City of Everett building permits: fees, timelines & requirements (2026)
What needs a permit in the City of Everett and what triggers one — each row quoted from the city's own code or permit page, with the source linked and the source page checked weekly for changes. Fees and review times appear where the city publishes them. Covers kitchen, bathroom, basement, deck, fence, siding, windows, flooring, ADU, roofing, HVAC, electrical, plumbing, addition, solar and heat pumps, and the permits beside them: demolition, right-of-way, side sewer, drainage, land use, tree removal and signs.
8 of 23 project types have authoritative rules on file · 13 always require a permit · 10 depend on the scope · 0 do not.
Get your lot in 3D with zoning, setbacks, and the exact permits your project needs — cited to the City of Everett's source.
Permit department
Everett Public Works — Permit Services
Adopted code cycles
2021 IRC w/ WA amendments · 2021 WSEC
Resources
Construction permits
| Project | Threshold | Fee | Review days | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kitchen remodel Depends on scope | Under the state code cabinets, counters, paint and tile need no permit. Replacing a sink or faucet, even in the same spot, or moving or adding plumbing needs a plumbing permit: the state plumbing code exempts only clearing a stoppage or fixing a leak with nothing replaced. Gas or venting work, new circuits and moving a wall need permits too. Cosmetic-only refresh (cabinets, countertops, flooring, paint) without structural/electrical/plumbing changes is generally exempt under 2021 IRC R105.2 (work exempt from permit). Any new circuit, fixture relocation, or structural change requires permits. | FeeAbout $1,924 for a $35,000 project, when a permit is needed | Review10–21 days | Cite verified 2026-10-02 |
| Bathroom remodel Depends on scope | Under the state code tile, paint and other finish work need no permit. Replacing a toilet, sink, faucet, shower valve, tub or shower, even in the same spot, or moving or adding plumbing needs a plumbing permit: the state plumbing code exempts only clearing a stoppage or fixing a leak with nothing replaced. New circuits need an electrical permit, and moving a wall a building permit. Like-for-like fixture replacement in same location with no plumbing rerouting and no new circuits: typically exempt under 2021 IRC R105.2(2)(g). Any relocation, new fixture, new circuit, or shower-pan replacement triggers permits. | FeeAbout $1,395 for a $22,000 project, when a permit is needed | Review10–21 days | Cite verified 2026-10-02 |
| Basement finish Always | Finishing a basement into habitable space needs a building permit; egress and ceiling height are the usual review items. 2021 IRC R310: every sleeping room below grade requires emergency escape and rescue opening (egress window). Min sill height 44in, min net clear opening 5.7 sq ft (5.0 grade-floor), min width 20in, height 24in. Ceiling height min 7ft (R305). Entire newly conditioned area must comply with WSEC R402. | FeeAbout $2,125 for a $40,000 project | Review14–30 days | Cite verified 2026-10-02 |
| Deck Depends on scope | Under the state code a deck needs no permit only when it is 200 sq ft or less, no more than 30 in above grade at any point, not attached to the house, and does not serve the required exit door. Many cities change this in their own codes. Everett follows IRC default: permit required if deck >30in above grade or attached. Critical-area overlays may require additional review. | FeeAbout $1,227 for an $18,000 project, when a permit is needed | Review10–21 days | Cite verified 2026-04-26 |
| Fence Depends on scope | An ordinary fence 7 ft or under needs no building permit in Everett; a taller fence does. An electric or barbed-wire fence needs a building and/or electrical permit from the City before it goes up or is put back up. A fence in the street right-of-way needs a Public Works permit, which sets its height, material, transparency and placement. 2021 IRC R105.2(1)(d) exempts fences ≤7ft high. Cities frequently extend (Seattle: 8ft) or require permits for fences in critical areas, flood zones, or with masonry components. | FeeAbout $722 for a $6,000 project, when a permit is needed | ReviewNot published by the city | Cite verified 2026-09-06 |
| Siding Always | Everett does not list siding among exempt work; treat all siding as permit-required unless Permit Services confirms otherwise in writing. Everett does not list siding among permit-exempt work in its official one- and two-unit-dwelling exemptions handout (rev. 10/07/2025). Re-roofs — the closest envelope analog — are explicitly listed as requiring a permit. Treat all residential siding work as permit-required unless Permit Services confirms otherwise in writing for the specific scope. | FeeAbout $1,227 for an $18,000 project | Review1–10 days | Cite verified 2026-05-14 |
