This guide covers unincorporated Bernalillo County only. The City of Albuquerque issues its own permits; see home improvement costs in Albuquerque.
What each job was filed at
"Usual" is the middle permit: half were filed for less, half for more. "Middle half of firms" takes every firm with three or more permits in the trade, finds each firm's usual job, and shows the band the middle 50% of firms sit in; it is the number to hold a quote against.
| Job | Usual filed value | Middle half of firms | Permits (share priced) | Usual days to final | Pages |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Remodel, repair, windows & doors | $14,557 | $7,246–$82,124 | 228 (99.1%) | 321 | cost · compare firms |
| Solar | $36,338 | $33,620–$45,000 | 881 (99.7%) | 168 | cost · compare firms |
| Garage, carport & outbuilding | $50,380 | $18,781–$63,072 | 299 (99.7%) | 170 | cost · compare firms |
| Addition | $54,097 | $23,000–$100,000 | 200 (99.0%) | 364 | cost · compare firms |
| Pool & spa | $80,000 | $67,500–$103,707 | 138 (100.0%) | 637 | cost · compare firms |
| New home | $501,639 | $500,776–$850,000 | 372 (100.0%) | 321 | cost · compare firms |
Electrical, heating and cooling, plumbing and roofing permits have compare pages but no cost page: none of the County's 4,725 electrical or 1,339 roofing permits carries a job value. The roofing and HVAC compare pages still rank firms by permits and finished share.
Days to final run long here (a pool usually took 637 days) because a permit counts as finished only when the County closes it, and the County records a completion date on only about half of its closed roofing permits (roofing permit guide). Read them as an upper bound, not a schedule.
What moves the price in Bernalillo County
The home. Each cost page splits firms into thirds by the usual value of the homes they work on (Bernalillo County Assessor tax-year 2026 values). The County's single-family value figure is $269,000.
| Job | Firms on the least expensive third | Firms on the most expensive third |
|---|---|---|
| Remodel, repair, windows & doors | $6,000 | $48,183 |
| Pool & spa | $58,950 | $99,943 |
| New home | $541,261 | $608,032 |
| Solar | $38,362 | $45,000 |
| Garage, carport & outbuilding | $73,884 | $45,747 |
Figures from each cost page, data of 15 October 2026. Garages run the other way: firms on the least expensive third of homes file more.
The firm. In remodels the ten busiest firms usually file $6,000 a permit, while the 120 firms with fewer than ten permits usually file $35,915 (Bernalillo County remodel cost page). The busiest is Home Depot USA Inc (49 permits), and replacement windows and doors share the permit type with full remodels, so the $14,557 usual figure is not what a kitchen costs. Additions split the same way: $16,838 for the busiest firms, $69,173 for the 144 smaller ones.
The season. Solar permits peak in October (index 174, where 100 is an average month) and are fewest in June (68); pool permits peak in October. We have no prices by month, so this is about crews' calendars, not discounts.
What a County permit costs
The County prices building permits on the job's valuation under Administrative Resolution 25-2009, Table 3-A (read 26 October 2026). By our arithmetic a $15,000 job is $90 for the permit, or $150 if plan review is charged; a $25,000 job is $130, or $210. The roofing permit guide has the table and the inspections, and the solar permit guide covers solar.
Filed value is not the price
- It is what the applicant wrote down. Some contractors write the contract price, some the permitted part only. Nearly every remodel, solar and new-home permit here carries a value.
- One permit type covers small and large jobs. One in ten remodel permits was filed under $6,000 and one in ten over $100,000. Read the cost page's spread before you judge a quote.
- Thin rows. Only 11 remodel firms and 11 pool builders have three or more permits, so their middle-half bands rest on few firms.
- The lot, well and septic. New-home values are construction only.
Check a quote in five minutes
- Find your job in the table and open its cost page.
- Put your quote against the "middle half of firms" band. Inside it is normal for the County; above it, ask what the extra covers.
- Open the compare firms page, find the contractor, and read its usual filed value, permit count and finished share.
- Ask whether the price includes the County permit and the final inspection.
For one job across many cities, see what home projects cost by city.
How we know this
Every row is a trade with a Bernalillo County cost page: Bernalillo County Planning & Development Services permits on homes in unincorporated Bernalillo County (the County's Accela permit layer) in the window 2023-10 to 2026-09. Usual = median of the permits that carry a value; middle half of firms = 25th to 75th percentile of the usual value of firms with three or more permits in the trade; days = median from permit issue to final. The home-value thirds and busiest-firm figures are copied from each job's cost page and dated. Fees are from the 2009 resolution the County links; the worked figures are our arithmetic.
Numbers come from Bernalillo County Planning & Development Services permits on homes in unincorporated Bernalillo County (the County's Accela permit layer; the City of Albuquerque issues its own permits and has its own separate pages), data through October 15, 2026. Nobody paid to be on this page and nobody can.
Compare every Bernalillo County solar installer by usual job and finished share →
Questions
- How much do solar panels cost in Bernalillo County?
The usual solar permit in unincorporated Bernalillo County was filed at $36,338, across 881 permits, and the middle half of 28 installers usually file between $33,620 and $45,000. Installers on the most expensive third of homes usually file $45,000, against $38,362 on the least expensive third (Bernalillo County solar cost page).
- What is the cost to build a house in Bernalillo County?
New-home permits were usually filed at $501,639 (372 permits), with the middle half of 29 builders between $500,776 and $850,000. That is construction value only, without the lot, well or septic land costs. The usual new-home permit took 321 days from issue to final.
- How much does a pool cost in Bernalillo County?
Pool and spa permits were usually filed at $80,000, with the middle half of 11 pool builders between $67,500 and $103,707. Pools on the most expensive third of homes usually run $99,943, against $58,950 on the least expensive third.
- How much does a detached garage cost in Bernalillo County?
Garage, carport and outbuilding permits were usually filed at $50,380 (299 permits), but the middle half of firms file anywhere from $18,781 to $63,072: a carport and a two-car garage share the permit type.
- How much is a building permit in Bernalillo County?
The County prices building permits on valuation under Administrative Resolution 25-2009, Table 3-A. By our arithmetic a $15,000 job is $90 for the permit, or $150 if plan review is charged too; the County's FAQ says exact fees are known after plans are reviewed.
Build your own list
Every firm with that kind of permit on record. Pick what you value. The list moves.
Related guides
- Home improvement costs in Denver, CO (2026): what 8 kinds of jobs were filed at
- Home improvement costs in Greensboro, NC (2026): what 8 kinds of jobs were filed at
- Albuquerque contractor license lookup: the CID license, its classification and the City permits
- How to check a contractor's license in New Mexico
- Cleveland residential tax abatement for renovations and new homes: the permit, the $60 fee, the green standard and the caps
For one city
- Do I need a solar permit in Bernalillo County? The solar packet, the engineering exception and the PNM step
- Do I need an electrical permit in Bernalillo County? The exemptions, the homeowner exam and the fixture-based fee
- Do I need an HVAC permit in Bernalillo County? Furnaces, AC, swamp coolers and the mechanical permit