Bellingham, Massachusetts Building Permit Guide

In Bellingham, the Inspectional Services Department, run by the Inspector of Buildings who is also the Zoning Agent, issues building permits and the wiring, plumbing and gas permits, and you apply online through PermitEyes. Renovations cost $10 per $1,000 of value with a $50 minimum; a new house is valued at $166 per square foot and charged the same $10 per $1,000. The application passes through Engineering, Planning, Conservation and Health before the building review starts.

What requires a building permit in Bellingham?

Bellingham’s application instructions follow the state code closely: a permit is needed for construction, reconstruction, alteration, repair, removal or demolition of a structure, for a change of use or occupancy, and for installing or altering any equipment the State Building Code regulates. Starting without one can bring higher fees and fines of up to $1,000 a day.

Fences have siting rules as well: they must stand inside your own lot lines, never on town land, and drop to 4 feet within 10 feet of an intersecting street or driveway so sight lines stay clear. The owner is responsible for locating the property lines.

What Bellingham decides and what the state holds

Construction standards are the state’s: 780 CMR, the 10th edition of the Massachusetts State Building Code from the Board of Building Regulations and Standards, with the state electrical, plumbing and gas codes and the Architectural Access Board rules. Bellingham sets the rest through its general Code and Zoning Bylaws, the Board of Health’s rules, Conservation Commission policies and the permit fees, which the instructions say are set locally and posted at the counter.

On energy, the department asks for a preliminary HERS rating with every new one- or two-family house. The Inspectional Services pages do not name a Stretch or Specialized code adoption, so confirm the energy path with the department before the design is final.

Bellingham building department: who handles permitting

Inspectional Services brings building, zoning, health and trade inspection under one director. Caleb Moody is Director of Inspectional Services, Inspector of Buildings and Zoning Agent; local building inspectors, the inspectors of wires, the plumbing and gas inspectors, zoning inspectors and the Health Agent and health inspectors all report through the department.

The department’s day starts an hour and a half before the rest of the Municipal Center, which opens at 8:30 am. The Planning and Community Development Department (the Land Use Department) at the same address staffs the Planning Board, Zoning Board of Appeals and Conservation Commission.

Bellingham permit types

PermitEyes takes building and Board of Health applications, and every application must carry its construction documents as attachments, drawn to scale with enough detail to show compliance with 780 CMR. Applications come from the owner or from an agent with the owner’s written approval.

Residential permits

A new one- or two-family house needs an engineered plot plan, complete building plans, a preliminary HERS rating, engineered beam calculations and the contractor’s licenses and insurance. File the sheet metal application together with the building application; the department warns that a late sheet metal filing delays approval. For decks, the department posts a deck template and the code’s R507 deck section; chimney and wood stove work and solar or battery storage each have their own requirement sheets, and finished work can be documented on the affidavit of completed work.

Building or remodeling a home here? Alliance handles residential permit filing, so the crew isn't waiting on the counter.

Commercial permits

Commercial new construction is valued from the ICC building valuation table and charged $10 per $1,000; additions, renovations, demolitions and other commercial work pay $15 per $1,000 with a $100 minimum. Buildings with more than 35,000 cubic feet of enclosed space need plans stamped by a registered engineer or architect and fall under construction control, with initial and final affidavits; the department requires final compliance certificates before occupancy. Periodic inspections of assembly and similar uses cost $70.

For tenant improvements and new commercial builds, Alliance handles commercial permit expediting through issuance. More on this: commercial building permits explained.

What comes before the building permit

• Departmental routing. Engineering, Planning, Conservation and Health review the application before it returns to the Inspector of Buildings for zoning and code review.
• Zoning. The Zoning Board of Appeals meets at 7 pm on the first Thursday of each month for special permits and variances; the Planning Board handles subdivisions and site plans.
• Conservation Commission. Work near wetlands needs a filing; the commission meets on the second and fourth Wednesdays and posts its 2026 and 2027 submission deadlines (the November 2026 meeting moves to Thursday, November 19). Hearings are held in the Arcand Meeting Room at Town Hall, and since January 1, 2026 the legal notices for filings run in the Milford Daily News rather than The Call.
• Board of Health. Septic permits under Title 5 (310 CMR 15) are applied for through the same PermitEyes portal and reviewed by the Health Agent.
• Floodplain. The department keeps a flood plain page for locating property on the FEMA maps.

Bellingham permit costs and fees

The building and sheet metal schedule was revised in January 2025 and uses 2024 construction values; the electrical schedule dates from July 2022 and the plumbing and gas schedule from January 2023. Fees are non-refundable once issued and cannot be transferred.

A new 2,400-square-foot house is valued at 2,400 × $166, or $398,400, so the building permit is 398.4 × $10, or $3,984, plus the $50 new-home occupancy fee. Its electrical permit is $250, and the plumbing and gas permits $300 each. Plumbing and gas fees double if the work was done without a permit, and a building re-inspection must be paid for before it can be booked.

