HVAC on the coastside, California
Who issues the HVAC permit in Montara or El Granada?
San Mateo County, not a city: El Granada, Montara and Moss Beach are unincorporated. What that means for a furnace or heat pump job on the coastside, from planning review to booking the inspection.
On file for Coastside
County permits for the coastside towns
On file, last checked 2026-10-22
Read next
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Permit
Why does the county handle permits on the coastside?
Because there's no city to do it. San Mateo County's Planning and Building Department issues permits across unincorporated San Mateo County, which takes in El Granada, Montara and Moss Beach.
Source: County of San Mateo Planning and Building, Apply for a Permit. Rules and programs change: last checked 2026-10-22.
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Planning
Does a coastal parcel need planning review first?
If it's in a Design Review or Coastal Zone district, yes. The county sends parcels in those districts, along with Resource Management, Planned Agriculture and hazard overlays, to planning review first, and that review decides how the project is processed.
Ask early whether your parcel is in one: it sets the path the permit takes.
Source: County of San Mateo Planning and Building, Apply for a Permit. Rules and programs change: last checked 2026-10-22.
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Inspection
How do I book an inspection with the county?
By phone, at any hour. The county's automated inspection line gives 24-hour access to schedule or cancel an inspection and check a permit's status.
The work is held to the county's building regulations, which adopt the 2025 California Building Standards Code, the Green Building Standards included.
Source: County of San Mateo Planning and Building, How to Schedule an Inspection. Rules and programs change: last checked 2026-10-22.
Source: County of San Mateo Planning and Building, FAQs. Rules and programs change: last checked 2026-10-22.
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Rebate
Is the coastside covered by the heat pump rebate?
Yes. WestLight Energy serves all of San Mateo County, unincorporated coast included, and pays $1,500 per heat pump condensing unit that replaces a gas heater or furnace.
Dual-fuel systems with gas heat as backup are the exception that doesn't qualify.
Source: WestLight Energy (formerly Peninsula Clean Energy), Home Upgrade Rebates Terms and Conditions (updated May 18, 2026). Rules and programs change: last checked 2026-10-22.
Where we work
The Peninsula line
Our shop is in San Mateo. Every stop below is a city we work in, from San Francisco's neighborhoods down to Gilroy, over to the coast and across to the East Bay. The stops in white have their own page.
- Our shop, San Mateo
- A city with its own page
- We work there too
Along the Bay and El Camino
The hills
- Emerald Hills
- Woodside
- Portola Valley
- Stanford
- Los Altos Hills
- Los Altos
- Cupertino
- Monte Vista
- Saratoga
- Monte Sereno
- Los Gatos
- Campbell
The coast
- Pacifica
- Montara (this page)
- Moss Beach (this page)
- El Granada (this page)
- Half Moon Bay
Tell us what it's doing. We'll take it from there.
Call and describe the problem: the noise, the smell, the room that never warms up. Or book a visit online.
