2026 Building Permit Fee Index: What 29 Jurisdictions Charge for the Same Project
First-party data study, published July 11, 2026. We priced the same two projects through 29 official fee schedules using the exact calculation engine that powers the PermitPrice calculator - every figure below is reproducible, traces to an official fee schedule with a verification date, and carries a scope flag where jurisdictions bundle different things into "the permit fee."
The same residential deck permit (400 sq ft / $15,000 of work) costs $65 in Irving, TX and $504.00 in Fairfax County, VA - a 7.8x spread. The median across 15 comparable jurisdictions is $163.20 to $166.28 (the range reflects Baltimore County's unconfirmed $75 application fee). For a 2,000 sq ft new single-family home, building-permit packages run from $300 (Lubbock, TX, building permit only) to $2,833.60 (Prince George's County, MD), median $1,115.
Methodology (read this before comparing)
Cross-jurisdiction fee comparisons are usually pseudo-data: a "$150 permit" that excludes trade permits is not cheaper than a "$400 permit" that includes them. This index controls for that three ways:
- Same project, same inputs. Deck scenario: 400 sq ft or $15,000 estimated value (whichever input the jurisdiction's formula uses). New-home scenario: 2,000 sq ft.
- Same engine. Every figure is computed by the PermitPrice calculation engine (v1.1) from that jurisdiction's official fee formula - the same code that runs the public calculator, covered by 121 automated worked-example tests. Nothing is hand-copied.
- Scope flags. New-home rows are flagged A (permit fee bundles the electrical / mechanical / plumbing trade permits) or B (building permit side only - trades are separate line items). Compare A rows with A rows, B with B. The scope column states exactly what each figure includes.
Jurisdictions whose published schedule does not price one of the two scenarios (for example, Washington, DC's alteration tiers, or cost-based schedules with no new-home line) are omitted from that table rather than estimated. Impact fees, utility connection charges, and location-dependent surcharges (like Prince George's school surcharge) are excluded everywhere and noted where material.
Table 1 - The same deck, 15 jurisdictions (2026)
Residential deck, 400 sq ft / $15,000 estimated value, ranked cheapest to most expensive. These totals are the full building-permit package for a deck as each schedule defines it, including each jurisdiction's levies, application and filing fees where they apply.
| # | Jurisdiction | Deck permit total | Fee basis | Data verified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Irving, TX | $65.00 | $15,000 value | 2026-06-24 |
| 2 | Killeen, TX | $70.00 | $15,000 value | 2026-10-09 |
| 3 to 4 | Round Rock, TX | $125.00 | $15,000 value | 2026-09-24 |
| 4 to 5 | Richmond, VA | $144.75 | $15,000 value | 2026-10-21 |
| 5 to 6 | Frederick County, MD | $157.00 | 400 sq ft | 2026-09-23 |
| 6 to 7 | Harford County, MD | $160.00 | 400 sq ft | 2026-09-23 |
| 7 to 8 | Henrico County, VA | $163.20 | $15,000 value | 2026-10-18 |
| 8 to 9 | Chesterfield County, VA | $166.28 | $15,000 value | 2026-09-20 |
| 3 to 9 | Baltimore County, MD | $105.00 to $180.00 | 400 sq ft | 2026-11-04 |
| 10 | Anne Arundel County, MD | $207.00 | $15,000 value | 2026-09-23 |
| 11 | Montgomery County, MD | $223.87 | 400 sq ft | 2026-09-19 |
| 12 | Georgetown, TX | $270.00 | 400 sq ft | 2026-07-02 |
| 13 | Loudoun County, VA | $395.00 to $399.60 | $15,000 value | 2026-11-04 |
| 14 | Arlington, TX | $405.00 | $15,000 value | 2026-10-06 |
| 15 | Fairfax County, VA | $504.00 | $15,000 value | 2026-09-18 |
Key findings: the median is $163.20 to $166.28 (depending on whether Baltimore County credits its $75 application fee); nine or ten of fifteen jurisdictions land between $125 and $270. Fairfax County is about a 3x outlier vs the median because it prices decks at 3% of construction value plus a 2% state levy and a 10% county technology surcharge (FY2027), stacking three line items where flat-fee schedules have one - value-based formulas scale with project cost in a way flat-fee schedules never do. The two cheapest (Irving $65, Killeen $70) use flat per-project fees. Baltimore County moved from $85 to $180 when its new schedule took effect on July 1, 2026 ($105 deck fee plus a separately listed $75 residential application fee). The schedule does not say whether the $75 is credited toward the permit; if it is, Baltimore's deck is $105 and ranks third.
