De Soto Parish’s building permits for unincorporated land are handled by the DeSoto Parish Permit Office at the Police Jury, 101 Franklin Street, Mansfield (318-872-0738), open weekdays from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The Police Jury is also the parish floodplain administrator, and road use permits are filed online. Mansfield, Stonewall and Grand Cane issue their own building permits.
What needs a parish permit?
Chapter 18 of the parish code, adopted in 2008, makes it unlawful to build, enlarge, alter, repair, move or demolish a building, change its occupancy, or install or alter an electrical, gas, mechanical or plumbing system without a permit from the parish building official. The parish application lists the permit types it covers:
Permit required
- New homes and commercial buildings, additions and remodeling
- Manufactured and modular homes
- Moving a building
- Detached garages, patios and sheds (other than the exempt sheds below)
- Portable and temporary use buildings
- Swimming pools and electric signs
- Changes of use or occupancy
- Electrical, plumbing and mechanical trade permits, and electrical reconnects
No permit (Code section 18-4)
- One-story detached sheds or playhouses without utilities, up to 200 sq ft
- Fences up to 6 feet; retaining walls up to 4 feet
- Sidewalks and driveways
- Painting, tiling, carpeting, cabinets and similar finish work
- Prefabricated pools less than 24 inches deep
- Farm structures and hunting or fishing camps, once the exemption affidavit is filed with the Clerk of Court
Who issues building permits in De Soto Parish?
The parish code creates a parish building department whose building official enforces the state construction code outside any incorporated area. The building official may appoint deputies and contract agents and may accept inspection reports from contracted agents or from state-certified third-party providers. The permit application has space for the name of a third-party provider.
The parish code covers only land outside the eight incorporated towns and villages. This is what is published for each:
Short on time to read all of this?
Get a free quote →| Place | Who issues building permits |
|---|---|
| Unincorporated parish | DeSoto Parish Permit Office, 101 Franklin Street, Mansfield; 318-872-0738 |
| Mansfield (parish seat) | City of Mansfield, through City Hall (318-872-0406). The city has its own building inspector and separate electrical and plumbing inspectors; building permits cost $5.50 per $1,000 of construction cost |
| Stonewall | Town of Stonewall, through a certified third-party building official appointed by the mayor, who reviews plans before the permit is sold. Town Hall, 1746 U.S. Highway 171 (DeSoto Parish Sheriff’s Government Plaza); 318-925-9338 |
| Grand Cane | The village’s own building officials, under its 2006 building ordinance; Village Hall 318-858-3251 |
| Logansport | The published sources do not say who issues building permits; ask Town Hall, 309 Main Street, 318-697-5359 |
| Keachi, Longstreet, South Mansfield and Stanley | The published sources do not say; ask the town or village clerk |
Applying for a parish permit
Use the parish permit application, which is not itself a permit. Besides owner, contractor and project details, it asks for:
- The contractor’s licence number, or for a homeowner acting as builder, the notarized Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors affidavit claiming exemption from licensure.
- Total and living square footage and the construction or remodel cost.
- The sewage approval number, water supply and power company.
- For a manufactured home: the owner, make and model, HUD label, serial number and size.
- For commercial work: the occupancy group, the State Fire Marshal project number for its NFPA 101 review and whether a sprinkler system is required.
- The flood zone, FIRM panel, base flood elevation and whether fill will be placed. A site in the floodway needs an engineered no-rise certificate.
The parish also links an online permit portal from its Permits page, and road use permits and requests are filed through its separate road permit portal.
Not sure this scope needs a permit?
Get a free quote →De Soto Parish permit fees
The parish code says permit fees follow the schedule set by the governing authority and are generally calculated on the square footage under beam, as prescribed in the agreement the code refers to. Call the Permit Office at 318-872-0738 for the fee on your project. If you surrender a permit before construction starts, the code refunds the full cost of inspections not yet done, but not permit or plan review fees.
The towns publish their own fees. Mansfield charges $5.50 per $1,000 of total construction cost for a building permit and $50 for an annual work permit, and prices plumbing and electrical permits by the equipment installed. Stonewall’s schedule is below.
| Item | Fee |
|---|---|
| New house | $250 |
| Remodel or addition with electric or plumbing | $0.10 per sq ft, $100 minimum, $250 maximum |
| Remodel or addition without electric or plumbing | $0.05 per sq ft, $50 minimum, $200 maximum |
| Roof, 50% or more | $150 |
| Mobile home | $0.05 per sq ft, $50 minimum, $150 maximum |
| Swimming pool / solar system / electrical | $150 each |
| Portable building 600 sq ft or larger | $75 |
| New commercial building | $0.10 per sq ft, $250 minimum |
Electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits
The parish issues electrical, plumbing and mechanical trade permits on the same application as the building permit. In Mansfield, plumbing and electrical permits must be bought at City Hall by a licensed plumber or electrician. Stonewall lists electrical permits at $150.
