Contractor Design and Plan Set Services
Our Residential Drafting Services in Monterey & Santa Cruz Counties
At RDD, we’re proud to offer comprehensive services to cover every drafting and design need you have for your remodeling project.
To help a client visualize what the finished product will look like, we can provide 3D renderings of any space. If your client is looking for a layout that’s outside-the-box, we’re happy to create multiple options using a variety of custom designs. If round one doesn’t quite hit the mark, we’ll edit a design based on the client’s feedback until they’re satisfied with moving forward.
Of course, we also produce detailed floor plans and permit drawings. We take the utmost care to ensure that all drawings are precise, high-quality, and delivered to you promptly.
What Partnering with RDD Looks Like
We know delays are the bane of the construction industry, so when you contact RDD, you’ll get a timely reply. When you need a plan set, we’ll make sure to get it to you as soon as we can.
On top of a fast turnaround time, we pride ourselves on creating faultless sketches. A small mistake on a plan set can often lead to thousands of wasted dollars in construction, so we double- and triple-check our drawings to make sure they’re accurate.
If a client changes their mind mid-project or you need to pivot for another reason, we’ll work with you to adjust any design or drawing to reflect the updates.
Why Choose Us?
Along with our quick responses and precise designs, we have valuable insight for the permitting process. We’ve worked with the Monterey and SF Bay Municipalities for years, so we understand the nuances and requirements for nearly every form or permit. We stay up-to-date with any regulatory changes or slight modifications, meaning your timeline won’t be delayed due to the wrong box being checked.
We’ve worked in the construction industry for 30 years, so we know what expectations are for a solid partnership. With that said, we choose to deliver above and beyond what’s required of us leading to long-lasting relationships with contractors.
Experienced Contractor Design & Plan Set Services in Monterey and Santa Cruz and Santa Clara Counties
Whether it’s an addition, remodel or custom home, we’re happy to provide you with the design and all the services you need to complete the pre-construction process. Whether it’s a standard plan set or something more unique and challenging, RDD has the experience and know-how to design your clients dream.
Plan sets that take work off your desk
We draft permit sets for general contractors across the Peninsula:
- Remodels, additions and whole-house scopes.
- Kitchen and bathroom permit sets.
- ADU plan sets — where a growing share of contractor work is arriving, since approval is ministerial and the state clocks run in your favor.
How it works:
- Send your field measurements, or let us measure.
- Plan sets can be issued in your title block.
- We answer the plan-check corrections.
- You keep the client relationship and the schedule.
We work across Monterey and Santa Cruz counties, so you get one drafting relationship instead of relearning five intake counters.
Contractor drafting FAQs
Can you draft from my field measurements, or do you need to measure the house yourself?
Either. If you have measured the building and your dimensions are reliable, send them and we will draft from them — sketches, a marked-up floor plan, photos and a dimension list all work. If you would rather not tie up a lead carpenter for half a day, we will field-measure it ourselves. What we will not do is draft off an assessor’s sketch and hope, because the correction cycle that produces costs more than the site visit would have.
Do you white-label, or does your name go on the drawings?
We white-label. Plan sets can be issued in your title block, with your firm on the cover sheet and on every page, and we stay out of the client relationship entirely. If you would rather we be visible to your client, that works too — tell us which at the start, because it affects how the sheets are set up.
What is the turnaround on a permit plan set?
It depends on scope and on how complete the input is, and we quote a date rather than a range once we have seen the job. What moves the schedule: whether existing conditions are documented or need measuring, whether structural engineering is in the loop, and how many decisions are still open on your side. Tell us your submittal date up front and we will tell you plainly whether it is realistic.
Who handles plan-check corrections?
We do, for the drawings. Corrections are part of the job, not a change order — every jurisdiction issues them, and one round is normal. Comments that belong to the structural engineer go to the engineer, and comments about site conditions or scope come back to you.
Do you carry the permit through submittal?
We prepare the submittal package in the format the jurisdiction accepts and we handle the corrections, but we are not a permit expediting service and the applicant of record is normally you or the owner. Where a jurisdiction allows the designer to submit on the applicant’s behalf, we can.
Do you work across multiple jurisdictions on the Peninsula?
Yes, and that is most of the value here. Monterey, Carmel, Carmel Valley, Pacific Grove, Pebble Beach and the county each run a different submittal and review process. A set formatted for one is not automatically formatted for the next.
Can you produce as-builts on a remodel where nothing matches the original plans?
That is the standard condition on Peninsula housing stock, not the exception. We field-measure and produce as-built drawings that reflect the building as it stands, which is what the rest of the set gets drawn against and what keeps your bid from meeting a surprise in week three.
How does pricing work for repeat trade work?
Per project, quoted off scope rather than billed hourly, so you know the drafting line before you price the job. After a few sets we know your framing preferences, detailing standards and the jurisdictions you build in. For contractors sending regular work we set up a standing arrangement rather than re-quoting each job.
Concept to Plan Submittal, Made Easy
When you work with our design team, you’re gaining a valuable partner who can support your project. Reach out today to see if we’d be a good fit to work with you.