The usual new home permit in Denton, the biggest trade with a completion date, takes 181 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (2,906 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). Solar is quickest at 35 days; new home is also the slowest. This is the turnaround to finish the work and close the permit, not the wait for approval.
“How long does a permit take?” can mean two waits. This page measures the second one.
Getting the permit (not measured): application → issue, the wait for the city to approve it. Denton's file we read does not carry a usable application date, so we don't guess at it. Ask the permit office for its current review times.
Finishing the work (measured here): issue → completion. The day the city issued the permit to the day it recorded a final inspection or closeout. That is the contractor's part: doing the work and getting it signed off.
What “finished” means in Denton: For contractors with at least 5 permits a year or more old, the share that were finaled, adjusted for permit age.
Speed: Estimated, not measured: Denton doesn't publish the date a permit was finaled, only its status, so speed is worked out from how many of a contractor's permits are finaled at each age, compared with other Denton contractors in the trade. Shown for firms with 20+ permits.
Usual is the middle permit: half finish sooner, half later. Finished is the share of permits a year or more old that the city closed out. A dash means the Denton record has no completion date for that trade (irrigation, HVAC, water heater, water & sewer line, fence, gas line, electrical, plumbing, remodel & repair), so there is nothing to count days from; it does not mean those permits are slow.
| Trade | Permits | Usual days to finish | Finished | Firms with 10+ permits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Home | 2,906 | 181 | 97.5% | 29 |
| Irrigation | 2,765 | — | 98.4% | 27 |
| HVAC | 2,360 | — | 88.6% | 36 |
| Water Heater | 1,391 | — | 93.3% | 25 |
| Water & Sewer Line | 1,237 | — | 99.2% | 20 |
| Window & Door Replacement | 848 | 58 | 91.7% | 13 |
| Fence | 652 | — | 97.6% | 12 |
| Roofing | 595 | 39 | 90.1% | 8 |
| Gas Line | 573 | — | 97.7% | 11 |
| Foundation Repair | 517 | 59 | 96.1% | 9 |
| Electrical | 422 | — | 91.0% | 9 |
| Plumbing | 361 | — | 96.7% | 7 |
| Remodel & Repair | 323 | — | 70.7% | 5 |
| Solar | 226 | 35 | 94.4% | 5 |
| Patio, Deck & Porch | 190 | 44 | 82.3% | 3 |
| Swimming Pool | 174 | 129 | 93.1% | 3 |
| Generator | 160 | 48 | 97.6% | 1 |
Each trade on its own, from issue to the city's sign-off. The spread between the quickest and slowest quarter of firms is the part you can choose.
The usual new home permit in Denton takes 181 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (2,906 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 97.5% of new home permits a year or more old have been closed out. The quickest quarter of firms usually finish in 4.5 months, the slowest quarter in 6.3 months. The wait for approval before issue is not in Denton's file.
23 firms with enough permits to measure, each firm's usual months to finish, weighted by its permits. Compare Denton new home contractors →
The Denton record carries no completion date for irrigation permits, so we can't count days. 98.4% of irrigation permits a year or more old have been closed out. That is from 2,765 permits, October 2023 through September 2026. The wait for approval before issue is not in Denton's file.
The Denton record carries no completion date for HVAC permits, so we can't count days. 88.6% of HVAC permits a year or more old have been closed out. That is from 2,360 permits, October 2023 through September 2026. The wait for approval before issue is not in Denton's file.
The Denton record carries no completion date for water heater permits, so we can't count days. 93.3% of water heater permits a year or more old have been closed out. That is from 1,391 permits, October 2023 through September 2026. The wait for approval before issue is not in Denton's file.
The Denton record carries no completion date for water & sewer line permits, so we can't count days. 99.2% of water & sewer line permits a year or more old have been closed out. That is from 1,237 permits, October 2023 through September 2026. The wait for approval before issue is not in Denton's file.
The usual window & door replacement permit in Denton takes 58 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (848 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 91.7% of window & door replacement permits a year or more old have been closed out. The quickest quarter of firms usually finish in 1.5 months, the slowest quarter in 2.6 months. The wait for approval before issue is not in Denton's file.
8 firms with enough permits to measure, each firm's usual months to finish, weighted by its permits. Compare Denton window & door replacement contractors →
The Denton record carries no completion date for fence permits, so we can't count days. 97.6% of fence permits a year or more old have been closed out. That is from 652 permits, October 2023 through September 2026. The wait for approval before issue is not in Denton's file.
The usual roofing permit in Denton takes 39 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (595 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 90.1% of roofing permits a year or more old have been closed out. The wait for approval before issue is not in Denton's file.
The Denton record carries no completion date for gas line permits, so we can't count days. 97.7% of gas line permits a year or more old have been closed out. That is from 573 permits, October 2023 through September 2026. The wait for approval before issue is not in Denton's file.
The usual foundation repair permit in Denton takes 59 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (517 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 96.1% of foundation repair permits a year or more old have been closed out. The quickest quarter of firms usually finish in 0.6 months, the slowest quarter in 1.5 months. The wait for approval before issue is not in Denton's file.
6 firms with enough permits to measure, each firm's usual months to finish, weighted by its permits. Compare Denton foundation repair contractors →
The Denton record carries no completion date for electrical permits, so we can't count days. 91.0% of electrical permits a year or more old have been closed out. That is from 422 permits, October 2023 through September 2026. The wait for approval before issue is not in Denton's file.
The Denton record carries no completion date for plumbing permits, so we can't count days. 96.7% of plumbing permits a year or more old have been closed out. That is from 361 permits, October 2023 through September 2026. The wait for approval before issue is not in Denton's file.
The Denton record carries no completion date for remodel & repair permits, so we can't count days. 70.7% of remodel & repair permits a year or more old have been closed out. That is from 323 permits, October 2023 through September 2026. The wait for approval before issue is not in Denton's file.
The usual solar permit in Denton takes 35 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (226 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 94.4% of solar permits a year or more old have been closed out. The quickest quarter of firms usually finish in 0 months, the slowest quarter in 0.8 months. The wait for approval before issue is not in Denton's file.
2 firms with enough permits to measure, each firm's usual months to finish, weighted by its permits. Compare Denton solar contractors →
The usual patio, deck & porch permit in Denton takes 44 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (190 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 82.3% of patio, deck & porch permits a year or more old have been closed out. The wait for approval before issue is not in Denton's file.
The usual swimming pool permit in Denton takes 129 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (174 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 93.1% of swimming pool permits a year or more old have been closed out. The wait for approval before issue is not in Denton's file.
The usual generator permit in Denton takes 48 days from issue to the city's final inspection or closeout (160 permits, October 2023 through September 2026). 97.6% of generator permits a year or more old have been closed out. The wait for approval before issue is not in Denton's file.
Source: City of Denton Building Safety permits on homes (the city's yearly permit reports). The window is October 2023 through September 2026; a permit filed after that isn't here yet.
A filed value is what the contractor wrote on the permit when they applied. It is not a quote and not the final bill.
Counts are permits, not jobs: one job can need several permits, and one permit can cover several visits.
Nobody paid to be on this page and nobody can. How the records work in Denton →
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