureau (longbeach.gov)
10. Building and Safety - LA County Public Works Permits (2026 county census)
11. California Business and Professions Code Section 7044 (California statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
12. 2023 OWTS Policy (California statewide rule), quoted and re-checked
13. Typical home value (Zillow): Bolthole Index county data
14. Effective property tax rate: Bolthole Index county data

Written October 16, 2026 from the rules quoted below, each taken from an official source and re-checked by an independent reviewer. This is research, not legal advice: rules change, so confirm with the office before you buy or build.