What changed in the 2025 Title 24 energy code.
Permits submitted on or after January 1, 2026 run under the new cycle. Here’s what actually changed — no guessing, every claim below is checked against the CEC’s own standards document.
January 1, 2026 is the line
The 2025 Energy Code (Title 24, Part 6) applies to buildings whose permit applications are submitted on or after January 1, 2026. A permit application submitted before that date continues to run under the 2022 cycle, even if construction starts later — it’s the submittal date that sets the cycle, not the build date. T24 Studio runs the 2019, 2022 and 2025 cycles, so an older permit already in process isn’t a problem.
Wall insulation went up
The mandatory minimum for wood-framed walls increased from R-13 to R-15 in 2×4 framing, and from R-20 to R-21 in 2×6 framing — this is a statewide mandatory minimum, not limited to specific climate zones. If you’ve been specifying R-13/R-20 out of habit, that’s the number that needs to move for anything on the 2025 cycle.
HERS is now called ECC for code compliance
The field-verification and diagnostic-testing program formerly known as HERS (Home Energy Rating System) has been renamed ECC (Energy Code Compliance) for Title 24 purposes, effective with the 2025 cycle. HERS Raters become ECC Raters; HERS Providers become ECC Providers. The “HERS” brand still exists, but it’s now limited to whole-house ratings and home energy audits — it no longer covers Title 24 code-compliance verification. Compliance documents on the 2025 cycle will show “ECC” where older paperwork showed “HERS.”
TDV and EDR are gone — replaced by LSC
The prior compliance metrics, TDV (Time Dependent Valuation) and EDR (Energy Design Rating), don’t appear anywhere in the 2025 standards. In their place: LSC (Long-Term System Cost) — the CEC’s own definition is “the projected present value of costs to California’s energy system over a period of 30 years.” It applies to new construction, additions and alterations across residential and nonresidential work, and it’s the new basis for both the energy budget and the compliance-margin numbers on your report. Practically: all-electric, heat-pump-based designs generally come out ahead under LSC compared to how they scored under the old TDV metric.
Heat pumps are the direction, not just an option
The CEC states the 2025 standards were written to encourage decarbonization, "emphasizing in particular on heat pumps for space heating and water heating" alongside demand-flexible technology working alongside heat pumps. That’s the code’s own stated direction — if you’re speccing a gas furnace or gas water heater on a 2025-cycle project, expect the compliance math to favor the heat-pump alternative more than it did under 2022.
One thing that didn’t change with the cycle: ADU solar requirements were already in place from the 2022 cycle, not new in 2025. For every acronym on this page defined in one place, see the Title 24 glossary.
Prices
Flat fees, in writing before I start. No hourly, no bid package, no change-order games — the number on the quote is the number on the invoice.
Your first report with me
One per client, homes under 3,000 square feet. Full energy model, CF1R and CHEERS registration. It’s a test run — send one job and see how it goes.
Every model after the first
The standard rate once you’re a client — the second building, ADU plus main house, the next project that walks in. Back in 3 business days.
Over 3,000 square feet
Quoted from the plans before any work starts, same day.
24×36 plan-sheet set
Your CF1R laid out full size, matched to your drawing set. Comes back as a PDF you drop straight in.
Revisions
Two revisions included, plus questions any time. Past two I quote first, before I touch it.
Commercial / tenant improvement
Send the plans and you’ll have a flat quote back the same day. No deposit, no minimum.
How it works
-
01
Send the plans
A PDF of the architecturals and the project address. If something’s missing I ask once, in one email — not five.
Mechanical and plumbing don’t have to be picked yet. If the plans don’t call out the HVAC or the water heater, I model what I’d normally specify for that job and tell you exactly what I assumed. Change any of it and I’ll rerun — that’s not a revision.
-
02
I build the model
If the design does not comply as drawn, I tell you what the model needs to pass and the least disruptive way I can find to get there — your call what goes on the drawings.
-
03
You get it back ready to sign
CF1R registered with CHEERS, you named as the responsible designer. 3 business days — 24–48 hours on your first one. Pay on delivery: Zelle, Venmo or Cash App.
One honest note
I’m not a licensed engineer or architect, and I don’t stamp drawings. On the CF1R I’m the documentation author — you stay the responsible designer. Nothing about your role on the job changes.
That’s on purpose. I’m not after your scope or your clients. I do one piece of the permit set — the piece that usually holds it up — and I do it fast.
2025 code cycle questions
If yours isn’t here, see the full FAQ or call and ask.
Do I need to worry about the 2025 code if my permit is already submitted?
Does the 2025 cycle change ADU solar requirements?
Where in California do you work?
All of it. The work is remote and the code is statewide, so the city makes no difference to price or turnaround — jobs run from San Diego to the Bay Area across climate zones 4 through 10. I run the 2019, 2022 and 2025 code cycles, so an older permit still in process is fine.
Is EV charging part of this code change?
Send a 2025-cycle job.
Whatever cycle your permit falls under — 2019, 2022 or 2025 — the plans go in and the CF1R comes back registered.