Rather talk it over?
Call 1-855-478-4290 →How to get a De Soto Parish permit
If it is inside one of the eight towns or villages, contact that town instead.
If the site is in a special flood hazard area, file the floodplain development application with the parish floodplain administrator first.
The application asks for the sewage approval number, the water supply and the power company.
Include the contractor’s licence or the homeowner exemption affidavit, square footage, cost and any State Fire Marshal project number.
Submit it at 101 Franklin Street, Mansfield, or through the parish’s online permit portal, and pay the fees.
Call for each inspection and get the certificate of occupancy before moving in.
Inspections and occupancy
The permit holder notifies the building official when work is ready. For a house the code calls for a foundation inspection before concrete is placed, rough plumbing, mechanical, gas and electrical inspections before framing, a frame and masonry inspection, and a final inspection. Work must stay exposed until it is approved.
No building may be used or occupied until the building official issues a certificate of occupancy; work exempt from permits does not need one. A permit becomes invalid if work does not start within 180 days of issue or stops for 180 days.
Local De Soto Parish details
Flood zones: the Police Jury is the parish floodplain administrator. Its flood ordinance requires the lowest floor of a new or substantially improved home in a special flood hazard area to be at or above the base flood elevation, certified by an engineer, architect or land surveyor. The floodplain development application covers buildings and other work such as filling, grading, drilling, subdivisions, drainage changes and utility lines.
Rather not deal with the De Soto Parish building department?
Get a free quote →Stonewall: the town requires an approved plan review before a permit is sold, and only the owner or builder can buy the permit after the building official finishes that review. A 911 address is required (318-872-4600), and septic systems are permitted by the DeSoto Parish Health Unit (318-872-0472).
Grand Cane: fences on a property line need the Board of Aldermen’s approval with a site plan, and the village’s Preservation Commission enforces its preservation ordinance in the historic district.
Roofing: state law (R.S. 37:3737(I), as re-enacted by Act 881 of 2026) requires every parish and municipality that issues permits to permit and inspect roof construction and reroofing; Stonewall charges $150 for a roof covering 50% or more.
Small sheds: besides the parish’s own 200 sq ft shed exemption, state law (R.S. 37:3738) bars parishes, and municipalities of 45,000 people or fewer, from enforcing the building code on a detached residential accessory structure of 200 sq ft or less, unless it stands in a hurricane-prone region with a design wind speed of 130 mph or more.
Louisiana building code
Every Louisiana parish and municipality enforces the state’s Uniform Construction Code (R.S. 37:3737), adopted by the Louisiana Uniform Construction Code Commission: the 2021 International Codes with Louisiana amendments, in force since 1 January 2023, and the 2020 National Electrical Code, with the 2024 codes taking effect on 1 January 2027. A local government may set more stringent requirements only with the Commission’s approval, and the State Fire Marshal reviews plans for fire and life safety on all but one- and two-family dwellings. How the LSUCC works
Want this handled start to finish?
Get a free quote →Official De Soto Parish permit resources
- DeSoto Parish Police Jury permits page
- DeSoto Parish permit application
- DeSoto Parish floodplain development application
- DeSoto Parish online permit portal
- DeSoto Parish road use permits and requests
- DeSoto Parish Code, Chapter 18: building codes and permits
- DeSoto Parish Code, Chapter 34: floods
- City of Mansfield building permits
- Town of Stonewall building permit ordinances
- Town of Stonewall Ordinance 108 of 2020: building permit fees
- Village of Grand Cane Code, Chapter 8: buildings
- Louisiana Department of Health onsite wastewater program
- Act 881 of 2026 (HB 1186), including R.S. 37:3738 on small accessory structures
De Soto Parish permit FAQs
Inspections are where schedules slip.
Get a free quote →Who issues building permits in De Soto Parish?
The DeSoto Parish Permit Office at the Police Jury, 101 Franklin Street, Mansfield (318-872-0738), for land outside the incorporated towns and villages.
Can I apply online?
Yes. The parish Permits page links an online permit portal, and the paper application can be filed at the Mansfield office.
Do I need a permit for a shed?
Not for a one-story detached shed or playhouse without utilities of 200 sq ft or less. Larger sheds, or sheds with utilities, go on the permit application as a detached building. State law separately bars parishes from enforcing the building code on any detached residential accessory structure of 200 sq ft or less outside 130 mph wind regions.
How much is a building permit in Mansfield or Stonewall?
Mansfield charges $5.50 per $1,000 of construction cost. Stonewall charges $250 for a new house and $0.10 per sq ft, with a $250 minimum, for a new commercial building.
Can a homeowner pull the permit?
Yes, with the notarized Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors affidavit claiming exemption from licensure, which the parish application asks for.
How long is a parish permit valid?
Work must start within 180 days of issue, and the permit lapses if work stops for 180 days.
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More Louisiana permitting guides
This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about De Soto Parish permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.