Single-family residential home permit submittal requirements
Note: Any incomplete information may cause a delay in reviewing the plans or issuing a building permit. There may be additional items required that are specific to certain areas. These items will be requested during the plan review process. For example, fire suppression systems. If you have any questions about submitting an application, please contact one of our Plans Examiners in the Building Division. Individual permits for electrical, plumbing and mechanical are not required since the Building Permit includes these trades. However, retaining walls and construction meters require a separate permit.
If your new home project includes a retaining wall(s) or another method of slope stabilization on the site plan or DESC plan that require an engineered design, a separate building permit application, site plan, and engineered construction plans shall be submitted in addition to the building permit for your new home. Building permits for new home projects that require engineered retaining walls or another method of slope stabilization indicated on the site plan or DESC plan will not be issued before the building permit for such retaining wall(s) or other slope stabilization has been submitted, reviewed, and issued. Click here to determine if your retaining walls require a permit and engineered design.
A Certificate of Occupancy will not be issued until the retaining wall(s) or other slope stabilization on the site is complete and verified by the engineer of record to be in general conformance with the approved design and all other required inspections and approvals are obtained.
Missing items will cause a delay in the review and issuance of your building permit. The importance of the missing item will determine how far we can proceed with the process. Additional items may be requested at the time of review, that are specific to an area, such as a grading permit or Fire Department approval.
We strive to process custom home permits in 2 ½ to 3 weeks. Once again, this is based on a complete submittal. The more items missing the longer it may take before you get your permit. Turn around times are estimates only and may vary depending on workload.
Douglas County does not have a set fee for building permits. We take the total square footage of the residence to get a job valuation. With this valuation, we go to the permit fee schedule that was adopted by Douglas County. There is also a plan review fee that will be charged for reviewing the plans. This can range from 30% to 65% of the permit fee. Use tax will be figured at half of the valuation times 1%.
Part of the review process for your permit is approval of your site plan. Setback and building envelope limitations may mean an adjustment in your proposed building site. Therefore no excavation can take place until the final approval of your building permit.
No. All permits are processed in the order received. The best way to ensure that your permit will move through smoothly is to submit a complete package. Every effort is made to get your permit approved as quickly as possible.
All driveways must be inspected for minimum access requirements. In addition, Douglas County Wildfire Mitigation regulations require that all residences be evaluated for wildfire hazard mitigation.
