An official check that building work meets the approved plans, the building code, and safety standards, at every phase of a project. Below: the types, the process, who performs them, what they cost, and how to pass the first time.
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Written by the InspectPilot team · LA contractors who run LADBS inspections daily · Updated June 2026
A construction inspection is an official review of building work that verifies it complies with the approved plans, the adopted building code, and safety standards. Inspections take place at specific, predefined stages of a project, and each stage must pass before work is allowed to proceed to the next. No passing inspections, no certificate of occupancy. No legal, insurable structure.
The purpose is straightforward: confirm that what was built matches what was approved, that it is structurally sound, and that it is safe to occupy. Inspections are the checkpoints that turn a set of permitted drawings into a building people are legally allowed to live and work in.
The phrase covers a few related things. Most often it means a building-code inspection performed by a government inspector at a permit milestone. But "construction inspection" is also used for private new-construction home inspections ordered by a buyer, special (deputy) inspections required by the engineer of record, and lender draw inspections that release financing. We break down all four below.
Licensed inspectors from the local building department — the Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ). In Los Angeles, that is LADBS. Separate inspectors handle building, electrical, plumbing, and mechanical, and you don't choose who shows up.
Routine code inspections are included in your permit fees. Re-inspections after a failure run $200–$500. The real cost is the delay — about $1,200 on average per failed inspection once idle crews and downstream impacts are counted.
15 minutes to 1 hour on-site. The inspector reviews the items for that phase, documents findings, and issues a pass, fail, or correction notice. Results are usually same-day or the next business day.
Pass: proceed to the next phase. Fail: you receive a correction notice, fix every listed item, then re-request. One open item holds up the whole project until it clears.
Inspections exist to protect three things at once: public safety (a building that won't collapse, catch fire, or poison its occupants), code compliance (the legal minimum standard the jurisdiction has adopted, usually based on the International Building Code and International Residential Code), and quality assurance (work that actually matches the engineered plans). They are also the gate for financing and insurance: lenders, title companies, and insurers all rely on passed inspections and a certificate of occupancy as proof the structure is legitimate.
On a typical project, construction inspections fall into six categories by trade and phase. Most trades are inspected twice — a rough inspection before walls are closed up, and a final inspection after finishes are installed.
Foundation, framing, shear walls, hold-downs, connections, and overall structural integrity. These are the most complex inspections and carry the highest failure rates — framing is where most corrections get written.
Wiring, panel and sub-panel installation, grounding and bonding, GFCI/AFCI protection, and device placement. Both rough (before walls close) and final inspections are required. Sub-panel sizing that doesn't match the approved plans is a common fail point.
Supply lines, drainage, venting, water heater, and gas connections. Includes pressure testing on rough plumbing before walls close. Drain slope is one of the most-cited correction items.
Ductwork, equipment installation, refrigerant lines, combustion air, and ventilation. Make sure equipment is installed and operational before you schedule — an inspector can't sign off on a unit that isn't running.
Fire-rated assemblies, smoke and CO detectors, sprinkler systems, and egress requirements. Critical for occupancy approval — inspectors check detectors every time, so don't skip the CO detector.
A comprehensive walk-through confirming every prior inspection passed and every correction is resolved. Required before a Certificate of Occupancy is issued. This is where the whole project has to come together.
Inspections follow the order of construction: you can't inspect framing before the foundation passes, or close walls before the rough trades are signed off. This is the typical sequence on a ground-up build.
Because the same phrase covers very different checks, it's worth being precise. Here is how the four most common types differ — who orders each one, who performs it, and what it's actually for.
| Type | Who orders it | Who performs it | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|
| Municipal code inspection | Required by permit | City/county building inspector (AHJ) | Verify code compliance to allow the next phase and, eventually, occupancy. |
| Special / deputy inspection | Engineer of record / code (IBC Ch. 17) | Registered special (deputy) inspector hired by the owner | Continuous or periodic verification of high-consequence structural work (welds, anchors, concrete, soils). |
| New-construction home inspection | The homebuyer | Independent licensed home inspector | Protect the buyer's interests — catch defects the city inspection isn't looking for. |
| Lender / draw inspection | The construction lender | Third-party draw inspector | Confirm work is complete to a given percentage before releasing the next loan disbursement. |
A municipal inspection protects the public. It confirms the building meets the legal minimum — it does not check whether the work was done well, or in your interest as a buyer. That's why special inspections exist for risky structural work, and why many buyers hire their own inspector on a brand-new home.
