Address Assignment and Maintenance Procedures

Address Verification

1. Determine what information the customer requires and locate property in question using NavigateLA, District Map and/or the Los Angeles County Assessors website.
   1. Verify the address and legal description in question with the District Map and County Assessors records.
   2. If the address in question cannot be located have customer research original building permits at the Records counter of Building and Safety.
      1. Original building permit
      2. C of O (Certificate of Occupancy) showing number of units
      3. Building permits for construction – additions
   3. County Assessor original building records.
2. Update House Number Application

Address Issuance - Electric Meters, Temporary Construction Power Poles, or Meters Pedestals

1. BOE will no longer issue or approve fraction addresses for power meters or pedestals.  Per LAMC 63.112, 63.113, 63.114, 63.115 and 63.116, BOE is only authorized to assign addresses to “Buildings and Structures”, therefore the address of the main building on the property will be used on the permit.  
   
   The Department of Building and Safety will attach a suffix (i.e. TEMP1, TEMP2, PED1, PED2, etc.) to the address based on the use of the electrical meter.  
2. BOE to verify main address of property where power pole/pedestal is to be placed.
   1. BOE to complete LADBS Address Verification Form with the address and legal description and refer customer back to LADBS.
3. If the parcel is vacant land, a temporary address needs to be assigned (refer to Address Assignment later in this section)
   1. Indicate temporary address using NavigateLA Map Notes and on district map.
   2. BOE staff to complete  LADBS Address Verification Form with address and legal description and refer customer back to LADBS.

Address Change (LAMC 63.112 - Street Address Numbers - Authority and Duty of the City Engineer)

Changes to existing address require a valid reason such as what is shown below and require the Customer pay a fee.  Changes due to dislike or superstitions are not valid reasons, but all cases will be evaluated, based on the quota of whole address numbers allowed by the frontage of the individual property.

• Relocation of entrance door to existing building (LADBS Building Permit is required)
• Additional units (ADU or JADU)
• Use of an existing door which fronts a different street (No LADBS Permit required)
• Address duplication (No LADBS Permit required)
• Out of sequence address (No LADBS Permit required) 

In order to start the process with BOE, the Customer will be responsible for providing BOE with documentation to support the request for the address change.  Items the Customer will be required to provide BOE include:

1. A copy of the original Building Permit to verify the structure was legally built (Customer may need to request this from the Records counter of Building and Safety, which may require the Customer pay a fee for this request) OR an active Building Permit Application with an approved floor plan.  BOE will use this information to verify the building was legally constructed/remodeled with the proper permits.   
2. When requesting an address, BOE shall check the addresses of neighboring buildings on both sides to avoid overlapping of addresses
3. BOE shall charge the applicant the appropriate fee per LAMC 63.112 if there is no active LADBS permit
4. Changing the Address on an Existing Permit:  BOE to complete an “Address Correction Form for PCIS Permits” or “Permit Correction Form” (older permits).  LADBS will charge a fee for processing unless it is considered a departmental error.
   1.  When the address change process is completed a monthly report of all new or changed addresses is forwarded to all interested parties, such as the U.S. Post Office and utility companies, by the Mapping Group

Adding an Address

1. BOE staff to go to the following website and login:  https://boemaps.insidela.org/housenumbers/
2. Locate property by address, APN or intersection
3. Click on “Edit” tab
4. Under Edit Functions, Click on “add”
5. Enter the following information, which will generate a list of verified street names:
   1. House Number
   2. Street Direction
   3. Street Name
   4. Click "Submit”
6. Click on the appropriate street name (application will verify the street and address information)
7. Click “Accept” if correct
8. BOE to digitize the house number location by clicking “OK”
9. BOE to verify the location on the parcel where the house number is to be added
10. Click once where the start or beginning of the house number is located
11. Click a second time at the location that sets the angle and direction of the house number
12. A new house number will appear in red

