What you file
From the City's Documents Required sheet and its permit portal (read 26 October 2026):
| Item | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Plans | "one complete set of plans" |
| Survey | "four (4) copies of your survey with the house drawn to scale"; survey questions go to the Zoning desk, (501) 371-4844 |
| Civil review | "ALL New Building Permits must complete a Civil Review Comments form", downloadable on the permit portal |
| Builder's Arkansas license | Required by state law for work over $2,000 |
| City contractor's (business) license | Reciprocity for builders with no Little Rock office |
| Surety bond | $10,000, made out to the City of Little Rock |
| Trade licenses | Master licenses for plumbing and electrical, Class A for mechanical |
Little Rock builds to the 2021 Arkansas Fire Prevention Code Volume 3 (residential), the 2014 Arkansas Energy Code, the 2020 National Electrical Code and the 2018 Arkansas Plumbing Code (Enforced Construction Codes). The Engineering Division separately reviews driveways, sidewalks, drainage and stormwater for private development (Planning and Development divisions), so a new driveway or drainage on the lot is reviewed by Engineering as well as Building Codes.
What it costs
From Ordinance 22,204, § 8-31(c), linked from the Building Codes page as the City's fee ordinance:
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Building permit, $50,000.01 to $100,000 | $250 for the first $50,000, plus $3.50 per additional $1,000 |
| Building permit, $100,000.01 to $500,000 | $420 for the first $100,000, plus $3 per additional $1,000 |
| Building permit, over $500,000 | $1,620 for the first $500,000, plus $2.50 per additional $1,000 |
| Electrical, new one- or two-family home | $0.10 per square foot under roof |
| Plumbing, new one- or two-family home | $0.10 per square foot under roof |
| Mechanical, new one- or two-family home | $0.10 per square foot |
| Residential certificate of occupancy | $30 |
| Data processing fee | $25 per permit |
| Re-inspection | $45 |
| Work started without a permit | Fee tripled |
Worked through for the usual house in our file, filed at about $280,000 and, say, 2,200 square feet under roof: building $420 + 180 × $3 = $960; electrical, plumbing and mechanical $220 each; certificate of occupancy $30; about $1,650 before data fees. If documentation of the value is missing, the City uses the International Code Council's building valuation table instead. A revision on the Board's 16 December 2025 agenda, written to take effect 1 January 2026, raises the mechanical rate to $0.11 a square foot and the certificate of occupancy to $30.90, among other lines; check the invoice. Water and sewer connection charges are not part of these permits.
The inspections
The ordinance lists the inspections behind each permit: building "Footing, Framing, Final"; electrical "Pipe-In Wall, Rough, Final"; plumbing "Slab, Rough, Final"; mechanical "Duct Work, Rough, Final". In the City's scheduling codes the building ones are 110 footing/foundation, 120 slab/monolithic, 130 framing and 150 final building, and a temporary certificate of occupancy is 145. Book on 501-588-7493, by texting "SCHEDULE" to 855-949-5403, or at inspections.littlerock.gov.
A residential temporary certificate of occupancy costs $50 and lasts 90 days, with one 30-day extension; occupying without a permanent certificate can bring "Fines ... up to Two Hundred Fifty Dollars ($250.00) per day" and disconnected utilities (Ordinance 22,204, § U). Permits expire a year after issue, with yearly extensions at $100.
Who builds it
Arkansas licenses new-home builders through the Contractors Licensing Board's Residential Committee (Contractors Licensing Board); our Arkansas license guide has the lookup steps. The City's pages describe no owner-builder route; ask the permit desk, (501) 371-4832, if you plan to act as your own builder.
What 1,291 Little Rock new-home permits show
| Measure | Little Rock new homes |
|---|---|
| Permits, May 2023 to April 2026 | 1,291 |
| Builders | 206 |
| Builders with a permit from May 2025 to April 2026 | 114 |
| Usual filed value | $280,000 |
| Middle half of builders' usual value (92 builders) | $232,300 to $605,000 |
| Closed (permits a year or more old) | 96.3% |
| Builders with one permit only | 71 (34.5%) |
| Builders with 10 or more | 33 |
| Share held by the five busiest builders | 24.3% |
| Busiest / quietest month | September (117) / January (87) |
The middle half of builders usually file between $232,300 and $605,000, a wide spread that separates starter-home builders from custom builders; pick from the band that matches your budget. 34.5% of builders filed one permit in three years, so ask for the addresses of recent houses and look up their certificates of occupancy. Prices by home value are on Little Rock new home cost; counts by year on Little Rock permit statistics.
