Everett building permits
Department contacts, adopted codes, permit types, fees, and gotchas for Everett, Washington.
Last verified 2026-09-16 · Source · Embed this page’s badge · Version history
Building department
- Address
- 2930 Wetmore Avenue, Everett, WA 98201
- Phone
- 425-257-8700
- Website
- Official site
Codes adopted
The State Building Code is in effect in every county and city in Washington, and its minimum performance standards may not be diminished locally. A local amendment that affects single-family or multifamily residential buildings is not effective unless the State Building Code Council approves it; amendments to non-residential provisions carry no such approval requirement.
EVERETT NAMES NO EDITION AND SAYS SO TWICE OVER. EMC 16.005.030: "The current edition of the International Building Code, published by the International Code Council, Inc., as adopted by the Washington State Building… Show full textShow less
EVERETT NAMES NO EDITION AND SAYS SO TWICE OVER. EMC 16.005.030: "The current edition of the International Building Code, published by the International Code Council, Inc., as adopted by the Washington State Building Code Council in Chapter 51-50 WAC, as now or hereafter amended." The same formula covers the International Residential Code under Chapter 51-51 WAC, and the International Mechanical Code and International Fuel Gas Code.
- EVEN THE APPENDICES ROLL. The IBC adoption specifically adopts "Appendix G, Flood-Resistant Construction" and "Appendix J, Grading", and the IRC adoption "Appendix K, Sound Transmission" - each "as now or hereafter amended".
- THE CITY EXPLAINS ITS OWN MECHANISM. EMC 16.005.010: "The State Building Code is amended a minimum of once every three years. Likewise, the International Code Council, Inc., publishes an updated IPMC every three years. This chapter shall incorporate all such amendments to the State Building Code and IPMC updates automatically at the time such amendments and updates become effective."
- Everett splits its amendments across chapters by code: 16.01 (IBC and IRC), 16.02 (IMC and IFGC), 16.03 (IFC), 16.04 (UPC), 16.05 (NEC), 16.09 (IPMC) and 16.10 (Washington State Energy Code). NONE OF THOSE WERE READ FOR THIS ENTRY.
- RCW 19.27 - the Washington State Building Code applies statewide.
Permit types & fees
Building Permit
Required for construction in Everett. The city adopts whatever edition of the state building code is current, and its own amendments survive state code changes.
See fee scheduleFence Permit
Everett requires a permit for any fence, with no height threshold - one of the strictest fence rules among the Washington cities in this guide.
See fee scheduleVerify a Contractor Licence
Washington contractors register with the Department of Labor & Industries. Registration is a STATE record; Everett does not issue it.
See fee schedule
Property Access
Everett's permit history is searchable by address
162,046 permits in our copy of Everett's register — searchable by street address, with permit type, status, issued date and valuation where the city publishes them. This is what we hold, not a statement of everything Everett has issued.
155,632 of these 162,046 permits — 96% — carry an issued date, and those run from 1988 to 2026. The remaining 6,414 have no date at all.
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)
- No data reported
- Trailing 12 months
- 22units
3 of 12 months reported · #21 in Washington coverage by units
- Year to date (2026 YTD through 2026-07)
- 309units
89 buildings · $52.8M valuation
3 month(s) reported to Census
- Full year 2025
- 565units
136 buildings · $99.6M valuation
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey (BPS), 2026-07 vintage. Census survey data — separate from the permit-requirements verification above. All Washington building activity
Tips & gotchas
- EVERY FENCE NEEDS A PERMIT IN EVERETT - no height threshold, and re-erecting an existing fence counts.
- That is the opposite of Tukwila, which exempts fences up to 6 feet. Fence answers do not travel between Washington cities.
- Electric fences are prohibited; barbed wire is restricted to the A-1 Agricultural zone or to placement above a woven wire or solid wooden fence.
- The fences chapter is enforced by the chief of police, not the building department.
- Everett's code names no edition - it adopts "the current edition ... as now or hereafter amended" and takes state amendments automatically.
- Everett's OWN amendments survive a state code change, unless the city repeals them or state law preempts them.
- Title 16 marks its repealed chapters, so the index can be trusted on what is empty.
- This entry did not read EMC Chapters 16.01 to 16.10, where the city's substantive code amendments live - so it says nothing about them, including fees.