Carver, Massachusetts Building Permit Guide

In Carver, the Building Department at Town Hall, 108 Main Street (508-866-3405), issues building, wiring, plumbing and gas permits; the Town does not offer online permitting, so applications are printed and brought to the office. Under the residential fees effective January 1, 2026, a new home costs $0.70 per square foot and interior renovations $8 per $1,000 of value, and the department warns that permits can take up to 30 days to process.

What requires a building permit in Carver?

Carver’s department gives its own list of jobs that need a building permit in this town of about 12,000 people (Census estimate, 2025): sheds, wood stoves, decks, remodeling and renovations, siding, roofing, additions, finished basements, swimming pools, hot tubs, carports, barns, windows and demolition. Its fee sheet adds chimneys, insulation and weatherization, solar arrays and battery storage, outdoor wood-fired boilers, temporary mobile homes, tents, trenches and sheet metal work. Every swimming pool needs a building permit. A shed of 200 square feet or less needs no building permit, but the owner must still file the Town’s Zoning Review Form for Accessory Structures.

What Carver decides and what the state holds

Carver applies the State Building Code, 780 CMR, as the Board of Building Regulations and Standards writes it; the Town cannot amend it. Carver sets its permit fees (under Chapter 145 of its General Bylaws, after a public hearing and two weeks’ posting at the Town Clerk’s office), chose the Stretch Energy Code (Chapter 122), and writes its own Zoning Bylaw (Chapter 290), a wetlands bylaw shaped by the town’s cranberry bogs (Chapter 281) and a historic districts bylaw (Chapter 166). The Building Department keeps the zoning and flood maps for the public to consult.

Carver building department: who handles permitting

The Building Department issues building, wiring, plumbing and gas permits and inspects the work. Rod Palmer is the Building Commissioner. A plumbing inspector and a wiring inspector, each with an alternate, and the Sealer of Weights and Measures complete the staff, with an administrator running the office.

The department’s inspection process page encourages calling before a project starts, so the office can say whether the job needs a permit and what the code and zoning will require.

Carver permit types and the approvals that come first

The Permits & Applications page lists the forms to print. Residential filers use the residential building permit application, the accessory apartment affidavit (filed when the unit is finished and every three years after), the zoning review form for accessory structures, the trade applications with their inspection request forms, the demolition debris disposal affidavit, the sheet metal and trench applications, and a building permit extension or revision form. If outdoor work such as windows, doors, siding or a roof is in a mobile home park, the department asks applicants to check with the park association about authorization. The department also posts a sheet on which work requires a Construction Supervisor License and/or Home Improvement Contractor registration.

Residential permits

Residential fees are mostly by area: new homes, mobile homes, additions and sunrooms at $0.70 per square foot, and barns, detached garages, decks, porches, carports and sheds over 200 square feet at $0.60. Interior alterations are priced by value. For a pool, bring the building permit application, a plot plan with the pool drawn in, and the pool brochure or plans. Pools must be at least 10 feet from rear and side lot lines, and an in-ground pool 20 feet from the septic leaching area, 10 feet from the tank and 5 feet from the house foundation. The barrier is a 4-foot fence with a self-closing, self-latching gate, and doors that open straight to the pool need an audible alarm.

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

Commercial permits

Commercial and industrial work uses the commercial building permit application, the application for commercial use and occupancy, the sign permit form and, for designed projects, the final construction control document. New buildings and additions are $0.80 per square foot with a $200 minimum and alterations 2% of construction cost. Fire sprinkler permits are $500 and fire alarms $100, towers and monopoles $1,000 each, and a zoning compliance information request costs $500.

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

What comes before the building permit

• Zoning: the Building Department maintains the zoning and flood maps; relief comes from the Zoning Board of Appeals and planning approvals from the Planning Board, and the Planning and Community Development office is at 508-866-3450.
• Conservation Commission: nearly half of Carver is wetland, much of it cranberry bog. The wetlands bylaw reaches 100 feet from wetlands and water, bars building, paving or other changes within 65 feet of them without a variance, and bars any new dwelling within 100 feet of a cranberry bog without a variance and permit. The Commission meets on the first and third Wednesday of each month at 7 pm at Town Hall.
• Board of Health (Title 5): the Board of Health’s health agent handles septic systems; pool placement rules depend on where the leaching area and tank sit.
• Historic districts: exterior changes, new construction and demolition in the Lakenham or Savery Historic District need a certificate from the Historic District Commission before the Building Inspector can issue a permit.

Carver building permit fees

New residential and commercial building fee sheets took effect on January 1, 2026; the wiring and plumbing and gas sheets date from July 1, 2019. The minimum fee on any residential permit is $50, and the normal fee is doubled when work starts before a required permit is issued.

