Residential Building Permit (New Dwelling) in Los Alamos County, New Mexico

Yes. Per the Los Alamos County Code, no building or structure may be erected, constructed, enlarged, altered, repaired, moved, improved, removed, converted, or demolished unless a permit has first been obtained from the Community Development Department Building Safety Division.

In Los Alamos County, the published Building Permit Fee — valuation $1.00 to $500.00 is: $23.50. Additional published fees: Building Permit Fee — valuation $500.01 to $2,000.00 — $23.50 for the first $500 plus $3.05 for each additional $100.00 or fraction thereof; Building Permit Fee — valuation $2,000.01 to $25,000.00 — $69.25 for the first $2,000.00 plus $14.00 for each additional $1,000.00 or fraction thereof; Building Permit Fee — valuation $25,000.01 to $50,000.00 — $391.75 for the first $25,000.00 plus $10.10 for each additional $1,000.00 or fraction thereof; Building Permit Fee — valuation $50,000.01 to $100,000.00 — $643.75 for the first $50,000.00 plus $7.00 for each additional $1,000.00 or fraction thereof; Building Permit Fee — valuation $100,000.01 to $500,000.00 — $993.75 for the first $100,000.00 plus $5.60 for each additional $1,000.00 or fraction thereof; Building Permit Fee — valuation $500,000.01 to $1,000,000.00 — $3,233.75 for the first $500,000.00 plus $4.75 for each additional $1,000.00 or fraction thereof; Building Permit Fee — valuation $1,000,000.01 and up — $5,608.75 for the first $1,000,000.00 plus $3.65 for each additional $1,000.00 or fraction thereof; Plan Review Fee — 65% of the calculated Building Permit Fee, due at time of submittal; Additional Plan Review (changes/revisions after initial submittal) — $47.00 per hour, or the County's actual hourly cost if greater. These are the jurisdiction's own published figures — see the fee schedule table and source citations on this page.

The Building Safety Division's stated goal is to process all residential permits in an average of 3 business days or less; the division's own 2024 performance data shows an average of 1 business day actually achieved for the 737 residential permits issued that year. The County's Permit Review Timeframe Policy (revised 8/14/2025) states this as a maximum of 3 business days from entry into the Tyler EPL system, and the Quality Service Goals Policy (revised 8/14/2025) states plan review 'will be completed within three (3) business days from the date of permit intake.'

You'll need: Building Permit Application (New Dwelling Template); Construction Documents; Site Plan; NM One Call Ticket Number. Depending on your project, Los Alamos County may also ask for: CID Homeowners Responsibility Form. See the required-documents checklist on this page for details on each.

Los Alamos County requires 5 inspection(s) for a residential building permit (new dwelling), in order: Foundation, Framing, Insulation, Wallboard, Final. Schedule each through Los Alamos County Community Development Department — Building Safety Division ((505) 662-8120 (fax: (505) 662-8363)).

Apply through Los Alamos County Community Development Department — Building Safety Division at 1000 Central Avenue, Suite 150, Los Alamos, NM 87544. Phone: (505) 662-8120 (fax: (505) 662-8363), email: permit.techs@lacnm.us (permit technicians / applications); building@lacnm.us (general Building Safety Division); buildinginspectionrequests@lacnm.us (to request an inspection). Office hours: 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday (Los Alamos County Administrative Offices, 1000 Central Avenue, Los Alamos, NM 87544). Official information: https://www.losalamosnm.gov/Government/Departments-offices/Community-Development-Department/Building-Safety-Division.

