Quick Answer: If you’re selling a home, condo, or business property in Burbank, the city requires you to certify — before escrow closes — that every toilet, showerhead, and faucet on the property meets specific low-flow standards. This is done through the Retrofit Upon Resale Certificate of Compliance, a free form filed under Ordinance No. 3786. There’s no fee to file it, but it is a condition of escrow, meaning the sale cannot close without it.
What is the Burbank Retrofit Upon Resale Ordinance?
Burbank City Council adopted the Retrofit Upon Resale requirement as Ordinance No. 3786, originally passed in 2010 and later amended on December 13, 2022 to align with the current California Plumbing Code. It applies to all residential, commercial, and industrial buildings served by the City of Burbank at the time of resale — not just apartment buildings.
The rule is simple in concept: before ownership changes hands, the seller must certify that the plumbing fixtures in the home meet Burbank’s water-conservation standards. It’s handled through Burbank Water and Power (BWP), the city’s own utility, rather than through the county or state.
What are the actual water-use standards?
As of the December 2022 update, BWP requires the following:
| Plumbing Item | Required Standard |
|---|---|
| Toilets | 1.28 gallons per flush or less |
| Showerheads | 1.8 gallons per minute or less |
| Kitchen faucet aerators | 1.8 gpm default (temporary increase to 2.2 gpm allowed) |
| Bathroom faucet aerators | 1.2 gpm or less |
| Public/common-area bathroom faucets | 0.5 gpm or less |
| Floor-mounted urinals | 0.5 gallons per flush or less |
| Wall-mounted urinals | 0.125 gallons per flush or less |
If any fixture in the home doesn’t meet these numbers, it has to be swapped out or upgraded before the certificate can be filed truthfully.
Who is responsible for compliance — buyer or seller?
Compliance is the seller’s (transferor’s) responsibility. Both buyer and seller ultimately certify on the form, but it’s the seller who has to make sure the fixtures actually meet the standard before that certification is signed. This is worth flagging early in a listing conversation, not at the closing table — retrofitting a house with old toilets and showerheads is a lot easier to schedule in week one of a listing than during a tight escrow.
How do you get the Retrofit Upon Resale Certificate?
- Walk the property and check every toilet, showerhead, and faucet aerator against the table above. Many older Burbank homes — especially anything from the 1940s–1980s housing stock common in Burbank Rancho and surrounding neighborhoods — still have fixtures well above these limits.
- Replace or upgrade any noncompliant fixtures.
- Complete the Retrofit Upon Resale Certificate of Compliance form (available through Burbank Water and Power).
- File it — there’s no cost to submit the certificate itself.
- Provide it as part of the escrow package. Escrow will not close without it.
Does Burbank Water and Power help pay for the upgrades?
Yes, in two ways:
- BWP’s Home Improvement Program installs high-efficiency showerheads and faucet aerators in Burbank homes at no cost. You schedule an appointment directly with BWP.
- Toilet and urinal rebates are available through the Metropolitan Water District’s SoCalWaterSmart program for higher-efficiency fixtures.
Neither program eliminates the need to file the certificate, but both can meaningfully reduce what a seller spends getting compliant.
Is this the same thing as Burbank’s soft-story retrofit requirement?
No — and this is one of the most common mix-ups sellers run into. The Retrofit Upon Resale Certificate is about water fixtures and applies to essentially every property in Burbank at resale. The soft-story seismic retrofit ordinance is a structural requirement that applies only to certain pre-1978 multi-family buildings with tuck-under parking or a weak first story. Clearing one has nothing to do with clearing the other, and a property can need both, one, or neither depending on what it is and when it was built.
What happens if a seller doesn’t file the certificate?
Since compliance is a condition of escrow, the practical answer is: the sale doesn’t close. Title and escrow companies handling Burbank transactions are generally aware of this requirement and will ask for it as part of their standard closing checklist.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does this apply to condos and multi-family buildings too, or just single-family homes?
It applies to all residential, commercial, and industrial buildings served by the City of Burbank at the time of resale — not just single-family homes.
Is there a fee to file the Retrofit Upon Resale Certificate?
No. There is no fee associated with filing the Certificate of Compliance itself. Your only real cost is whatever fixture upgrades are needed to meet the standards.
Can I install the low-flow fixtures myself, or do I need a licensed plumber?
The ordinance doesn’t require a licensed plumber for straightforward fixture swaps like showerheads and faucet aerators. Toilet replacement is often DIY-able as well, though many sellers prefer to have a plumber handle it to avoid installation issues showing up during buyer walkthroughs.
What if I already replaced my fixtures years ago — do I still need to file the certificate?
Yes. The certificate still needs to be completed and filed at time of resale regardless of when the fixtures were last updated, since it’s the certification itself — not just the physical compliance — that’s required as a condition of escrow.
Does BWP inspect the property before I can file the certificate?
The certificate is a self-certification form completed by the seller; it isn’t contingent on a BWP inspection. That said, buyers, buyer’s agents, or a home inspector may flag noncompliant fixtures during their own walkthrough.
How long does it take to get compliant if my home has all original 1970s fixtures?
For a typical single-family home, replacing toilets, showerheads, and aerators is usually a matter of days once you’ve decided on fixtures — the bigger variable is contractor scheduling, not the work itself. It’s better to handle this before listing than have it surface as a surprise mid-escrow.
Is this a state law or a Burbank-specific rule?
This particular ordinance — No. 3786 — is a City of Burbank requirement administered through Burbank Water and Power. California does have its own separate, statewide requirements that come up at time of transfer (things like smoke alarm and water heater bracing rules), but the low-flow fixture certificate is specific to Burbank.
Where do I get the actual certificate form?
It’s available directly through Burbank Water and Power. A listing agent familiar with Burbank transactions can typically help pull and prep this as part of getting a home ready to go on the market.
This article is general information about a City of Burbank utility ordinance and is not legal or engineering advice. Requirements can be updated by the city — always confirm current standards with Burbank Water and Power before relying on them for a transaction.
About Will Flannigan
Will Flannigan is a California licensed real estate agent (DRE #01951292) and Certified Trust & Probate Specialist (CTPS) with The Nell Team at Equity Union Real Estate. A former attorney, Will brings a background in property management and over a dozen home flips to every transaction, and has been licensed since 2014. A 20+ year resident of Burbank Rancho, Will specializes in Burbank, Altadena, Pasadena, Glendale, and the greater San Gabriel Valley, with fluency in Mandarin serving clients in San Marino and beyond.
Thinking about selling in Burbank? Getting ahead of requirements like this — before they become a last-minute scramble in escrow — is exactly the kind of thing the right agent handles for you. Let’s talk about your timeline.
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