Do I need a permit to build a house in Pierce County? What it costs, the 16 inspections, and 166 days to final

Where the county's permit applies

Pierce County Planning & Public Works permits unincorporated land: Spanaway, Graham, Frederickson, Parkland, South Hill, Lake Tapps, the Key Peninsula, the Gig Harbor peninsula and similar places. Tacoma, Lakewood, Puyallup, University Place, the city of Gig Harbor, Bonney Lake and the other cities have their own permit offices. Electrical permits for the house come from the Washington Department of Labor & Industries, not the county.

What you file

From the county's Residential page and Residential Construction Customer Guide (both read 24 October 2026):

• The Residential Construction Application and Checklist, with the Proposed Construction Data Table, "signed by legal owner of the property and any authorized agent."
• A compliant site plan and construction plans. "Plans must be marked for construction. Drafts or 'Not for Construction' are not acceptable."
• Washington State Energy Code worksheets.
• A drainage plan if clearing, grading, excavation or new impervious area passes the county's thresholds.
• A fire flow certificate from the water provider, or the county's Fire Protection Worksheet, and proof of drinking water availability.
• Septic, sewer, environmental or land use approvals where they apply; the guide warns these "can add significant time to your project schedule."

A Level 1 Pre-Application Screening is required first for sites with critical area indicators or special site restrictions, and for properties on an on-site septic system or private well. Check your parcel's critical areas in About My Property.

The steps

The customer guide sets out eight: gather parcel information; apply online; pay the fees invoiced by email (the application "will be cancelled if fees are not paid within 5 days"); technical review, with requests for more information in the portal; approval, with stamped documents emailed to you; start work and schedule inspections; complete every related permit; and the final inspection and Certificate of Occupancy, which you print from the Documents tab of the online portal. "The final building inspection cannot be approved if related permits have not been completed."

What it costs

From the county's Estimated Permit Costs Based on Current Fees (2026 fees, revised 23 February 2026):

The building review line includes fire plan review and the state surcharge. Most of each total is other fees: planning review $550, site development and drainage $891 to $2,528, traffic impact fees $2,367 to $9,650, park impact fees $4,130, school impact fees $4,695, a $150 base permit fee and a technology fee. A driveway approach ($307) applies only on a public road, and sewer fees only where public sewer serves the lot. The county notes the estimates leave out fees for environmental constraints and other agencies, such as electrical.

The inspections

The county's Inspections Required - Residential lists the typical sequence:

1. Footing and setback
2. Foundation
3. Water service
4. Groundwork
5. Slab
6. Under floor
7. Exterior shear wall
8. Exterior energy
9. Combined frame/plumbing
10. Gas test
11. Interior energy (insulation)
12. Wallboard, only where modified one-hour construction is a fire credit or a rated wall is within 5 feet of the property line
13. Special inspection reports
14. Pre-final
15. Final building
16. Occupancy

Schedule them at PierceCountyWa.gov/Permit, where your login must match the owner or applicant on the permit. Requests made before midnight can be scheduled for the next workday, workload permitting.

What 2,739 Pierce County new home permits show

From Pierce County's open permit file (new home permits):

The valuation is the figure the county works out from floor area and construction type to set the fee, not a construction cost. January, March, April and May run 16% to 29% above an average month; September, at 68, is the slowest. The ranges for every kind of work are on how long a permit takes. National figures are in new home construction cost, and other departments' requirements in do I need a permit to build a house.

Checking the builder and the permit

Check the builder's Washington contractor registration with how to check a contractor's license in Washington, and look up permits and inspections on a parcel with Pierce County building permit search. The year and month counts are on permit statistics, and the rows on browse permits.

What this does not tell you

The county's open permit file names no builder and no ZIP code. Days to final runs from permit issue, not from application, so plan review time comes on top of the 166 days.