See every Little Rock home builder by permits closed →
Before you hire
Compare builders on the Little Rock builder list and read hiring a home builder. Rules elsewhere: do I need a permit to build a house; national prices in new home construction cost.
What this does not tell you
Little Rock's file records whether a permit closed, not when, so we cannot say how long a house took to final, and it ends in April 2026. Filed values are the builder's estimate. Trade permits pulled under the builder's account count as the builder's, and we have not matched builders to the state's license records.
How we know this
Fees, inspections, permit life and certificate-of-occupancy rules are quoted from Little Rock Ordinance 22,204 (§ 8-31(c)); the 2026 revision from the Board's 16 December 2025 agenda; documents from the City's Documents Required sheet and permit portal; codes from its Enforced Construction Codes sheet and inspection codes from its scheduling instructions; all read 26 October 2026. The worked example is our arithmetic on an assumed 2,200 square feet. Permit counts are City of Little Rock new single-family, duplex and manufactured-home permits, May 2023 to April 2026; "closed" is the share a year or more old the City recorded as closed.
Numbers come from City of Little Rock Planning and Development permits on single-family, duplex and manufactured homes (the City's periodic permit download, the edition that runs to April 30, 2026), data through April 24, 2026. Nobody paid to be on this page and nobody can.
Questions
- How much is a building permit for a new house in Little Rock?
Under Ordinance 22,204 the building permit on a house valued between $100,000 and $500,000 is $420 for the first $100,000 plus $3 per additional $1,000, so a $280,000 house is $960. Electrical and plumbing permits add $0.10 per square foot under roof each, mechanical $0.10 a square foot, plus a $30 certificate of occupancy and $25 data fees.
- What do I need to apply for a new home permit in Little Rock?
The City's Documents Required sheet asks for one complete set of plans and four copies of the survey with the house drawn to scale. The online portal says all new building permits must also complete a Civil Review Comments form. The builder brings an Arkansas license, a City business license and a $10,000 surety bond.
- What inspections does a new house need in Little Rock?
Building footing, framing and final; electrical pipe-in-wall, rough and final; plumbing slab, rough and final; mechanical duct work, rough and final. A residential certificate of occupancy follows; occupying without one can bring fines of up to $250 a day.
- How long is a Little Rock building permit valid?
One year from issue, with extensions of up to a year at $100 each, granted in writing for just cause. A permit becomes invalid if work does not start within 6 months or stops for 6 months.
- Does a home builder need a license in Arkansas?
Yes. New homes are licensed by the Contractors Licensing Board's Residential Committee, and the City's permit desk asks for a copy of the Arkansas contractor's license before issuing a permit.
Build your own list
Every firm with that kind of permit on record. Pick what you value. The list moves.
Related guides
- Albuquerque building permit search: how to look up permits on an address
- Building a casita in Albuquerque: the 750 sq ft limit, rear-yard rule, parking, free plans, and who builds them
- Do I need a permit to build a house in Albuquerque? GB-2 or homeowner, the plan set and the fee
- Arlington's 2,500-square-foot rule: when an addition or new house needs a Land Disturbing Activity and stormwater permit
- Do I need a new home permit in Raleigh? The portal submittal, the FY27 fees by percentage, owner-builder rules and who builds here
- Do I need a new home permit in Sacramento County? Plans, sprinklers, the departments that sign off, and how long builders take
For one city
- Ordinance No. 22,204, permit fee schedules, § 8-31(c) (passed 6 December 2022) — City of Little Rock (accessed 2026-10-26)
- Proposed ordinance revising § 8-31(c) permit fees, Board of Directors agenda of 16 December 2025 — City of Little Rock (accessed 2026-10-26)
- Planning and Development Divisions (Building Codes) — City of Little Rock (accessed 2026-10-26)
- Documents Required to Obtain a Building Permit — City of Little Rock Building Codes (accessed 2026-10-26)
- Interactive Building-Construction Permit Program (Dynamic Portal) — City of Little Rock (accessed 2026-10-26)
- Enforced Construction Codes (7 January 2023) — City of Little Rock (accessed 2026-10-26)
- Inspection Scheduling Instructions — City of Little Rock (accessed 2026-10-26)
- Arkansas Contractors Licensing Board — Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing (2026-10-25)