Deleting an Address/House Number

1. BOE staff to go to the following website and login:  https://boemaps.insidela.org/housenumbers/
2. BOE to locate property in by entering the address in the search bar
3. Select and click the house number to be deleted
4. Click “Edit” tab
5. Under Edit Functions, Click on “delete”
6. Follow on-screen directions

House Numbers Painted on the Street Curbs (LAMC 62.96)

The City of Los Angeles does not require house numbers painted on the curbs, this is up to the property owner.  If a property owner wished to have the house number painted on the street curb, the property owner would be required to obtain a permit from the Bureau of Street Services (BSS).  BSS will also issue permits to outside individuals, companies and organizations for painting the numbers on the curbs.   

Address Assignment

A new address is given to a proposed building at the building permit application stage. When the project is completed and Certificate of Occupancy is issued then this new address becomes the official address for that property. Only the City Engineer has the authority to issue addresses per LAMC Sect 63.112. 

BOE staff to verify the following:

1. Street access to the property is available (a future street easement blocking the property to the public street is not an access)
2. The street (Private or Public) should have a name and be in the official list of the streets for the City of Los Angeles
3. The main entrance to the building establishes the address.
4. Depending on the average width of a lot, a house number(s) can be planned ahead of time for each lot(s) using the 20-foot rule.
   1. The 20-foot rule intends that every 20 feet can be given a house number. For example, on a block of 50-foot lots, every lot can have a quota of three numbers (i.e. if the first lot is assigned 1001, then the second lot 1007, the third lot 1013, and so on). The gaps of (2) house numbers are allowed for future expansions, but within a limit and is controlled by the 20-foot rule (LAMC Sect 63.116)
   2. If more address numbers are required, fractional numbers may be assigned. However, the use of fractional numbers is discouraged and should only be used as a last resort. Alphabetical designations attached to numerical numbers (i.e. 201A Figueroa) are not allowed. 
5. Baselines are set for establishing the street directions (LAMC Sect 63.114)
   1. In LA Downtown Area: Main Street and 1st Street
   2. In Highland Park Area: Figueroa Street
   3. In West LA Area: Ocean Front Walk and Marine Avenue
   4. In San Pedro Area: Harbor Boulevard and 1st Street
   5. In Wilmington Area: Avalon Boulevard and “A” Street
6. In general East and South sides of the street have even numbers and West and North sides of the street have the odd numbers (LAMC Sect 63.115)
   1. Exception to this rule. This rule may not apply to some locations in West Los Angeles, Highland Park, San Pedro and Valley District. because of the unusual street alignment. 
7. Apartment buildings are normally assigned with a major house number, attached with apartment numbers. The gang mailbox should be fixed with apartment numbers as follows:
   1. Residential Buildings:
      1. Example 1: 4444 Figueroa Street, Apt. 1, 2, 3
      2. Example 2: 4444 Figueroa Street, Apt. 101, 102, 103; if on the second floor use 201, 202, 203, etc.
   2. Commercial Buildings:
      1. Example 3: 4444 Figueroa Street, Unit 101, 102, 103, 201, 202, 203
      2. Example 4: 4444 Figueroa Street, Suite 101, 102, 103; ; if on the second floor use Suite 201, 202, 203, etc.
   3.  Note Number of units. 

Temporary Address Issuance for Vacant Parcels 

If the parcel is vacant , a temporary address needs to be assigned in order for an Applicant to apply for a Building Permit Application with LADBS.  Permanent addresses can only be issued to a building.  Create a new address based on the "Address Assignment" instructions below:

1. Indicate temporary address using NavigateLA Map Notes and on district map.
2. BOE staff to complete the LADBS Address Verification (Applicant will bring this to BOE) with address and legal description and refer customer back to LADBS.

When the Applicant is ready to obtain Certificate of Occupancy, the permanent address will be assigned and processed and sent to GIS for verification.

Temporary Address Issuance for Subdivisions with New Streets or Named Driveways 

Information is in progress.