What Minneapolis exempts
The City's Work Exempt from Permit page (read 23 October 2026) is short:
| Exempt | Needs a permit |
|---|---|
| Installing, replacing or repairing "Cabinets and countertops" | Moving or removing a wall |
| "Floor tile and carpeting" | Finishing a basement or attic |
| "Wallpaper and paint" | A new or enlarged window or door opening |
| Gutters, soffits, fascia and trim | Moving a sink, toilet, tub or gas line (plumbing permit) |
| Fences up to seven feet | New ducts or a bath fan (mechanical permit) |
The page adds: "Look at the details. The project size, location and other conditions may apply." A kitchen or bath remodel that moves things can need four permits: building from the City, plumbing and mechanical from the City, and electrical from the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry, because Minneapolis does not issue electrical permits (Types of Construction Permits).
Basements: the rules that decide whether it counts as living space
Minneapolis's basement finish handout sets the bar for habitable space:
- Ceiling height of at least 6 feet 4 inches to the lowest beam, duct or soffit; below that, the space can only be finished as non-habitable.
- Smoke alarms in each bedroom, outside the bedrooms and on every level, interconnected and hard-wired when finishes are opened up; CO alarms within 10 feet of each sleeping area.
- A new bedroom needs an egress window or door: at least 5.7 square feet of net clear opening and 20 inches wide, with a window well at least 9 square feet and 36 inches deep, a ladder if it is deeper than 44 inches, and 2 feet of setback from a side or rear lot line.
Egress windows show up often in the City's remodel permits: the busiest remodel filer in our Minneapolis file is Egress Window Guy, with 100 permits in the last 12 months of the window.
Who can apply
The City's Permit Applicants page says "The person doing the work should prepare the application". Owners of one- to four-unit buildings who live there "can apply for a permit to do their own construction work" with a valid photo ID; corporations, LLCs and partnerships cannot. A contractor shows a City residential specialty license or a state license, and "If you build or improve more than one property within any 24-month period" you need a Minnesota residential building contractor or remodeler license. For a remodel touching two or more skills, that is the DLI license to ask for (Minneapolis contractor license lookup).
How to apply
- Fill in the Building Permit Application and email it to Development@minneapolismn.gov. "Do not submit construction plans with the application"; staff tell you how to submit them.
- Sign the Construction Management Agreement, which the City says you must sign "before you begin construction work on residential buildings with one to four dwelling units", and upload it to ProjectDox with the submittal.
- Wait for plan approval: "Building officials must approve your construction plans before we can issue your permit" (Building Permits).
- After work starts, the City conducts on-site inspections against the approved plans. Development Review is on 612-673-3000.
What it costs
From the City's building permit fee schedule: total = building permit fee + plan review (65% of that fee) + state surcharge (job value × 0.0005).
| Job value | Building permit fee | With plan review and surcharge |
|---|---|---|
| $15,000 | $372.00 | about $621 |
| $25,000 | $578.00 | about $966 |
| $50,000 | $950.50 | about $1,593 |
| $100,000 | $1,480.50 | about $2,493 |
The value is the whole job, labor and materials. Fees change on City Council action, so the invoice is the final figure.
What 5,552 Minneapolis remodel permits show
| Measure | Minneapolis remodel |
|---|---|
| Permits on homes, October 2023 to September 2026 | 5,552 |
| Firms that pulled them | 1,424 |
| Firms with a permit in the last 12 months of the window | 728 |
| Usual filed value (middle half of firms) | $15,000 ($11,400 to $50,000) |
| Closed (permits a year or more old) | 75.5% |
| Usual days from issue to close | 161 |
| Firms with one permit only | 703 (49.4%) |
| Busiest month / quietest month | October (index 119) / February (78) |
49.4% of the firms on Minneapolis remodel permits pulled just one in three years, so most remodelers you meet will have a thin City record. Among the 84 with 10 or more permits, 24 closed fewer than 70%. Prices by home value are on Minneapolis remodel cost; counts by year on Minneapolis permit statistics.
See every Minneapolis remodeler by permits closed →
Before you hire
Check the remodeler on the Minneapolis remodeler list and confirm its DLI license. National prices are in home remodel cost; other cities' rules in do I need a permit for a home remodel, kitchen remodel and bathroom remodel; past permits on your address in Minneapolis building permit search.
What this does not tell you
Our "remodel" group is the City's alteration permits on homes; additions, garages and decks are counted separately. The filed value is the applicant's estimate. A closed permit means the City's inspector passed the work, not that it was on budget.
How we know this
Exemptions, applicant rules, the application steps and basement requirements are quoted from City of Minneapolis pages and handouts read 23 October 2026; fees from the City's building permit fee schedule as published that day, and the worked examples apply its formula. Permit counts are City of Minneapolis CCS permits classified as remodel, October 2023 to September 2026; closed share uses permits a year or more old, and days to close is the median from issue to completion date.
Numbers come from City of Minneapolis construction permits (CCS), data through October 16, 2026. Nobody paid to be on this page and nobody can.
Questions
- Do I need a permit to redo a kitchen in Minneapolis?
Not for new cabinets, countertops, flooring, tile or paint: the City's exempt list covers those. Moving a wall, adding a window, or moving the sink, range or gas line needs a building permit plus separate plumbing, mechanical or electrical permits for those trades.
- Can a homeowner pull a remodel permit in Minneapolis?
Yes, if you own and live in a one- to four-unit building and do the work yourself; you show a valid photo ID. Corporations, LLCs and partnerships cannot, and anyone who builds or improves more than one property in 24 months needs a Minnesota residential contractor or remodeler license.
- How much is a remodel permit in Minneapolis?
It is based on job value. The City's schedule charges $104.20 for the first $2,000 plus $20.60 per extra $1,000 up to $25,000, and $578.00 plus $14.90 per $1,000 from $25,001 to $50,000, with a plan review fee of 65% of that and a 0.05% state surcharge on top. A $15,000 remodel works out to about $621.
- Do I need a permit to finish a basement in Minneapolis?
Yes. A basement finish is an alteration that needs a building permit, and the City's handout lists what makes the space habitable: a ceiling height of at least 6 feet 4 inches, smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, and an egress window or door for any new bedroom.
- How long does a remodel permit take to close in Minneapolis?
The usual Minneapolis remodel permit in our file closed 161 days after it was issued, and 75.5% of permits a year or more old were closed.
Build your own list
Every firm with that kind of permit on record. Pick what you value. The list moves.
Related guides
- Do I need a permit to remodel a bathroom? The rule in 14 cities, and what is exempt
- Do I need a permit to remodel a kitchen? The rule in 18 cities, and what is exempt
- Albuquerque building permit search: how to look up permits on an address
- Ames building permit search: how to look up permits on an address
- Do I need a remodel permit in St. Louis? The City's list, the $10-per-$1,000 fee and the historic district catch
- Foundation repair in Waco: the Repairs & Alterations permit, retaining walls over 48 inches, and who does the work
For one city
- Work Exempt from Permit — City of Minneapolis (accessed 2026-10-23)
- Building Permits — City of Minneapolis (accessed 2026-10-23)
- Building Permit application — City of Minneapolis (accessed 2026-10-23)
- Permit Applicants — City of Minneapolis (accessed 2026-10-23)
- Building permit fee schedule — City of Minneapolis (accessed 2026-10-23)
- Basement finish or remodel in one and two-family dwellings — City of Minneapolis (accessed 2026-10-23)
- Construction Management Agreement — City of Minneapolis (accessed 2026-10-23)
- Types of Construction Permits — City of Minneapolis (accessed 2026-10-23)