| Window replacement Always | The state code exempts no window replacement, and the local code adds no exemption: replacing windows needs a permit. Replacing broken glass is an ordinary repair. | FeeAbout $806 for an $8,000 project | ReviewNot published by the city | Cite verified 2026-10-02 |
| Flooring Depends on scope | Floor finishes are exempt. Modifying the subfloor or joists, or installing radiant heat, needs a permit. 2021 IRC R105.2(1)(j) exempts floor finishes (carpet, vinyl, hardwood, tile). Permit required if subfloor structure is modified, joists altered, or radiant heat installed. | FeeAbout $722 for a $6,000 project, when a permit is needed | ReviewNot published by the city | Cite verified 2026-10-02 |
| ADU / DADU Always | An ADU or DADU always needs a building permit, and usually trade permits with it. WA HB 1337 (signed 2023, code-adoption deadline mid-2025) requires cities ≥6,000 pop. to permit ≥2 ADUs per lot in SF residential zones, allow ADUs of ≥1,000 sq ft (state floor — cities may allow larger, e.g. Bellevue/Redmond/Sammamish 1,200), drop owner-occupancy requirements, and waive parking requirements within ½ mi of frequent transit. City adoption status varies; local size + design caps may exceed the state floor. | FeeAbout $6,065 for a $200,000 project | Review30–90 days | Cite verified 2026-09-07 |
| Roofing Always | The state code exempts no re-roofing, and the local code adds no exemption: replacing a roof needs a permit. A small repair can be an ordinary repair. | FeeWhere a re-roof needs a permit in Everett, it is a building permit priced on the value of the work: $150 for work valued up to $2,000, $295.50 plus $22.75 for each $1,000 over $2,000 up to $25,000, and $818.75 plus $21.75 for each $1,000 over $25,000 up to $50,000. | Review1–5 days | Cite verified 2026-10-02 |
| HVAC Depends on scope | Installing or replacing heating, cooling or ventilation equipment needs a mechanical permit; a portable unit or a minor part replacement does not. WAC 51-52 (2021 IMC) and WAC 51-56 (2021 UPC) require mechanical permit for any equipment install, replacement, or relocation. WSEC R403 requires sizing per Manual J/S/D for new equipment. | FeeEverett prices mechanical work on an existing house by its contract price: the $130 mechanical base fee plus $20 for work of $500 or less, $35 up to $1,000, or $50 above $1,000 and $20 more for each $5,000 over the first $1,000. | ReviewNot published by the city | Cite verified 2026-10-02 |
| Electrical Depends on scope | Electrical work needs a permit from the City of Everett, not L&I. Replacing existing equipment in kind, of any number and with nothing added, is exempt. Everett runs its own electrical permit program: electrical permits in the City of Everett are issued by the City's Building Official through Everett Permit Services, not by WA L&I. Everett's amendment to the National Electrical Code (EMC 16.05.010, Article 80-11(a)) bars anyone from installing, altering, replacing or extending electrical work or equipment "without first obtaining a separate electrical permit for each installation, alteration, replacement or extension from the Building Official", except replacement in kind and IBC 105.2.1 emergency repairs. Everett's permit-exemptions handout for one- and two-unit dwellings (rev. 10/07/2025) lists the exempt electrical work: listed cord-and-plug temporary decorative lighting; reinstalling attachment plug receptacles (but not the outlets); replacing branch-circuit overcurrent devices of the required capacity in the same location; wiring and equipment operating at less than 25 volts and not capable of supplying more than 50 watts; and minor repair such as replacing lamps or connecting approved portable equipment to permanently installed receptacles. Generators are on the handout's list of work that does need a permit. | FeeFor a house, new construction, an addition or a remodel is priced on the size of the project: $100 under 1,000 square feet, $150 from 1,001 to 2,000, $200 from 2,001 to 3,000 and $250 above. | ReviewNot published by the city | Cite verified 2026-09-25 |
| Plumbing Depends on scope | In Everett stopping a leak or clearing a stoppage needs no plumbing permit. Replacing anything, even a faucet or a fixture in the same spot, needs one, and so do new or moved fixtures and piping (UPC 104.1, 104.2, as the State adopts them). A water heater needs a permit too, but Everett takes water heaters, their vents and gas piping out of its plumbing code, so they are permitted as mechanical work (EMC 16.04.010(E)). WAC 51-56 (2021 UPC) requires plumbing permit for installation, replacement, or relocation of any plumbing fixture, water heater, or piping. Like-for-like faucet replacement is exempt. | FeeEverett's plumbing permit is a $130 base fee plus $20 for each fixture; replacing only a water heater is $150 (Plumbing/Mechanical Permit Fees, effective 01/01/2026). | ReviewNot published by the city | Cite verified 2026-10-02 |
