Fort Worth building permits
Department contacts, adopted codes, permit types, fees, and gotchas for Fort Worth, Texas.
Last verified 2026-09-06 · Source · Embed this page’s badge · Version history
Building department
- Address
- New City Hall, 100 Fort Worth Trail, Fort Worth, TX 76102
- Phone
- 817-392-2222
- Website
- Official site
Inspection guide
See how inspections work in Fort Worth — sequence, scheduling & re-inspection fees.
Codes adopted
Texas adopts the International Residential Code as it existed on May 1, 2012 as the municipal residential building code, by statute rather than through a state agency. A municipality may adopt local amendments that add, modify, or remove requirements set by that code, and may review and consider later International Code Council changes but is not obliged to. The statutory edition does not advance on a cycle.
- 2021 International Building Code (ICC) - effective April 1, 2022, Ordinance No. 25382-03-2022
- 2021 International Residential Code (ICC) - effective April 1, 2022, Ordinance No. 25383-03-2022
- 2021 International Mechanical Code (ICC) - effective April 1, 2022, Ordinance No. 25384-03-2022
- 2021 International Plumbing Code and 2021 International Fuel Gas Code (ICC) - effective April 1, 2022, Ordinance No. 25385-03-2022
- 2021 International Existing Building Code (ICC) - effective April 1, 2022, Ordinance No. 25386-03-2022
- 2021 International Fire Code (ICC) - effective April 1, 2022, Ordinance No. 25388-03-2022
- Fort Worth Administrative Building Code (2021 edition) - Ordinance No. 25387-03-2022
- 2015 International Energy Conservation Code (ICC) - retained; NOT updated to the 2021 edition
- 2018 International Swimming Pool and Spa Code (ICC) - effective September 1, 2020
- 2023 National Electrical Code (NFPA 70) - effective March 1, 2023 (a 2026 NEC is proposed, targeted effective September 1, 2026, per the city's Building & Energy Codes page)
Permit types & fees
Residential Building Permit (New Construction, Addition & Remodel)
Covers one- and two-family detached homes, duplexes and townhouses on individually platted lots, and their accessory structures. Required for new construction and for work that changes, moves, or repairs walls, floors, ceilings, windows, doors, electrical, mechanical or plumbing. Not required for cosmetic remodels (floor/wall covering, cabinets, countertops, shelving) or plumbing fixture replacement. Applicant must be a registered building contractor or qualify for a homestead permit (own and occupy the property as primary residence, per a homestead exemption from the appraisal district).
Fee not publishedCommercial Building Permit (New Construction, Addition & Remodel)
Required for new commercial construction, commercial accessory buildings, remodels and additions to commercial or industrial buildings (multifamily projects are treated as commercial). The building permit must be obtained and issued before a trade permit (electrical/mechanical/plumbing) can be applied for. Permits are not required for cosmetic remodels or plumbing fixture replacement.
Fee not publishedElectrical Permit
Required for changing, moving, or repairing electrical equipment, including electrical services, at residential or commercial properties. For new commercial construction, additions and remodels, the electrical permit is a trade permit that can only be applied for after the building permit has been issued.
Fee not publishedPlumbing Permit
Required for changing, installing, moving or repairing plumbing, including water heaters and shower pans. New sprinkler/irrigation system installations and valve replacement also require a plumbing permit. For new commercial construction, additions and remodels, the plumbing permit is a trade permit that can only be applied for after the building permit has been issued.
Fee not publishedMechanical Permit
Required for changing, moving, or repairing mechanical equipment such as central heating and air-conditioning systems, duct work, and exhaust fans. For new commercial construction, additions and remodels, the mechanical permit is a trade permit that can only be applied for after the building permit has been issued.
Fee not publishedResidential Re-Roof Permit
Required to re-roof and replace decking on a residential lot. Replacement of decking material, lathing boards, sheathing boards, rafters or ridge boards requires a building permit. Shingle-only replacement does not require a permit, but there is a limit on the number of shingle layers allowed.