Septic work is priced separately by the Board of Health, under a schedule effective March 11, 2024. A perc test permit is $100. A disposal system construction permit is $250 for a new system, $150 to repair or replace an existing one and $50 to repair a single component; a commercial or industrial system of up to 5,000 gallons a day starts at $500. Each construction permit needs an approved septic plan, the Title 5 soil evaluation forms (Forms 11 and 12) and Form 1a, and new or replacement systems are inspected three times: at the bottom of the excavation, at the components and at the final. Installers must hold a $100 annual Bellingham installer permit.

Trade permits and who may pull them

Bellingham’s inspectors of wires and plumbing and gas inspectors are part of Inspectional Services, and each trade takes its own permit.

• Electrical: filed by a licensed electrician under 527 CMR 12. Wiring a new single-family house is a flat $250 whatever the service size, a 100- or 200-amp service change is $75, and most other residential jobs are $75 per inspection; commercial work is charged at 3% of the job cost.
• Plumbing: a licensed plumber files; fixtures are $60 each on existing homes, backflow preventers $60.
• Gas: a licensed gas fitter files; appliances are $60 each up to $300.
• Sheet metal and mechanical: file with the building application to avoid delay.
• Fire Department: approvals, where needed, must be in hand at rough stage before the building inspector is called.

The building application lists the contractor’s Construction Supervisor License and insurance; home improvement contractors working on existing owner-occupied homes also need state HIC registration.

How to apply for a Bellingham building permit

Review, corrections and what causes delay

780 CMR 105.3.1 gives the building official 30 days to act on an application. Bellingham’s instructions add that, for this purpose, a permit is not treated as filed until the other departments have approved it and sent it back to the Building Department. The completeness and accuracy of the attachments decide how long review takes; missing beam calculations or HERS paperwork, a late sheet metal application, or a pending Conservation filing are the usual causes of a slow permit.

Inspections in Bellingham

The issued permit lists the stages that must be inspected, and no work may continue past a stage until the right inspector has signed it off. Give each inspector at least 24 hours’ notice. At the rough stage, the electrical, plumbing, gas, mechanical and fire approvals must be in place before you call the building inspector.

Keep the permit posted in clear view, protected from the weather, so inspectors can initial it at every visit. Before anyone occupies a new or altered space, all signatures must be on the posted permit and the Inspector of Buildings must sign it off; construction-controlled projects also need their final compliance certificates. A re-inspection, charged when work is not acceptable, not ready or not accessible, costs $50 and must be paid before it is scheduled.

Massachusetts building code

Bellingham enforces the 10th edition of 780 CMR together with its own Code and Zoning Bylaws, applied by the Inspector of Buildings as Zoning Agent. FEMA lists Bellingham as a participating community in the National Flood Insurance Program, with flood maps effective July 8, 2025.

Massachusetts has one State Building Code, 780 CMR, for every city and town; towns cannot rewrite it, though many opt into a stricter energy code. The trades run under their own state codes. Massachusetts rules

Bellingham permit search and official resources

To look up an existing permit, use PermitEyes Public View, which lists building and Board of Health permit activity without a login. For older paper files or plans, call Inspectional Services at 508-966-5821 or make a public records request to the town.

• Bellingham Inspectional Services
• Online permitting links
• PermitEyes building and health permit applications
• PermitEyes public view of permit activity
• General application instructions
• Building and sheet metal fee schedule
• Electrical fee schedule
• Plumbing and gas fee schedule
• Board of Health fee and inspection schedule
• Fencing rules
• Planning and Community Development
• Conservation Commission
• Zoning Board of Appeals
• FEMA Community Status Book, Massachusetts
• Massachusetts State Building Code, 780 CMR

Bellingham building permit FAQs

How much is a building permit in Bellingham?

Residential renovations are $10 per $1,000 of value with a $50 minimum. A new house is valued at $166 per square foot and charged $10 per $1,000 of that value, so a 2,400-square-foot house pays $3,984.

How do I apply?

Online through PermitEyes, with all construction documents attached. The same portal handles Board of Health permits such as septic work.

Do I need a permit for a fence?

The town’s fee schedule lists fences at $50. A fence must stay within your lot and drop to 4 feet within 10 feet of an intersecting street or driveway.

How long does review take?

The building official has 30 days, but Bellingham counts an application as filed only once Engineering, Planning, Conservation and Health have approved it and returned it to the Building Department.

How much notice do inspectors need?

At least 24 hours for each required inspection, and a failed inspection costs $50 to repeat, paid before it is booked.

What does a septic permit cost?

The Board of Health charges $250 to build a new system and $150 to repair or replace an existing one, plus $100 for the perc test permit, under its March 2024 schedule.

How long is a building permit good for?

It expires if work does not start within 6 months of issue or is not carried on in good faith to completion.

What does a solar permit cost?

$15 per panel for the building permit on a house, plus a $75 electrical permit; commercial solar is charged at $15 per $1,000 for the building side and 3% of job cost for the electrical side.

Simplify Bellingham permitting with Alliance Permitting

Alliance Permitting is a permit documentation and submission company in Massachusetts. We prepare your paperwork, file it correctly and coordinate with the permitting authority through issuance. We are not a contractor and we do not perform licensed plan review or inspections; that work stays with your licensed team and the jurisdiction.

This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Bellingham permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.