In unincorporated Pickens County, building permits and inspections come from Planning & Development at 1266 East Church Street, Suite 136, Jasper (706-253-8850). A new home costs $0.22 per sq ft of heated space and $0.15 per sq ft of unheated space, and you need a septic permit from Environmental Health before the County will accept the application.
What requires a building permit in Pickens County?
Planning & Development publishes separate applications for each type of work, and its fee schedule prices these permits:
Building permits
- New homes and manufactured homes
- Additions and remodeling
- Detached garages and utility or storage buildings
- Swimming pools
- Agricultural buildings, including chicken houses and barns
- Electrical-only work
- Commercial buildings, shells and tenant finishes
- Moving a pre-owned manufactured home (pre-move inspection)
Site and other permits
- Land disturbance over 1 acre
- Driveways onto county roads (access encroachment)
- Commercial signs
- Telecommunication towers and co-locations
- Subdivision plats
- Timber harvesting
The permit must be in hand before any phase of construction starts. Starting without one doubles the permit fee and can bring a stop-work order.
Who handles permitting in Pickens County?
Pickens County Planning & Development issues residential and commercial building permits, reviews erosion and sediment control plans and enforces the building and zoning codes. It also handles rezoning, special use permits, plats and business and alcohol licences.
| Item | Pickens County |
|---|---|
| Office | Planning & Development, 1266 East Church Street, Suite 136, Jasper, GA 30143 |
| Phone | 706-253-8850 (fax 706-253-8854) |
| plandev@pickenscountyga.gov | |
| Hours | Monday to Friday, 8 a.m.–5 p.m.; permits are not processed after 4:30 p.m. |
| Septic permits | Environmental Health, 706-253-0900 |
The City of Jasper runs its own Building Department, so property inside Jasper city limits is permitted by the City.
Short on time to read all of this?
Get a free quote →Nelson and Talking Rock also permit their own work. Nelson’s code requires owners to obtain building and demolition permits from the city, with fees on file with the city clerk. The Town of Talking Rock issues building, trade and grading permits under its own fee schedule, schedules inspections through Town Hall (706-253-5515) and asks applicants to get the septic permit from Pickens County first.
Permit costs and fees in Pickens County
Building permit fees come from the County’s fee schedule effective December 1, 2020 (adopted by the Board of Commissioners on November 19, 2020). A separate Certificate of Occupancy fee is charged on top.
| Project | Fee |
|---|---|
| New home or manufactured home, heated space | $0.22 per sq ft ($100 minimum) |
| New home, unheated space | $0.15 per sq ft |
| Commercial, heated space | $0.30 per sq ft ($200 minimum) |
| Commercial, unheated space | $0.20 per sq ft |
| Commercial plan review, under 5,000 sq ft | $150 per review |
| Commercial plan review, 5,000 sq ft and over | $250 per review |
| Remodeling and additions | $0.20 per sq ft ($50 minimum) |
| Unheated detached garage, utility or storage building | $0.10 per sq ft ($50 minimum) |
| Swimming pool | $0.10 per sq ft ($50 minimum) |
| Chicken house | $500 |
| Pole barn or utility building with dirt floor | $0.10 per sq ft ($100 minimum) |
| Barn or storage building with permanent floor | $0.15 per sq ft ($100 minimum) |
| Pre-move inspection, pre-owned manufactured home in the county | $125 |
| Pre-move inspection, home outside the county | $125 plus $0.58 per mile |
| Re-inspection | $50 per visit |
| Renewal of an unexpired permit | $100 |
| Work started without a permit | Double permit fees |
Not sure this scope needs a permit?
Get a free quote →| Total square footage | Fee |
|---|---|
| Manufactured home under 1,000 sq ft | $125 |
| Up to 1,999 sq ft | $150 |
| 2,000–2,499 sq ft | $175 |
| 2,500–2,999 sq ft | $200 |
| 3,000–3,499 sq ft | $225 |
| 3,500–3,999 sq ft | $250 |
| 4,000–4,499 sq ft | $275 |
| 4,500–4,999 sq ft | $300 |
| 5,000 sq ft and over | $0.075 per sq ft |
| Additions | $0.075 per sq ft ($25 minimum) |
For example, a home with 2,000 sq ft of heated space and a 400 sq ft unheated garage has a building permit fee of $440 plus $60, or $500, before the Certificate of Occupancy fee. Commercial Certificates of Occupancy run from $0.075 to $0.10 per sq ft depending on size, with a $150 minimum and a $150 flat fee for a shell building.
Other fees on the same schedule: access encroachment $100 for a new residential driveway, $50 for an existing driveway and $250 for a commercial entrance; land disturbing permits for commercial sites and subdivisions $500 plus $10 per acre; signs $3 per sq ft with a $50 minimum.
Electrical, plumbing and HVAC work in Pickens County
Trade work on a new home is covered by the building permit and signed off through affidavits. Before the rough inspection can be requested, the electrical and plumbing/HVAC subcontractors file their affidavits with copies of their current state and business licences; affidavits without those copies are refused. Insulation and Georgia Energy Code blower door affidavits are needed before the Certificate of Occupancy. The County also issues electrical-only permits for stand-alone electrical work.
Permanent power is released to the power company only after the Temp to Perm inspection and once Environmental Health’s final approval is on file with Planning & Development. Commercial plan sets must also meet the Fire Marshal’s plan requirements list.
Rather talk it over?