Fee not publishedFence and Retaining Wall Permit
Fences in the front yard and projected front yard can be no more than 4 feet tall and must be open design picket-style; chain link is prohibited in the front yard and projected front yard. A building permit is required for solid fences with a height above 7 feet and for open fences with a height above 8 feet. Retaining walls greater than 4 feet tall (measured from the bottom of the footing to the top of the wall) also require a permit. Fences may require additional approval if the property is in a historic district.
Fee not publishedSwimming Pool Permit
Swimming pools are treated as accessory structures and require a building permit. This applies to residential pools on the same lot as the house (Residential Accessory New Permit) and to commercial swimming pools on commercial/industrial sites (Commercial New Accessory Structure permit). Additional zoning requirements apply based on location, maximum height, and square footage relative to lot size. Pools must also comply with the adopted 2018 International Swimming Pool and Spa Code.
Fee not publishedDemolition / Razing / Wrecking Permit
Demolition of interior walls or removal of a building from a property requires a permit. The Residential Razing Permit is used to completely demolish a single-family home, duplex, or townhouse on its own lot; the Commercial Razing Permit is used to completely demolish freestanding structures on a commercial or industrial site. Demolishing only a portion of a building falls under the applicable remodel building permit instead.
Fee not publishedSolar Panel Permit (Accessory Structure)
The city does not publish a standalone 'solar permit' page. Solar panels are named explicitly, alongside gazebos, wind turbines and radio towers, as an example of an accessory structure requiring a building permit under the Residential Permitting page's 'Pools and Other Small Structures' section. Electrical work to interconnect a solar system (e.g., new electrical service or equipment) separately requires an electrical permit.
Fee not published
Fort Worth's permit history isn't searchable here yet
This page covers what the permit requires. What we don't have for Fort Worth yet is the record of permits actually issued — the history you'd search by street address. That is a gap in our coverage, not a statement about any particular property.
Your email, and the place — never an address. We only use it to tell you when Fort Worth lands. Privacy.
New residential construction activity
New privately-owned residential construction onlyHousing units authorized by building permits for new privately-owned residential construction — this is not total permit volume (no commercial permits or remodels).
- Latest month (2026-07)
- 1,399units
519 buildings · $0 valuation
- Trailing 12 months
- 11,417units
12 of 12 months reported · #1 in Texas coverage by units
- Year to date (2026 YTD through 2026-07)
- 8,259units
4,067 buildings · $1,157.1M valuation
7 month(s) reported to Census
- Full year 2025
- 9,437units
6,074 buildings · $2,319.2M valuation
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey (BPS), 2026-07 vintage. Census survey data — separate from the permit-requirements verification above. All Texas building activity
Tips & gotchas
- The general Permits landing page (https://www.fortworthtexas.gov/departments/development-services/permits) states the 2020 NEC was 'effective January 1, 2020,' while the dedicated Building & Energy Codes page (https://www.fortworthtexas.gov/departments/development-services/permits/building-energy-codes) — the more authoritative, dedicated source — states the currently adopted electrical code is the 2023 National Electrical Code, effective March 1, 2023, with a 2026 NEC proposed effective September 1, 2026. This dataset follows the dedicated codes page as ground truth; the Permits page appears to carry stale text about an older NEC cycle.
- The city's official Development Fee Schedule PDF (https://www.fortworthtexas.gov/files/assets/public/v/9/development-services/documents/resources-applications-forms-videos/f/development-fees-schedule.pdf, Ordinance No. 27191-09-2024, 48 pages) could not be reliably extracted as text beyond its first page (ordinance preamble) using the available scraping tool; the actual fee tables were not retrievable in this session. No fee amounts are included in this dataset for any permit type as a result — fees fields are intentionally left empty rather than estimated.
- Fort Worth adopts ICC (International Code Council) model codes for building, residential, mechanical, plumbing, fuel gas, fire, and existing-building codes, but adopts the NFPA National Electrical Code (not an ICC electrical code) for electrical work — consistent with the general pattern that Texas cities mix code families by trade.
- A building permit does not include electrical, mechanical, or plumbing trade permits — those must be applied for and inspected separately, and for commercial projects the building permit must be issued first before trade permits can be applied for.
- The city has issued a fraud alert: scam emails impersonating Development Services request payment for fake invoices; the city states it will never request payment by wire transfer, and legitimate city emails always end in @fortworthtexas.gov.