| Addition Always | Adding floor area always needs a building permit. 2021 IRC R105.1 requires permits for "construction, enlargement, alteration, repair, movement, removal, conversion, or demolition" of structures. Additions are never exempt under R105.2. Footprint additions trigger zoning compliance (setbacks, lot coverage, height); vertical additions trigger structural review for the existing foundation/wall framing. WSEC R402-R403 applies to new conditioned area. SEPA threshold typically ≥12,000 sqft total floor area (RCW 43.21C). | FeeAbout $4,770 for a $120,000 project | Review30–90 days | Cite verified 2026-10-02 |
| Solar (rooftop PV) Always | A solar PV system is electrical work and needs an electrical permit from the City of Everett, not L&I; the mounting follows the building code as adopted from the state. | FeeEverett's electrical fee schedule has no solar line; for a house it lists $75 for 1 or 2 circuits added or altered without a service change, $100 for 3 or more, and $100 for a service or panel change (Electrical Permit Fees, updated 01/01/2026). | ReviewNot published by the city | Cite verified 2026-10-02 |
| Heat pump Depends on scope | Installing or replacing a heat pump needs a City mechanical permit, and its circuit an electrical permit from the City; a portable unit, work on the piping inside the equipment, a minor part replacement or a self-contained unit with 10 lb of refrigerant or less or a motor of 1 hp or less does not need the mechanical permit. | FeeEverett prices mechanical work on an existing house by its contract price: the $130 mechanical base fee plus $20 for work of $500 or less, $35 up to $1,000, or $50 above $1,000 and $20 more for each $5,000 over the first $1,000; a copy of the contract may be requested (Plumbing/Mechanical Permit Fees, effective 01/01/2026). | ReviewNot published by the city | Cite verified 2026-11-07 |
Ancillary & non-building permits
| Project | Threshold | Fee | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Demolition Always | Demolishing a structure or a substantial part of one needs a permit; asbestos and lead notifications are separate. 2021 IBC Section 105.1 + WA-adopted IRC R105.1: demolition of any structure or portion thereof requires a permit. Tear-out of interior finishes only is generally treated as alteration. Asbestos / lead notification often required separately under WAC 173-303 / 296-62. | FeeEverett's demolition permit for a residential building is a flat $150 per building. | Cite verified 2026-10-02 |
| Right-of-way Always | Any work in or occupation of the public right of way needs a right-of-way permit from the city, or from the agency that owns the street. Issued by city public works (or SDOT in Seattle) under local ROW ordinance. Triggered by physical occupation of or work within the public ROW including driveway aprons, curb cuts, sidewalk replacement, utility tie-ins, hauling routes, and temporary construction staging. | FeeEverett's site work permit prices a residential concrete apron or curb cut at $25 (an asphalt apron where there is no curb and gutter, $25), and a trench in a street or alley at $1 a linear foot parallel to the right-of-way or $3 across it, $45 at the least, with plan review at 1.5% and inspection at 3% of the approved engineer's cost estimate ($20 at the least). | Cite verified 2026-04-26 |
| Side sewer Always | Where the City owns the sewer, any connection, and laying, altering, extending or repairing a sewer connected to it (no minimum length), needs a City permit; where a district owns the main, that district issues it. Where the City of Everett owns the sewer, a City permit is required to connect to or open any part of the City sewer system, or a private sewer connected to it, and to lay, alter, extend or repair any public or private sewer that connects to it (EMC 14.08.060), so any repair counts, with no minimum length. When the work comes with new construction or a remodel that needs a building permit, the sewer permit must be obtained, and its fees and connection charges paid, before the building permit is issued. Where a sewer district owns the main, that district issues the permit under its own code, so confirm the owner of the main before applying. WAC 51-56, the state plumbing code, governs how the building sewer is laid. | FeeWhere the City serves the lot, Everett's sewer fees are $60 for a new connection to the sewer main or a reconnection to an existing stub, plus $10 for each building connected to the side sewer; altering or repairing a side sewer is $30, a backwater valve $30, and capping one off $10 (Sewer Fees, EMC 14.08.140, effective 01/01/2026). | Cite verified 2026-10-24 |
