How Much Does a Building Permit Cost? Local Fees Explained

Short answer: there is no national average that fits your project. Each city or county sets its own fees, as a flat project price, a percentage-style table based on project value, or a rate per square foot. Plan review, trade permits, and surcharges are often added on top, so the total can be more than double the base permit fee.

Someone always wants a clean number: “How much does a building permit cost?” Then they paste a national average into a remodel budget and wonder why the counter quote looks nothing like the blog.

Here is the honest answer up front: there is no trustworthy U.S. average. Building permit fees are set by city or county ordinance. A kitchen that feels identical in two ZIP codes can land on a flat project fee in one place, a valuation table in another, and a per-square-foot schedule in a third. This guide explains the patterns, shows published city examples as examples only, and tells you what else usually stacks onto the stamped permit — so you can ask your authority having jurisdiction (AHJ) better questions.

Still deciding whether you need a permit at all? Start with the pillar guide: Do I Need a Building Permit? Ready to file? Use How to Apply for a Building Permit.

Why “national average” permit costs mislead homeowners

Fee schedules are local law. Departments recover review and inspection time differently: combo permits vs separate trades, big intake deposits vs balances at issuance. Seattle’s SDCI pages, for example, explain that plan-review construction permits typically collect about 75% of plan review and permit fees at intake, with the rest due before issuance — and 2026 construction fees rose roughly 18% year over year. That timing alone makes a single “average” a weak budget tool.

Treat every dollar figure below as a worked example from a public schedule, not a quote for your address. Schedules expire. Call or use your city’s estimator before you lock a contractor bid.

Three fee models you will actually see

1. Flat or named-project fees

The schedule lists a price for “residential remodel — no structural review,” “deck,” “water heater,” and so on. Modesto, California’s Building Safety Division fee schedule for FY 2025–26 (effective July 1, 2025–June 30, 2026) is a clear public example: a non-structural residential remodel is listed at $881, decks/patio covers and similar improvements at $498, and a water heater replacement at $139 (trade-style line items also appear elsewhere on the same PDF). Those are Modesto numbers for that fiscal year — not California averages, and not your town.

2. Valuation-based tables

You (or the city) declare a project valuation — usually labor plus materials. The fee climbs in brackets. Plan review is often a percentage of the building permit fee. Denver’s published building fee table (ADMIN 138 policy, summarized on Denver’s development fees page) is a classic pattern: for work valued from $2,001 to $25,000, the permit fee is $35 for the first $2,000 plus $8 for each additional $1,000, and plan review is 50% of the permit fee once valuation exceeds $2,000. A rough illustration: a $25,000 interior remodel under that table lands near $219 for the building permit fee plus about $109.50 plan review — before zoning, trades, tech fees, or card surcharges. Denver also notes valuation can be the higher of applicant-reported cost or ICC building valuation data. Again: Denver’s math, not yours.

3. Per-square-foot (sometimes plus tiny project line items)

Some smaller jurisdictions publish a rate per square foot of work. Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin’s 2026 building/zoning fee PDF lists one-and-two-family addition/alteration/remodel at $0.25 per square foot, decks at $0.25 per square foot, and a kitchen remodel line at $10 per project, plus separate plan-review and base-fee language. A 200 sf deck under that deck line alone would be about $50 in building fee — before plan review or zoning review. That is why copying a coastal metro “deck permit cost” onto a Midwest schedule is nonsense.

Verify locally: Download your city’s current fee PDF or open the official estimator. Screenshots age poorly.

Sample fee patterns by project type (examples only)

Use this table to understand order-of-magnitude differences between fee models, not to price your job. Every cell is labeled as a city example from a public schedule reviewed for this article (September 2026 research pass). Your AHJ may use a different model entirely.

Sources (examples only): Modesto Building Safety Division FY25–26 PDF; Denver development fees / ADMIN 138 summary; Fort Atkinson 2026 Building and Zoning Permit Fees PDF; Austin Development Services homeowner permitting fee responses; Seattle SDCI “How much will your permit cost?” and 2026 fee summary. Always re-check the live .gov document for your date of application.

What usually stacks on top of the “building permit” line

Homeowners hear “permit fee” and picture one receipt. The real invoice is often a stack:

• Building permit fee — flat, valuation, or $/sf.
• Plan review / plan check — percent of permit fee, flat, or hourly after free cycles.
• Trade permits — electrical, plumbing, mechanical, sometimes energy or gas as their own tickets.
• Technology or processing surcharges — small percents that still move the total.
• Zoning, historic, floodplain, or right-of-way reviews — different desks, different wallets.
• Reinspection fees — if work is not ready when the inspector arrives.
• Impact, connection, or parks fees — more common on additions and new dwellings than on cosmetic remodels, but ask.

Austin’s homeowner fee explanations illustrate the stack: even with a predictable building fee band, electric, mechanical, plumbing, energy, and plan-review processing can each add FY line items. Your city may combo those — or open four portals. Ask early.

For kitchens specifically, moving a sink, adding gas, or building an island changes which trades light up. Details live in Kitchen Remodel Permits: Islands, Gas Lines, and Moving the Sink.

How valuation-based fees really work

If your AHJ uses valuation, three questions matter more than any blog chart:

1. What counts as value? Usually labor and materials for the permitted scope — not your cabinet brand preferences alone, and not “just the lumber run.”
2. Who wins ties? Some cities take the higher of your stated cost or a published valuation table (ICC data appears in Denver’s policy language). Understating the job to cheapen the fee can backfire when review adjusts the number.
3. Are trades inside or outside valuation? A low building fee with three separate trade permits is not “cheap.” Add them before you celebrate.

