Post Falls building permits

Tips & gotchas

• Post Falls is administratively distinct from Kootenai County: the City of Post Falls Building Division issues and inspects building, electrical, plumbing, and mechanical permits within its own city limits via the Community Development Portal (postfallsid.portal.opengov.com); unincorporated Kootenai County uses the separate Kootenai County Building Department.
• Two historical city domains exist online: postfallsidaho.org (legacy/stale, some pages no longer resolve or serve outdated content) and postfalls.gov (current, active site as of this review). Always prefer postfalls.gov links; postfallsidaho.org content should be treated as potentially stale.
• City of Post Falls Design Criteria (Current Adopted Codes and Design Criteria, rev 02/16/25): 40 psf roof snow load, 56 psf ground snow load, 115 mph wind speed (3-second gust, Exposure B) for residential, Seismic Design Category C, 'Severe' weathering (triggering IRC R905.1.2 Ice Shield underlayment for roofing), 24-inch frost line depth, 1,500 psf soil bearing capacity without a soils investigation.
• Currently adopted codes (same source): 2018 IBC, 2018 IRC, 2018 IEBC, 2018 IECC (2012 Residential Amendments), 2018 IMC, 2017 Idaho State Plumbing Code (ISPC — not the UPC or IPC), 2018 IFGC, 2023 NEC, ICC A117.1-2009, 2009 IPMC.
• Post Falls publishes no permit-type-specific plan-review turnaround (none found after exhausting the Building Division page, Document Center, Fee Schedule, Residential/Commercial Submittal Requirements PDFs, ADU page, Fence Requirements FAQ, and the Community Development Portal). For building-permit-type applications the governing figure is the statutory completeness-review window of Idaho Code § 39-4117 (Processing Building Permits — Timely Review, added 2025 ch. 272), which binds any 'local government that requires building permits': 10 business days for a residential building permit and 20 business days for a commercial building permit to review an application for completeness and give written notice. That window is a completeness-determination deadline, not a full-approval promise (§ 39-4117(3): a completeness determination 'shall not constitute approval but shall authorize the application to proceed to formal plan review'), and it may be extended by written agreement (§ 39-4117(4)). Standalone electrical, plumbing, and mechanical trade permits fall outside § 39-4117's 'building permit' scope (administered under Idaho Code Title 54) and have no published or statutory review-time figure — contact the Building Division at (208) 773-8708.
• Fences do NOT require a Building Division permit in Post Falls — only compliance with height/placement zoning standards (PFMC 18.24.020(K)). Retaining walls DO require a Building Permit, billed at $4.50 per linear foot.
• ADUs (attached, detached, or basement conversion) are allowed on single-family lots (max 50% of primary residence's living area or 1,000 sq ft, whichever is smaller) and are permitted through the standard Residential Building Permit — there is no separate ADU application or fee category.
• No dedicated Solar/PV permit application or fee line was found — solar installations are processed as a combined Building Permit (structural/mounting) plus Electrical Permit (wiring/interconnection under the 2023 NEC, Article 690) using the City's general fee schedules.
• Building Plan Check (paid at submittal) is 25% of the Building Permit fee for residential (single-family, duplex, townhouse) and 65% for commercial; Commercial Mechanical Plan Review is 25% of the Mechanical Permit fee.
• Foundation-Only permits cost 10% of the Building Permit fee IN ADDITION TO the full Building Permit fee (not in place of it). Performing work without a valid permit doubles the applicable permit fee.
• Demolition (residential or commercial) requires a $1,500.00 Engineering Bond in addition to the flat per-lot Demolition Permit fee ($200.00 residential / $300.00 commercial).
• To request a Building Division inspection, call the dedicated line (208) 457-3334 with permit number, job address, inspection type, and desired date; requests submitted after midnight the night before cannot be scheduled for the following day.
• Commercial building valuation is NOT a flat published $/sq ft city rate like residential — the Fee Schedule instead cites 'Building Safety Journal 7/2008' as its methodology for establishing valuation by Occupancy Classification and Type of Construction, then runs that valuation through the same citywide Valuation Chart. Commercial Plan Check/Review is 65% of the Building Permit fee, vs. 25% for single-family/duplex/townhouse.
• Kootenai County Fire and Rescue (KCFR) is a SEPARATE political subdivision of Idaho government, independent of the City of Post Falls — it bills commercial-construction applicants directly for its own plan review (30% of the building permit fee or $150.00, whichever is higher) and inspections ($108.00/hour, one-hour minimum). These are NOT included in the City's Fee Schedule. New commercial buildings also require a Knox lock box per International Fire Code Section 506.1, and all KCFR requirements/invoices must be satisfied at least 30 days before KCFR will sign the Certificate of Occupancy.
• A Change of Use/Occupancy building permit (governed by 2018 IEBC Chapter 9) is required whenever a commercial space's use or occupancy classification changes (e.g., retail to restaurant), and also covers general tenant improvement/remodeling of existing commercial space. Its fee is based on a licensed contractor's bid, distinct from the Occupancy-Classification/Type-of-Construction valuation methodology used for new ground-up commercial construction.