| Stormwater / drainage Always | New or replaced impervious surface and land disturbance are reviewed under the drainage manual this jurisdiction adopts; the threshold is the manual's. Ecology's Stormwater Management Manual for Western Washington (SWMMWW, 2024 edition) is the state floor. A municipal stormwater permittee may instead adopt a regional manual Ecology has determined equivalent, and most do — some counties publish their own, some cities publish their own, and others adopt Ecology's directly. Which manual applies is a per-jurisdiction fact and it changes the numbers: review thresholds for new plus replaced impervious surface and for land-disturbing activity differ between manuals, so read this jurisdiction's own adopting chapter before quoting one. Critical-area and closed-basin parcels get stricter review under every manual. | FeeEverett charges a stormwater system development fee at permit issuance: $906 for new construction or redevelopment with up to 2,500 square feet of impervious area, $0.3624 a square foot above that, and $0.3624 a square foot of new impervious area added to existing development. | Cite verified 2026-04-26 |
| Land-use / zoning Always | A variance, conditional use, plat or design review is a land-use decision that precedes the building permit. Triggered when a project does not conform to the strict letter of the zoning code. Variances require a hardship finding under most city codes. Design review thresholds vary (Seattle: most multifamily + non-residential >4,000 sqft; many cities: design review only in designated districts). | FeeEverett's 2026 Planning, Zoning and Land Use Fee Schedule lists a pre-application meeting at $730, Review Process I actions at $730, II at $1,092 and III at $2,370, a variance in a single-family zone at $1,092 (administrative variance $730), a boundary line adjustment at $1,458, a floodplain development permit at $1,587, a shoreline permit exemption letter at $730, SEPA review under one acre at $730, and a zoning verification letter at $145. | Cite verified 2026-04-26 |
| Tree removal Depends on scope | Everett sets no permit to remove a tree on private land outside a critical area: Permit Services says no Public Works permit is needed for the removal itself, and the Planning Division says whether the tree can come down, since a tree required as landscaping may need replacing (the City's FAQ). In a critical area or its buffer, a wetland, stream, fish and wildlife habitat area, or a landslide, erosion or seismic hazard area, nothing is altered before the City's approvals (EMC 19.37.030 A): a hazard tree comes down only when the planning director approves it, with two native trees planted for each one removed (19.37.060 B.3.b); a nonhazardous tree only in the outer half of a buffer, up to 10 percent of the trees there once every five years, with three native trees for each one, through the City's review (B.3.c); and removing vegetation from a wetland, a habitat area or a stream or wetland buffer is otherwise prohibited (B.3.b(6)). Pruning a tree in a critical area needs a permit (B.3.a(1)). A tree in the street right-of-way is a street tree. | FeeEverett's posted fee schedules (the 2026 Planning, Zoning and Land Use schedule, Site Work and building permit fees) have no tree-removal line. | Cite verified 2026-10-28 |
| Signs Always | A City sign permit is needed to put up, structurally alter or relocate a sign; a nonelectric sign of 2 square feet or less in a single-family zone and the code's other excepted signs need none. Everett requires a City sign permit to erect, re-erect, attach, structurally alter or relocate a sign; the application goes to the building official, needs planning department approval, and the city engineer reviews it for hazards to drivers and pedestrians (EMC 19.36.020(A)). No permit is needed, though the sign must still meet the sign code, for a nonelectric sign of up to 2 square feet in a single-family zone, portable signs that meet the code, incidental signs, or directional signs of up to 6 square feet (EMC 19.36.020(B)(2)). | FeeEverett's posted fee handouts have no sign permit table: Planning's review of sign permit plans is 10% of the permit fee, and an administrative modification of the sign rules is $1,092 (2026 Planning, Zoning and Land Use Fee Schedule). | Cite verified 2026-10-24 |
Review days: not published by the city for any permit in this table.
Building in the City of Everett?
Kolmo Construction is a licensed Washington general contractor — KOLMOL*753JS, bonded and insured — working throughout the City of Everett and Snohomish County. We pull the building permits listed above and build the project. Electrical, plumbing and HVAC work, and those permits, go to licensed trade subcontractors that Kolmo manages.
How this page is built
Each row is the most-recently-verified authoritative rule on file for the City of Everett and the listed project type.
See the data-quality leaderboard for how we keep these current, or run an address-specific lookup on the main permits page.