Los Alamos County, New Mexico has adopted: GOVERNANCE MODEL: Los Alamos County (a consolidated city-county government) self-administers building/structural permitting through its own Building Safety Division, headed by a County Chief Building Official (David Martinez) — it is NOT a direct New Mexico Construction Industries Division (CID) field-office jurisdiction for building permits. The Building Safety Division is the ONLY International Accreditation Service (IAS)-accredited building department in the State of New Mexico, per the County's own February 2025 announcement ('Building Safety Division Earns IAS Reaccreditation'). Source: losalamosnm.gov News Article, 'Building Safety Division Earns IAS Reaccreditation' (published Feb. 25, 2025).; HOWEVER, for the electrical, plumbing, and mechanical/HVAC trades specifically, Los Alamos County explicitly defers to DIRECT New Mexico Construction Industries Division (CID) field-office enforcement rather than self-administering those trades: the County's own 'Apply for a permit' page links out to the CID Manufactured Housing/Trades portal (nmrld.my.site.com/MHD) labeled 'New Mexico CID electrical, mechanical, and plumbing permit,' and the County's Commercial Building Information page states verbatim: 'The State of New Mexico's Construction Industries Division (CID) permits electrical and plumbing/mechanical work in Los Alamos County. Those permits need to be obtained separately from the application to the County. CID can be reached by phone at (505) 476-4700.' Source: losalamosnm.gov, Apply for a permit; losalamosnm.gov Commercial Building Information page.; 2021 International Building Code (IBC), as amended by the State of New Mexico — Los Alamos County Building Codes. Source: losalamosnm.gov Building Code & Policy Information page.; 2021 International Residential Code (IRC), as amended by the State of New Mexico — Los Alamos County Building Codes. Source: losalamosnm.gov Building Code & Policy Information page.; 2021 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) — listed by name under 'Los Alamos County Building Codes & Ordinances' on the County's live Building Code & Policy Information page, which links directly to codes.iccsafe.org/content/IECC2021P3, and carried in the 'Code Cycle' header of every current Building Safety Division application checklist (New Dwelling rev. 7/30/25, Residential Addition rev. 7/30/25, Residential Remodel/Renovation rev. 7/30/25, New Roof Structure rev. 7-30-25, Roof Mounted Photovoltaic rev. 9-2-25, Large Residential Accessory Structures rev. 9/2/25, New Commercial Building rev. 9-10-25, Commercial Additions rev. 9-10-25, Commercial Remodel/Renovation rev. 9-10-25 — the last of which prints it as '2021 International Conservation Code', a County typo for IECC). Energy/Climate Zone for Los Alamos County is 5B. CORRECTION 2026-08-16: this file previously published the 2018 IECC; no current County source states 2018, and every checklist 'Code Cycle' header cited here was read from a 200-dpi page render rather than from text extraction. Source: losalamosnm.gov Building Code & Policy Information page; Los Alamos County Building Safety Division application checklists.; Los Alamos County Adoption of the International Wildland-Urban Interface Code (WUI), Ordinance No. 02-368 — listed under 'Los Alamos County Building Codes & Ordinances' on the County's Building Code & Policy Information page, which links the adopting ordinance PDF. The County's Inspections page states the ordinance was adopted in 2025 and requires Class A roof assemblies (tested per ASTM E108/UL790) and tempered-glass skylights; current application checklists cite 'WUI Sec. 504.3' for ignition-resistant soffit/fascia/siding construction. Source: losalamosnm.gov Building Code & Policy Information page; losalamosnm.gov Inspections page.; Los Alamos County Municipal Code of Ordinances, Chapter 10 (Building Regulations) — governs permit administration; permit fees are based on Chapter 10, Article III per the Building Safety Division's own fee-schedule statement. Source: losalamosnm.gov Building Safety Division main page ('The fee for a permit is based on Chapter 10 - Article III of the Municipal Code').; 2021 New Mexico Residential Building Code, NMAC 14.7.3 — State of NM Building Code referenced by Los Alamos County. Source: losalamosnm.gov Building Code & Policy Information page.; 2021 New Mexico Commercial Building Code, NMAC 14.7.2. Source: losalamosnm.gov Building Code & Policy Information page.; 2021 New Mexico Plumbing Code, NMAC 14.8.2 (administered by CID, not the County, per the electrical/plumbing/mechanical CID-referral above). Source: losalamosnm.gov Building Code & Policy Information page.; 2012 New Mexico Swimming Pool, Spa, and Hot Tub Code, NMAC 14.8.3. Source: losalamosnm.gov Building Code & Policy Information page.; 2021 New Mexico Mechanical Code, NMAC 14.9.2 (administered by CID); Boilers, NMAC 14.9.4; Medical Gas Installation and Certification, NMAC 14.9.5; 2012 New Mexico Solar Energy Code, NMAC 14.9.6. Source: losalamosnm.gov Building Code & Policy Information page.; 2020 New Mexico Electrical Code, NMAC 14.10.4 (administered by CID); 2012 New Mexico Electrical Safety Code, NMAC 14.10.5. Source: losalamosnm.gov Building Code & Policy Information page.; 2021 International Fire Code — Los Alamos County's adopted fire code, enforced by the Fire Marshal's Office. Two County pages agree and neither was silently preferred: the Building Code & Policy Information page states 'Los Alamos County has adopted the 2021 International Fire Code,' and the Fire Marshal Plan Review and Permitting page states 'Los Alamos County's adopted fire code is 2021 International Fire Code and all referenced Standards from Chapter 80.' CORRECTION 2026-08-16: this file previously published '2015 NFPA 1 and 2015 NFPA 101' as the County fire code; no NFPA 1 or NFPA 101 edition appears on any current County page. System-specific NFPA standards (NFPA 13/13R/13D, 72, 20, 22, 17A, 2001) still apply, but as IFC Chapter 80 referenced standards rather than as the adopted fire code — see the fire protection system permit entry. Source: losalamosnm.gov Building Code & Policy Information page; losalamosnm.gov Fire Marshal Plan Review and Permitting page.; New Mexico Construction Industries Licensing Act and CID statewide permit-fee rule, 14.5.5 NMAC — governs the electrical, mechanical, and plumbing permit fees charged directly by CID for work within Los Alamos County (see localAmendments for the current CID fee table, verified against the live rld.nm.gov fees page). Source: New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department (RLD), Construction Industries Division, 'Fees' page (rld.nm.gov/construction-industries/forms-and-applications/fees/).. Local amendments apply — see the Los Alamos County overview page for the full list.

No — the State of New Mexico's Construction Industries Division (CID) permits electrical and plumbing/mechanical work directly in Los Alamos County. Those permits must be obtained separately from CID (505-476-4700), not from the County.