If you're buying a newly built home, the city's inspections are not enough on their own — they confirm code minimums, not quality or your interests. A private new-construction inspection is typically done across three or four phases, each catching problems that become invisible (or expensive) later:
Done 24–48 hours before concrete is poured, while the foundation can still be corrected.
The single most valuable phase — the only chance to see what's behind the walls before insulation and drywall hide it.
Closest to a standard home inspection — a full review of the finished home before you take occupancy.
Done just before the builder's one-year warranty expires, so defects that surface in the first year get fixed on the builder's dime.
Code inspections are carried out by construction and building inspectors employed by the local building department. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual wage for construction and building inspectors was $72,120 as of May 2024, and roughly 14,800 openings are projected each year over the decade, mostly to replace retiring inspectors. Most enter the field with a high-school diploma plus hands-on experience in a construction trade, and most states or localities require a license or certification (commonly an ICC certification).
On complex projects, a second tier of inspection applies: special inspectors (also called deputy inspectors) are independent, code-registered professionals hired by the owner to continuously or periodically verify high-consequence work — structural welds, post-installed anchors, concrete, and soils — under IBC Chapter 17. They supplement, but never replace, the jurisdiction's right to inspect.
Every inspection comes down to a focused list for that phase. The recurring theme is that the inspector is comparing the built work against the approved plans — not against "good enough." The most-checked items across trades include structural connections and hold-downs, electrical grounding and GFCI/AFCI protection, plumbing slope and pressure tests, fire-rated assemblies, and working smoke and CO detectors.
We turned the most common inspection items and the top reasons inspections fail into a one-page, print-friendly checklist you can hand to your crew before the inspector arrives. Download the PDF → No email required.
It's almost never the work. It's the paperwork: plans not on site, the wrong inspection called in, the trade "almost" done when the inspector pulls up, or a document nobody can find. You've seen all four. They're also exactly the mistakes that slip through when you're tracking 4+ permits in your head. Get those four right and you stop the large majority of correction notices before they start.
Process varies by jurisdiction, but Los Angeles is a useful, concrete example. The City handles building, electrical, plumbing, and mechanical inspections through LADBS; unincorporated LA County uses a separate system (EPIC-LA) through Public Works. In the City of LA there are three ways to request an inspection: iRFIS (the LADBS online portal), calling 311 to reach the AIRS automated phone system, or using InspectPilot to submit automatically.
All requests must be in by 3:00 PM the day before the desired date, and you'll need your 15-digit permit number and 7-digit confirmation number. Requests can be placed up to three business days in advance.
InspectPilot submits through iRFIS and 311 with your credentials, before the 3 PM deadline, for all your permits at once. It knows your inspection sequence, confirms trade readiness, and manages the correction loop when something fails. See how it works →
Go deeper on the specific guides that match where you are in a project:
An official review of building work that verifies it complies with the approved plans, the building code, and safety standards at specific phases. Each phase must pass before work continues, and you can't legally occupy a building without passing inspections.
They usually mean the same thing. A building-code inspection is the most common construction inspection — a government inspector checking code compliance at a permit milestone. "Construction inspection" is the broader umbrella that also covers private home inspections, special (deputy) inspections, and lender draw inspections.
Building/structural, electrical, plumbing, mechanical (HVAC), and fire & life safety, finishing with a final/occupancy inspection. Most trades are inspected twice — a rough inspection before walls close, and a final after finishes are installed.
Licensed inspectors from the local building department (the AHJ); in LA that's LADBS. High-consequence structural work also requires special/deputy inspectors hired by the owner, and homebuyers can hire an independent home inspector.
Routine code inspections are included in permit fees. Re-inspections after a failure run $200–$500. A private new-construction home inspection is usually $400–$800 per phase. The real cost is the delay — about $1,200 on average per failed inspection.
15 minutes to 1 hour on-site. The inspector reviews that phase's items, documents findings, and issues a pass, fail, or correction notice. Results are usually same-day or next business day.
City inspections protect public safety, not your interests as a buyer. Many buyers hire an independent inspector for pre-pour, pre-drywall, and final-walkthrough phases, plus an 11-month inspection before the builder's one-year warranty expires.
Make sure the work matches the approved plans exactly, all documentation is on-site, and the trade's work is genuinely complete before you request the inspection. Those three things prevent the large majority of failures.
InspectPilot manages scheduling, tracking, and the correction loop for all your permits, submitted before the deadline, every time.
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