For example, an 1,800-square-foot new house costs 1,800 × $0.70, or $1,260, and a 300-square-foot deck 300 × $0.60, or $180. A $25,000 kitchen remodel is 25 × $8, or $200. The Swimming Pools page still asks for a $75 or $100 check; the January 2026 fee sheet raised those to $100 for an above-ground pool and $150 for an in-ground pool.

Trade permits and who may pull them

Since April 1, 2026 every electrical permit application must include the permit application, a copy of the electrical license, a copy of insurance, the request for inspection form and the fee. Plumbing and gas applications also go in with a request for inspection form. Under the plumbing and gas fee sheet, plumbers and gas fitters must register their license numbers with the plumbing and gas inspector; the registration is good for two years and is due on or before May 1. Building permits are pulled by a Construction Supervisor License holder (with HIC registration for home improvement work) or by an owner under the state code’s homeowner exemption.

A new bathroom with five fixtures is $65 plus four at $15, or $125. The electrical fee sheet notes that failing to file for an electrical permit can bring a fine of up to $500 under state law.

How to apply for a Carver building permit

Review, corrections and what causes delay

780 CMR 105.3.1 gives the building official 30 days from filing to issue a permit or deny it in writing, and Carver’s department says plainly that processing can take that long when it is busy. A paper file that is missing a plot plan, an inspection request form or license copies has to wait until the missing piece is brought in. Changes to the approved plan must be brought to the code official, some need review and approval before the work goes ahead, and the extension or revision form covers both.

Inspections in Carver

The person doing the work schedules inspections and should give the department at least two days’ notice. Building inspections usually take place after 12:30 pm; the Building Department page gives 508-866-3450 for booking them and the Building Inspections page gives the office line, 508-866-3405. The wiring and plumbing inspectors work Monday, Wednesday and Friday starting at 8 am. Wiring inspections are requested on the request form, dropped off or emailed to electrical@carverma.gov; for plumbing and gas, call the number printed on the permit, and the licensed plumber must make the call. A failed building inspection costs $50 to repeat, and the department issues the certificate of occupancy ($50 for a house) once the final inspection passes.

Carver building and energy code

Carver enforces the 10th edition of 780 CMR and the Stretch Energy Code, which the Annual Town Meeting of April 22, 2019 adopted (Article 19) as Chapter 122, Article II of the General Bylaws, including future editions; the Building Commissioner enforces it. The Historic Districts bylaw created the Lakenham Historic District, which runs along Plymouth Street (Route 44) from Gates Street to the Lakenham Green, and the Savery Historic District; inside them, no building may be built, demolished, moved or altered in a way that affects exterior features without a certificate of appropriateness, hardship or non-applicability. Carver’s General Bylaws on eCode360 contain no separate demolition-delay chapter for buildings outside those districts. FEMA lists Carver as a participating community in the National Flood Insurance Program, with flood maps effective July 6, 2021.

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

Carver permit search and official resources

Carver has no online permit portal, so permit history for a property is requested from the Building Department at Town Hall or through the Town’s public records page. The department’s zoning and flood maps can be reviewed at the office.

• Carver Building Department
• Permits and applications
• Carver permit fees
• Residential building permit fees (effective January 1, 2026)
• Commercial and industrial permit fees (effective January 1, 2026)
• Electrical permit fees
• Plumbing and gas permit fees
• Electrical inspections
• Plumbing and gas inspections
• Swimming pool requirements
• Sheds and residential structures
• Work requiring CSL and/or HIC
• Carver General and Zoning Bylaws (eCode360)
• Conservation Commission
• Board of Health
• Planning and Community Development
• Public records
• FEMA Community Status Book, Massachusetts
• Massachusetts State Building Code (780 CMR)

Carver building permit FAQ

Who issues building permits in Carver, MA?

The Building Department at Town Hall, 108 Main Street (508-866-3405). It also issues wiring, plumbing and gas permits.

Can I apply for a Carver building permit online?

No. The Town does not offer online permitting; print the forms and bring them to the office.

How much is a building permit for a new house?

$0.70 per square foot under the fees effective January 1, 2026; an 1,800-square-foot home is $1,260.

Do I need a permit for a shed?

Sheds over 200 square feet need a building permit at $0.60 per square foot; smaller ones need the zoning review form for accessory structures.

Can I build a house near a cranberry bog?

Not within 100 feet of a cranberry bog without a variance and permit from the Conservation Commission under the wetlands bylaw.

How much notice do inspections need?

At least two days. Building inspections are usually after 12:30 pm; trade inspectors work Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 8 am.

Does Carver use the Stretch Energy Code?

Yes, under Chapter 122 of the General Bylaws, adopted at the April 22, 2019 Annual Town Meeting.

Simplify Carver 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 Carver permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.