When you request a contractor bid, ask them to show permit allowances as a line — and ask whether that line is a guess or based on a fee estimator printout for your address. Then decide who pulls the building permit — homeowner or contractor. The person named on the permit is often the one the department calls when fees or corrections land.

Boston's short-form permit is a simple example: our Boston building permits guide shows an application fee plus a charge for every $1,000 of the work estimate.

After-the-fact, expired, and “investigation” pricing

Legalizing finished work is rarely the same price as permitting it before you build. Many AHJs add investigation fees or multipliers when work started without a permit. That is a different article on purpose — see After-the-Fact Building Permit: How to Legalize Unpermitted Work. Do not use a normal remodel fee example to budget an as-built case.

A practical way to get YOUR number (30-minute method)

1. Write a one-paragraph scope a stranger can understand (rooms, what moves, structure/plumbing/electrical/gas yes-no).
2. Search “[city] building permit fee schedule” or “[city] permit fee estimator” and open a .gov result.
3. Identify the model: flat, valuation, or $/sf. Screenshot the dated PDF.
4. List every likely add-on: plan review, trades, tech fee, zoning.
5. Call or message the permit counter with your scope and ask for a fee estimate. Write down the name and date.
6. Add a cushion for resubmittal or reinspection — especially on first-time homeowner submissions.

That sequence beats any national chart. It also pairs with the step-by-step filing walkthrough in how to apply for a building permit.

To see what a dated city schedule looks like in practice, our Indianapolis building permits guide and Columbus building permits guide walk through the 2026 fee schedules those cities published.

A real 2026 valuation fee table, line by line

Washington County, Oregon, publishes a residential fee table effective July 1, 2026 that shows how fee stacks add up (Washington County, OR: Residential Building Valuation Table, FY 2026-27). First, the county sets a value per square foot: $175.92 for new construction and additions, $71.07 for garages, and $35.54 for covered decks, porches, and carports. That value sets the building permit fee, which is $236 for the first $2,000 of valuation plus $19 for each additional $1,000 up to $25,000, with lower per-$1,000 rates at higher bands.

Plan review is 65% of the building permit fee, and a state surcharge and a development compliance fee are added on top. For a $20,000 valuation, the table shows a $578 permit fee, $375.70 plan review, a $69.36 state surcharge, and $137 development compliance, for $1,160.06 total. At $100,000, the total is $3,611.46, with the development compliance line at $960.

The lesson carries to other places. The headline "permit fee" can be less than half of what you actually pay, so ask for every line that applies to your valuation, not just the base fee.

Washington County, OR: one fee stack, line by line

Source: Washington County, OR Residential Building Valuation Table, FY 2026-27. At $100,000 valuation the county's table shows a total of $3,611.46. These are that county's numbers only.

FAQ

Can I estimate permit cost as a percent of construction cost?

Only if your AHJ’s schedule is valuation-based — and even then the percent is not a flat “2% everywhere.” Brackets step down as value rises, and plan review / trades sit outside that mental shortcut. Prefer the published table.

Why did my neighbor pay less for a similar remodel?

Different year, different fee ordinance, different scope on the application, different trade mix, or they omitted something you are including. Neighbors are anecdotes; the fee PDF is the rulebook.

Do online permit portals show the final total at checkout?

Sometimes they show an intake estimate that changes after plan review. Seattle’s guidance about paying most fees at intake and the balance at issuance is a reminder to read the portal math twice.

What if I already built without a permit?

Budget for investigation or after-the-fact pricing, possible opening of finished work, and corrections — not the standard pre-construction fee. Start with the after-the-fact guide.

Why is my plan review fee so high compared to the permit fee?

Many jurisdictions charge plan review as a percentage of the permit fee. In Washington County, Oregon, it's 65%, so it can nearly double the base fee before surcharges.

How does a county turn square feet into a fee?

Washington County multiplies square footage by a set value per square foot (for example, $175.92 for additions), then applies its fee table to that valuation.

Is the valuation just my contractor's price?

Not always. Denver notes that valuation can be the higher of the applicant-reported cost or ICC building valuation data (Denver development fees).

Do I pay the whole permit fee at once?

Not always. Seattle collects about 75% of plan review and permit fees at intake and the rest before issuance (Seattle SDCI).

Bottom line

How much does a building permit cost? Whatever your city or county ordinance says for your scope on your address — plus the stack of reviews and trades that ride along. Use published examples (Modesto flats, Denver valuation brackets, Fort Atkinson per-sf lines, Austin trade stacks, Seattle intake timing) only to recognize the pattern. Then verify locally, get the estimate in writing, and keep a cushion.

Related guides: Do I need a building permit? · How to apply · Who pulls the permit · Deck permits · Kitchen remodel permits · After-the-fact permits. Not legal advice — see our Disclaimer.

Official sources

Official pages for further reading. Rules change and vary by address, so always confirm with your own local building department.

• ICC: Building valuation data
• Seattle SDCI: How much will your permit cost?
• Denver: Building and land development fees
• Washington County, OR: Residential Building Valuation Table, FY 2026-27

Related guides

• Does a building permit raise property taxes?

Edited by Ahmed Khalifa, founder of PermitCove. Sources are linked inline; see our Editorial Policy.