Table 2 - The same 2,000 sq ft new home, 23 jurisdictions (2026)
New single-family construction, 2,000 sq ft. Scope flag A = the figure bundles trade permits (electrical/mechanical/plumbing); B = building permit side only, trades are separate. This is the honest way to read the ranking - a B-row jurisdiction's all-in cost is higher than shown. Austin, TX is omitted from this table as of October 8, 2026: its FY 2026-27 schedule prints per-square-foot increments above 1,000 sq ft that appear misprinted, so no 2,000 sq ft figure is estimated (see the Austin page).
| # | Jurisdiction | Permit package | Fee basis | What the figure includes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lubbock, TX B | $300.00 | 2,000 sq ft | building permit only; E/M/P add ~$0.21/sq ft as separate permits |
| 2 | Killeen, TX A | $410.00 | 2,000 sq ft | includes structure + all trade permits; plan review ($0.04/sq ft) separate |
| 3 | Round Rock, TX B | $485.00 | flat fee | flat building permit; impact/utility fees separate |
| 4 | Henrico County, VA B | $693.60 | flat fee | flat $680 + 2% state levy; trade permits separate |
| 5 | Chesterfield County, VA B | $747.68 | flat fee | flat fee + 2% levy + $50 environmental fee; trades separate |
| 6 | Corpus Christi, TX B | $963.49 | 2,000 sq ft | building permit line only; plan review + trade permits separate |
| 7 | Waco, TX B | $975.00 | 2,000 sq ft | building permit + plan submittal + technology fee; trades separate |
| 8 | Dallas, TX B | $991.38 | 2,000 sq ft | Table A-I building permit; trades and plan review separate |
| 9 | Irving, TX B | $1,000.00 | 2,000 sq ft | permit + plan review per sq ft; trade permits separate |
| 10 | Frederick County, MD B | $1,067.00 | 2,000 sq ft | bracket fee + filing + automation fees; trades separate |
| 11 | Grand Prairie, TX A | $1,100.00 | flat fee | flat fee bundles ALL trades per UDC 22.2.19 |
| 12 | Plano, TX B | $1,115.00 | 2,000 sq ft | $0.48/sq ft + plan review + plumbing certificate; trades separate |
| 13 | Tyler, TX B | $1,128.00 | 2,000 sq ft | permit + 20% plan review; electrical/plumbing separate |
| 14 | Georgetown, TX A | $1,150.00 | 2,000 sq ft | trades included for new ground-up construction |
| 15 | San Marcos, TX B | $1,320.00 | 2,000 sq ft | building permit; trade child permits separate |
| 16 | McKinney, TX B | $1,360.00 | 2,000 sq ft | $0.68/sq ft building permit; trades + plan review separate |
| 17 | College Station, TX B | $1,540.00 | 2,000 sq ft | $0.77/sq ft building permit; trade permits separate |
| 18 | El Paso, TX A | $1,640.00 | 2,000 sq ft | tiered per-sq-ft bundles all trades; technology fee unpublished/excluded |
| 19 | Baytown, TX A | $1,900.00 | 2,000 sq ft | flat tier includes MEP permit fees |
| 20 | Denton, TX B | $2,030.00 | 2,000 sq ft | $0.94/sq ft + $150 plan review; MEP separate |
| 21 | Arlington, TX A | $2,156.25 | 2,000 sq ft | Table 2 bracket fee + 35% plan review + the three $100 trade permits |
| 22 | Montgomery County, MD B | $2,649.15 | 2,000 sq ft | per-sq-ft permit + DPS filing fee; WSSC/impact taxes separate |
| 23 | Prince George's County, MD B | $2,833.60 | 2,000 sq ft | permit + admin/grading/U&O/M-NCPPC + 10% tech; EXCLUDES school & public-safety surcharges |
Key findings: among the A-flagged (trades-bundled) rows, Killeen, TX is the cheapest full package at $410 and Arlington, TX the most expensive at $2,156.25 (which also includes Arlington's 35% plan review) - a 5.3x spread for the same trades-bundled scope. Texas cities dominate the middle of the table; the two Maryland "B" rows top it because Montgomery adds a 50%-of-permit filing fee and Prince George's stacks component fees plus a 10% technology fee (and its school and public-safety surcharges - excluded here - can add thousands more).
