What Does a Pre-App Screening Actually Accomplish?

What does a pre-app screening actually accomplish?

Not enough, if you haven't prepared to ask the right questions.

A pre-application screening with your county will tell you what the rules are. It won't tell you which rules apply to your specific site, which ones have room for interpretation, or which ones will kill your project before design begins.

The county answers what you ask. Nothing more.

I just completed a Level 1 pre-app for a current custom home project in Gig Harbor. But we didn’t go in blind. I conducted a thorough Site Validation first, so that I’d be armed with pointed questions to get very specific information. Information that’ll save us tens of thousands and months of delays. 

Hey Andrew, why don’t you just give me the checklist of those questions? 

Well, even if I did, it won’t be of much value to you. The questions were specific to my client’s site and their goals. Your site, your goals, your wants and needs are different, and because of that, there’s no boilerplate set of questions. 

Most homeowners who think a Pre-App is all they need walk into that meeting with inspiration photos and a rough idea of what they want to build. They walk out with a stack of handouts and a vague sense that things are more complicated than expected.

That's not the county's fault. They're not there to diagnose your site. They're there to administer ordinances.

The preparation problem is fixable. Before a pre-app meeting is worth your time, someone needs to have already reviewed your zoning designation, your setbacks, any critical areas on or near the property, your buildable envelope, and the realistic go/no-go scenarios. Then you walk in with specific questions that actually move your project forward.

A pre-app meeting answers the questions you ask. A Site Validation Report surfaces the questions worth asking.

If you're planning a custom home or major remodel in Pierce or Kitsap County and you're thinking about scheduling a pre-app meeting, it's worth a conversation first.