How this guide is built

Updated November 11, 2026 · Built from official fee schedules and city permit records

Each city page combines two public sources: the city's current official fee schedule, and the city's own record of every building permit it issued over the last 12 months (November 1, 2025 to October 31, 2026).

Fees

Where a city sets fees by a formula (Seattle, Austin, San Antonio, Fort Worth) we apply the published formula to typical project sizes from the permit records. Seattle's results were checked against the worked examples SDCI publishes. Chicago publishes the fee charged on every permit, so its pages show real amounts paid.

Wait times

We measure the days from application (or filing) to issue for each permit, then report the median and the fastest and slowest quarters. Fort Worth only records a status date, so its wait times use permits still in Issued status.

Limits

Fees exclude impact fees, utility connections and other departments unless stated. Cities change fees, usually each fiscal year. Always confirm your fee with the city before you budget.

Who we are

Groundtip turns public permit records into daily leads for contractors. This guide is a free public resource built from the same data.