Call 1-855-478-4290 →Application documents and plan review
New home
- Completed residential building permit application
- Copies of the contractor’s state, business and driver’s licences
- Copy of the septic permit from Environmental Health (after a Level III soil evaluation)
- Access encroachment approval for a driveway onto a county road
- 8½ x 11 site plan or plat
- Warranty deed if the property was bought recently
- Landlord, HOA or architecture board letter, where it applies
- Payment
Commercial
- 3 complete sets of building plans, meeting the County’s commercial plan and Fire Marshal requirements
- Land disturbing permit with 3 full-size plan sets, where it applies
- Approved septic permit
- Access encroachment approval, where it applies
- Completed application with licensing information
- Warranty deed, or the owner’s permission letter and lease for a rented property
Commercial plan review takes 1–3 weeks, and rejected plans are resubmitted as 3 revised sets. Permits are processed in the order received, are not always available the same day, and commercial permits can take up to 7 days once every department has approved the plans. In a subdivision approved after January 1, 2007, the builder must give Planning & Development the developer’s NPDES secondary permittee Notice of Intent before applying.
How to apply: 6-step Pickens County process
Make sure the parcel is outside Jasper city limits and zoned for the planned use.
Arrange a Level III soil evaluation, then get the septic permit or authorization from Environmental Health (706-253-0900).
Apply for a County access encroachment permit for a county road, or a GDOT permit for a state highway, before the building permit.
Bring the completed application, licences, septic permit, site plan and payment to Planning & Development before 4:30 p.m. Commercial plans go in first for 1–3 weeks of review.
Keep the on-site card visible from the street, with an inspection box no higher than 6 ft for the inspector’s cards.
Request each inspection online or by phone, file the trade and energy affidavits, and pass the final to get the Certificate of Occupancy.
Rather not deal with the Pickens County building department?
Get a free quote →Pickens County inspections
Request residential inspections with the County’s online Residential Building Inspection Request form or by calling 706-253-8850; do not call the inspector. Requests received before 5:00 p.m. are scheduled for the first available slot, and no inspection is scheduled without a permit number. The inspector will not inspect if the on-site permit card is missing.
The County’s line-up for a new home:
- Footing, before concrete
- Masonry and poured wall, for walls over 4 ft
- Foundation waterproofing and drainage, before backfill
- Plumbing in slab, with a water or air test
- Slab, before concrete
- Sheathing and housewrap
- Rough, after roofing, framing and all trade rough-ins, once the trade affidavits are filed
- Insulation/energy code, before wall and ceiling cover
- Temp to Perm power
- Final, when the house is ready for occupancy
Each re-inspection costs $50, and no further inspections take place until it is paid. Missing a required inspection also costs $50. The Certificate of Occupancy is released only to the homeowner or the contractor on the permit, after all affidavits are filed, fees are paid and the final is approved.
Local Pickens County details that matter
Land disturbance: disturbing more than 1 acre needs a land disturbance permit before any work starts, and sites with land-disturbing activity need state-certified erosion control personnel. Homes near trout streams keep an undisturbed buffer of at least 50 ft from primary trout waters.
Driveways: every access onto a county road needs an access encroachment permit and an approved drainage pipe at least 15 inches in diameter and 20 ft long. Building without it doubles the permit fee and stops inspections until it is approved.
Permit life: a permit may be voided if construction does not start within 6 months of issue.
Want this handled start to finish?
Get a free quote →Owner-builders: the County’s Owner Building Permit Affidavit is for owners building for their own or their family’s use, not for sale or lease. Licensed electrical, plumbing and HVAC contractors are still required for trade work the owner does not do, and an owner who sells within 24 months of the Certificate of Occupancy cannot pull another owner permit without a state licence.
Georgia building code
Georgia's State Minimum Standard Codes apply statewide: the 2024 International Building, Residential, Plumbing, Mechanical, Fuel Gas, and Swimming Pool and Spa Codes and the 2023 National Electrical Code, with Georgia Amendments, in force since 1 January 2026; the energy code is still the 2015 IECC with Georgia supplements. The Georgia State Minimum Standard Codes
Pickens County permit search and official resources
These are the primary sources behind this guide. Codes, fee schedules and procedures change — confirm the position for your filing date.
- Pickens County — Planning & Development Form Center
- Pickens County — Residential Guidelines
- Pickens County — Inspection Request
- Pickens County — Planning & Development
- Pickens County master fee schedule (effective December 2020)
- Pickens County residential Certificate of Occupancy fees
- Pickens County commercial permitting guidelines
- Pickens County Owner Building Permit Affidavit
- City of Jasper Building Department
Inspections are where schedules slip.
Get a free quote →Pickens County permit FAQs
Who issues building permits in Pickens County?
Pickens County Planning & Development issues building permits and inspects work in the unincorporated county. The City of Jasper has its own Building Department, and Nelson and Talking Rock issue their own permits.
How much is a building permit for a new house in Pickens County?
$0.22 per sq ft of heated space and $0.15 per sq ft of unheated space, with a $100 minimum, plus a Certificate of Occupancy fee of $150–$300 for homes under 5,000 sq ft.
What do I need before applying for a house permit?
A septic permit from Environmental Health and, for a driveway onto a county road, an approved access encroachment permit. The County will not accept the application without them.
How long does commercial plan review take?
The County says 1–3 weeks, and the permit can take up to 7 days after all departments approve the plans.
How do I request an inspection?
Use the online inspection request form or call 706-253-8850 with your permit number. Requests in before 5:00 p.m. go to the first available slot.
Can I build my own house in Pickens County?
Yes, with the Owner Building Permit Affidavit, if the house is for your own or your family’s use and not for sale or lease.
Do I need a permit for a pool or garage?
Yes. Pools and unheated detached garages are $0.10 per sq ft with a $50 minimum.
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More Georgia permitting guides
This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Pickens County permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.