Permit fees vs. plan review, inspection, and impact fees

Last updated: November 2026

A permit invoice rarely contains one charge. It usually contains several, each paying for a different piece of city work, charged by a different authority, and due at a different moment in the process. When homeowners say a permit "cost more than the table said," they are usually looking at that stack for the first time. This guide separates the pieces, explains who charges each one and when it is paid, and works through examples using only the published numbers from Fort Worth, Dallas, Austin, and Houston. The worked arithmetic below is labelled as examples, because your final total depends on your project, your lot, and your city's current schedule.

The building permit fee: permission to build, priced from the schedule

The building permit fee is the core charge. It pays for the permit itself and the inspection programme that follows construction. Each city sets it in its own fee schedule adopted by ordinance: Fort Worth under Ordinance 26-28781, Dallas under Ordinance 33080 effective July 1, 2025, Austin under the FY2025-26 fee schedules in Ordinance No. 20250813-004 effective October 1, 2025, and Houston under the 2026 Building Code Enforcement Permit Fee Schedule in Ordinance No. 2023-907 effective January 1, 2026. The methods differ. Fort Worth prices new homes in tiered square-footage brackets, so a 2,000 square foot home produces a base permit fee of $1,171, a 2,400 square foot home $1,327, and a 3,000 square foot home $1,551. Dallas prices a 2,000 square foot new home at roughly $1,608 all in. Austin prices a 2,000 square foot new home at about $2,345.83 all in. Houston prices a 2,000 square foot new home at about $1,631.06 all in. Those all-in city totals already bundle several of the pieces described below, which is why comparing a base fee in one city to an all-in total in another misleads. Use the city estimators to see the right basis for your city: Fort Worth, Dallas, Austin, and Houston.

Plan review fees: paying for the check before you build

Plan review is the city's examination of your drawings against the building code before a permit is issued. Some cities fold it into the permit fee, while others charge it separately, and the timing matters for your cash flow. In Austin, the plan review fee is paid at application and is non-refundable, while per-trade permit fees are paid later when the permit is issued. That split means an Austin applicant pays for the review up front even if the project is later withdrawn, and pays the trade portion only when the project moves forward. In Houston, the plan review fee is 25 percent of the estimated permit fee, paid at application. Example, for illustration only: if the estimated permit fee for a 2,000 square foot Houston home is the published all-in figure of $1,631.06, then 25 percent of $1,631.06 is $407.77, rounded to the nearest cent. That example shows the arithmetic the schedule describes; the city's actual calculation at intake governs your invoice. In Dallas, the 2025 update cut plan review fees sharply, from $0.46 to $0.046 per square foot, a reduction of roughly 90 percent. Example: at $0.046 per square foot, the review charge on a 2,000 square foot home is $92.00, compared with $920.00 at the old rate of $0.46 per square foot. Fort Worth applicants should also note the two small charges that ride on every permit, described next.

Application and technology fees: small, universal, and easy to miss

Fort Worth adds a $31.50 application fee plus a $16.87 technology fee to every permit. Example: on the 2,000 square foot Fort Worth home with a $1,171 base permit fee, adding $31.50 and $16.87 gives $1,219.37 before any trade, review, or project-specific charges that apply. Neither charge is large on its own, but together they explain part of the gap between a headline table figure and a counter total. Other cities use different labels and amounts, so read your own schedule for its administrative lines rather than assuming the Fort Worth figures travel. Our guide to how building permit fees are calculated gives the broader method behind these add-ons.

Trade permit fees: each system pays its own way

Electrical, plumbing, and mechanical work is commonly permitted and priced separately from the building permit, either as standalone trade permits or as line items under the main application. Fort Worth prices remodels by trade at $112.50 for 1 trade, $225 for 2 trades, $337.50 for 3 trades, $450 for 4 trades, and $562.50 for 5 trades. Dallas likewise prices remodels per trade, with a single-trade remodel permit at about $221, and prices new multi-family work at $652 per unit plus review fees. Austin collects its per-trade permit fees when the permit is issued, after the plan review fee has been paid at application. The practical lesson is to count trades early. A remodel that touches one system and a remodel that touches four systems may look similar in a showroom and price very differently at the permit counter. See what drives permit cost by project type for how trade count changes each project type.

Inspection and re-inspection: usually inside the permit, sometimes not

Standard inspections that are part of the normal sequence are generally covered by the permit fee structure rather than sold one by one. Where extra cost appears is iteration: failed inspections, missed appointments, or work that is not ready when the inspector arrives can lead to re-inspection charges in cities whose schedules provide for them. The cheapest way to control this line is readiness: complete work, safe access, and approved plans on site when the inspector comes. Timelines interact with fees here as well, because every return trip is also a schedule delay. Our companion guide, how long do building permits take in Texas, explains how correction cycles affect the calendar.

Impact fees and utility charges: the lot, not the building

Impact fees are one-time charges for road, water, sewer, and drainage capacity on new construction. They are set by district or service area, so the same house design can owe different impact fees on different lots in the same city. Utility tap and connection fees are charged separately for new water and sewer connections. Neither charge is a plan review fee and neither is a trade fee, and both are common reasons an early estimate and a final bill differ on new construction. Because these charges depend on location and service area, no general guide can price your lot. Ask the city's development office to confirm them for your address before you lock a budget, and use how to estimate your permit fees before you apply to build the rest of the total in the right order.

Putting it together

Read any permit total in layers: base permit fee first, then plan review and its payment timing, then application and technology charges, then each trade, then location-based impact and utility charges for new construction. Label each layer with its source in the schedule and the moment it is due. When you do that, the invoice stops looking arbitrary, and you can spot the one line that does not belong far more easily than you can from a single total.