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Public-source data on the data desk

Santa Barbara County · Research worksheet

The Parcel Research Studio.

Nine documents stand between a parcel address and a buildable project. This studio organizes that research against the official City and County sources — it does not look up parcel data, and it never turns a map line into a legal conclusion.

This worksheet organizes your own research against official sources. It does not look up parcel data, does not determine eligibility or feasibility, and does not replace the planning counter, a licensed surveyor or a title report.

Sources reviewed 2026-10-24 · read-only research, nothing is looked up or stored

Step one

Set the worksheet context.

Voluntary, and it never leaves this page: not in the URL, not in analytics, not in the export file. It only labels your on-screen worksheet.

Jurisdiction ecosystem

Jurisdiction comes first: the City and the County run separate map systems and separate permit portals, and a mailing address does not choose between them. Confirm the parcel's jurisdiction at the planning counter — the Permit Navigator walks that confirmation step by step.

Step two

The nine-document research checklist.

0 of 9 documents gathered. Each entry names the official source and what the document does — and does not — establish.

  1. 01

    Establishes the assessor's parcel identifier and the recorded map reference — the index key for everything else.

    Confidence: An assessor parcel number identifies a tax parcel. It is not proof of a legal building site.

    County parcel & survey mapOfficial external resource
  2. 02

    The metes-and-bounds or lot-and-block description in the recorded deed is the legal definition of the property.

    Confidence: Only the recorded description — not a GIS polygon — defines the parcel legally.

    County of Santa Barbara — official siteOfficial external resource
  3. 03

    Easements, CC&Rs and access rights constrain where and how construction can happen.

    Confidence: A title report is ordered through a title company; public records support but do not replace it.

    County of Santa Barbara — official siteOfficial external resource
  4. 04

    Prior permitted work, finaled inspections and open records define what a new scope must reconcile.

    Confidence: Permit records show what was filed and finaled — not what is approvable now.

    Official permit portal for the confirmed jurisdictionOfficial external resource
  5. 05

    A licensed surveyor's survey is the only document that locates boundaries for design and setbacks.

    Confidence: Recorded surveys inform; a current survey by a licensed surveyor is the design-grade document.

    County parcel & survey mapOfficial external resource
  6. 06

    Slope, drainage and grade drive foundation scope, retaining work and the buildable envelope.

    Confidence: Topo is commissioned, not downloaded; GIS contour layers are screening aids only.

    County parcel & survey mapOfficial external resource
  7. 07

    Water, sewer/septic and electric capacity — in writing from the utility — is a prerequisite, not an assumption.

    Confidence: A will-serve letter or written capacity confirmation is the only reliable evidence.

    County of Santa Barbara — official siteOfficial external resource
  8. 08

    Previous design review approvals, variances or coastal permits can still shape — or expire on — the parcel.

    Confidence: Entitlements have conditions and expiration; the agency file is the authority.

    Official permit portal for the confirmed jurisdictionOfficial external resource
  9. 09

    Overlay zones add review layers and technical requirements that change scope, cost and timeline.

    Confidence: Overlay status is a parcel-level determination by the responsible agency, not a map glance.

    California Coastal Commission — LCP mapsOfficial external resource

What a map never proves

Five lines that are not conclusions.

  • An assessor parcel number (APN) identifies a tax parcel — it is not proof of a legal building site.
  • A GIS parcel line is a cartographic representation — it is not a surveyed legal boundary.
  • A map autocomplete or address match is a convenience — it is not a jurisdiction determination.
  • A zoning label on a map is a starting point — the current adopted code text and the planning counter govern.
  • No output of this worksheet is an eligibility finding, a feasibility verdict or a permit prediction.

Who to involve, and when

  • Licensed land surveyor — boundary and topographic surveys
  • Title company — preliminary title report and easement record
  • Architect — feasibility framing once the documents above exist
  • Geotechnical engineer — soils and slope, where terrain or bluff conditions warrant
  • General contractor — constructability and budget realism after the record is assembled

Bring to the counter

Questions and checkpoints.

  • Which agency's records govern this parcel — and has the planning counter confirmed it in writing?
  • What do the recorded legal description and title report say that the GIS map cannot?
  • Which easements, CC&Rs or association rules constrain siting and design?
  • What prior permits, entitlements or violations appear in the parcel's record?
  • Which overlays (coastal, fire hazard, historic, geological) apply, and who confirms each one?

Decision checkpoints, in order

  1. 1.Jurisdiction confirmed at the planning counter — before any document is ordered
  2. 2.Legal description and title report in hand — before survey or design is commissioned
  3. 3.Boundary and topographic surveys complete — before schematic design
  4. 4.Utility capacity confirmed in writing — before the budget is believed
  5. 5.Overlay determinations documented — before the submittal set is assembled

Permit Navigator

Confirm the jurisdiction and its official portal.

Estate Budget Simulator

Model the budget once the parcel record is real.

The three areas

City, Montecito and Hope Ranch — each on its own terms.