Residential Building Permit (New Construction) in Brighton, Colorado

Brighton requires a residential building permit (new construction) for: Plans must comply with the 2021 IRC/IBC as adopted, and meet the City's Climatic and Geographic Design Criteria: 35 psf ground snow load, 107 mph wind design speed (Seismic Design Category B), 36-inch minimum frost line depth (ice barrier underlayment NOT required per the City's design criteria sheet); Master Plan Review track requires stamped engineered structural drawings with design criteria, architectural drawings, IECC energy compliance construction documents, and Manual D and Manual J calculations; Production Home Permit Review track (site-specific spec already mastered) requires a plot plan stamped by a State of Colorado Registered Land Surveyor or Licensed Engineer, a site-specific engineer-stamped foundation print set with no extraneous options depicted, a site-specific engineer-stamped soils report, an approved Erosion and Sediment Control/Stormwater Permit prior to application, and receipts for Water Resource pre-payment and School/Metro District fees where applicable; Construction Permit Review for Custom Builds requires everything above plus a Residential Design Standards (RDS) approval letter; All General, Mechanical, Electrical, and Plumbing contractors performing work must be licensed or registered with the City of Brighton (Municipal Code Chapter 15, Articles 15-12 and 15-16); Receipt of the Brighton Fire Rescue District Emergency Services Impact Fee required prior to permit issuance; Applications submitted via the City's OpenGov/ViewpointCloud online portal. If your project isn't listed, confirm with City of Brighton Community Development Department, Permitting Division at 303-655-2017 before starting work.

In Brighton, the published Building Permit Fee — valuation $1.00 to $500.00 is: $23.50. Additional published fees: Building Permit Fee — valuation $501.00 to $2,000.00 — $23.50 for the first $500 plus $3.05 for each additional $100 or fraction thereof, to and including $2,000.00; Building Permit Fee — valuation $2,001.00 to $25,000.00 — $69.25 for the first $2,000 plus $14.00 for each additional $1,000 or fraction thereof, to and including $25,000.00; Building Permit Fee — valuation $25,001.00 to $50,000.00 — $391.25 for the first $25,000 plus $10.10 for each additional $1,000 or fraction thereof, to and including $50,000.00; Building Permit Fee — valuation $50,001.00 to $100,000.00 — $643.75 for the first $50,000 plus $7.00 for each additional $1,000 or fraction thereof, to and including $100,000.00; Building Permit Fee — valuation $100,001.00 to $500,000.00 — $993.75 for the first $100,000 plus $5.60 for each additional $1,000 or fraction thereof, to and including $500,000.00; Building Permit Fee — valuation $500,001.00 to $1,000,000.00 — $3,233.75 for the first $500,000 plus $4.75 for each additional $1,000 or fraction thereof, to and including $1,000,000; Building Permit Fee — valuation $1,000,001.00 and up — $5,608.75 for the first $1,000,000 plus $3.15 for each additional $1,000 or fraction thereof; Plan Review Fee — 65% of the Building Permit Fee; Plan Review Deposit (due at application submittal) — $200.00 for New Custom Residential Housing or Residential Housing Master Plan Review; Construction Use Tax — 3.75% of 50% of total project valuation; Residential Design Standards (RDS) Processing Fee — $50.00 per unit; Credit Card Processing Fee — 2.9% of total amount due. These are the jurisdiction's own published figures — see the fee schedule table and source citations on this page.

The City of Brighton does not publish a specific numeric turnaround time for residential building permit review. Colorado is a home-rule state with no statewide review-time statute, and Brighton's website, checklists, and fee schedule do not state an SLA for this permit type.

You'll need: Building Permit Application; Permit Checklist: Residential — New Construction; Erosion and Sediment Control Permit (Stormwater). Depending on your project, Brighton may also ask for: Residential Design Standards (RDS) Approval Letter. See the required-documents checklist on this page for details on each.

Brighton requires 4 inspection(s) for a residential building permit (new construction), in order: Foundation, Framing, Rough Electrical / Plumbing / Mechanical, Final Inspection. Schedule each through City of Brighton Community Development Department, Permitting Division (303-655-2017).

Apply through City of Brighton Community Development Department, Permitting Division at 500 S 4th Avenue, Brighton, CO 80601. Phone: 303-655-2017, email: 1stop@brightonco.gov. Office hours: City of Brighton main line 303-655-2000; Building Permit Counter direct line 303-655-2017; Homeowner Inspection Line 303-655-2151; Community Development general line 303-655-2072. City Hall closes at noon on Fridays, and all Community Development functions (planning and zoning, permitting and inspections) end at noon on Fridays as well.. Official information: https://www.brightonco.gov/222/Permitting.

Brighton, Colorado has adopted: 2021 International Building Code (IBC) — City of Brighton 'Building Code Editions, Design Loads, Etc.' sheet, Codes & Information page; 2021 International Residential Code (IRC); 2021 International Mechanical Code (IMC); 2021 International Plumbing Code (IPC); 2021 International Fuel Gas Code (IFGC); 2021 International Fire Code (IFC); 2021 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC); 2021 International Property Maintenance Code (IPMC); 2021 International Existing Building Code (IEBC); 2021 International Swimming Pool and Spa Code (ISPSC); 2023 National Electrical Code (NEC); ICC A117-17 (Accessible and Usable Buildings and Facilities); Effective date of the 2021 I-Code revisions: January 1, 2023. Effective date of the 2023 NEC adoption: July 1, 2023 — both per the City's own published 'Building Code Editions, Design Loads, Etc.' sheet (Codes & Information page), which is treated as the current, governing adopted-code list for this file.; Note on code-page currency: Brighton's Municode-hosted Chapter 15, Article 15-12 ('National Electrical Code') still codifies the '2005 National Electrical Code' verbatim in its Municode text — this is a known lag between the codified ordinance text on Municode and the live, actively-maintained Codes & Information page, which explicitly states the 2023 NEC is adopted effective 7/1/2023. The live department page is treated as authoritative for current code edition, consistent with the same lag pattern documented for other Colorado home-rule jurisdictions in this corpus (e.g. Vail's Minimum Submittal Requirements PDFs).. Local amendments apply — see the Brighton overview page for the full list.

The City of Brighton Community Development Department, Permitting Division issues its own building, electrical, mechanical, and plumbing permits for all work within Brighton city limits, whether the parcel is in Adams County or Weld County. Brighton is a home-rule city with its own Building/Permitting Division.