Three structural patterns in the data
- Fee model beats geography. The spread inside Virginia ($144.75 Richmond to $504.00 Fairfax for the same deck) is bigger than the spread between most states. What matters is whether a jurisdiction charges flat fees, per-square-foot rates, or percent-of-value - not which side of a state line it sits on.
- Bundling hides real prices. Grand Prairie's $1,100 looks mid-table but includes every trade permit; Denton's $2,030 looks expensive but excludes them. Any comparison that ignores this (most do) misleads.
- Small fees are trending upward. Every schedule in this index that changed in 2025-2026 raised per-square-foot rates or added technology/automation fees; none cut them.
Reproduce or reuse this data
Every row links back through its jurisdiction page (see coverage) to the official .gov fee schedule with an effective date. The underlying formulas are published as machine-readable JSON per jurisdiction (see our methodology), and you can recompute any figure with the calculator. Cite as "PermitPrice 2026 Permit Fee Index (permitprice.com)" with a link. We will re-run this index after each verification cycle; each figure carries the verification date of its source data.
Building permit fees only - impact fees, utility/tap charges, zoning, and inspections outside the permit are excluded everywhere. New-home scope varies by flag as stated per row. El Paso's technology fee is excluded because its rate is not published. Corpus Christi's row is the building-permit line only (its separate plan review and three trade permits, each with $146.41 minimums, roughly double the all-in cost). Prince George's row excludes location-dependent school and public-safety surcharges. Loudoun County is the one exception to the zoning exclusion: it publishes its deck fee as a $395 bundle that includes a $165 county zoning permit, and the row uses that published bundle (without zoning it would be $230.00 to $234.60; the median is unchanged either way). Loudoun's row is a range because Virginia requires a 2% levy on building-code permit fees (USBC Section 107.2) but Loudoun does not say whether its published fee already includes it. Rank ranges reflect Baltimore County's unconfirmed $75 application fee: if it is credited, Baltimore moves to third and the jurisdictions between shift down one place. Baltimore County's row includes its separately listed $75 residential application fee, which the schedule does not state is credited toward the permit. Plano's valuation table rounds up to whole $1,000 increments; the per-square-foot figures shown are exact. Estimates are not official quotations - verify with your building department before budgeting or filing.
Written by: Munib Ur Rehman
Data verified against official fee schedule documents. Last reviewed: 2026-11-04.
Sources
- Official fee schedules of all 29 jurisdictions - each linked, with effective date and last-verified date, from its jurisdiction page via the site map (for example Fairfax County, Montgomery County, Dallas). Source documents for the two ends of the deck ranking: Fairfax County Appendix Q (FY2027, effective July 1, 2026, verified September 18, 2026) and the City of Irving FY25-26 fee amendments (effective February 13, 2026).
- PermitPrice calculation engine v1.1 - 121 automated worked-example tests against official schedules, plus a consistency suite that checks this page against the engine.