Melvindale, Michigan Building Permit Guide

In the City of Melvindale, the Building Department at 3100 Oakwood Boulevard (313-429-1060) issues building, zoning, electrical, mechanical and plumbing permits; Brad Burns is Chief Building Official. Every permit carries a $50 service fee plus an administrative fee, building work is priced from $50 for the first $1,000, and permits are good for six months. Inspections are done in two weekly blocks, and only after the fees are paid.

What requires a building permit in Melvindale?

The Building Department’s forms page sorts Melvindale permits into building, zoning, special use and trade applications, and its fee schedule prices each kind of job.

Emergency mechanical work may start without a permit, but the permit must be taken out within 48 hours, with weekends and holidays taken into account. The fee schedule lists a $100 delinquent permit fee (plus the regular fee) for failing to get a permit, and separately says permit fees are doubled when work is started or completed without one.

What Melvindale decides and what the state holds

On the Bureau of Construction Codes’ Statewide Jurisdiction List (revised November 6, 2026), Melvindale enforces the building, electrical, mechanical and plumbing codes itself, and Wayne County has no program of its own. The state writes the construction code. The city adopts its fees by council resolution, registers contractors, runs zoning through its Planning Commission and Zoning Board of Appeals, and adds local programs the state does not: inspections before every home sale, rental certificates every two years and vacant-property registration.

Melvindale building department: who handles permitting

All construction permits come from the Building Department, which also takes Planning Commission and Zoning Board of Appeals applications, runs the rental and sale inspections, and tracks vacant property.

The department accepts cash (not by mail), checks, money orders and credit cards; card payments add 3%, with a $2 minimum. Tickets and court matters from code enforcement go to the 24th District Court at 6515 Roosevelt Road in Allen Park.

Melvindale permit types

The forms are grouped on the Building Department page: building (general, fence, new construction and additions, zoning and cement, special use), plumbing (general and sewer repair), mechanical (with a furnace safety test form), electrical (contractor and homeowner versions), contractor registration and proxy letters, plan review and fire applications, rental, sale and vacancy packets.

Residential permits

• General building application: roofs, sheds, windows and other repairs, with the cost of improvement and a box to tick for each fee; work tied to a sale or rental inspection is marked as such.
• New construction and additions: a separate application that lists the cost of the building and, separately, the electrical, plumbing and heating work, and goes through plan review.
• Fences and concrete: both need an inspector’s pre-approval; fences get a post-hole and a final inspection and concrete a form and a final. Call MISS DIG at 1-800-482-7171 before digging.
• Sale of a house: a certificate of occupancy inspection is required before every sale. Violations found need correction permits in each trade, and an as-is sale requires an escrow at closing.
• Rentals: any home occupied by someone other than the owner needs a certificate of compliance inspection every two years; apartment complexes are also inspected every two years.

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

Commercial permits

Commercial permits carry an extra $75 on top of the regular fee. Industrial building, zoning and fence permits are priced at $16 per $1,000 of project cost, with a $200 minimum and plan review at 25% of the permit fee; industrial trade permits use the same rate or the standard trade schedule, whichever is greater. Fire suppression and alarm plans go in with the NFPA fire application, and commercial and industrial vacancies pay their own monthly fees.

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

• Planning Commission. Commercial buildings, rezonings, grade changes, lot splits and consolidations, wireless towers and other commercial projects go to the commission, which meets on the second Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. when it has business. File at least three weeks ahead, with plans in by noon 14 days before the meeting: eight full sets and one 11 by 17 inch set.
• Zoning Board of Appeals. An appeal costs $200, a rezoning request $250 and a special approval request $200, each plus publication and postage costs.
• Soil erosion. Wayne County is the soil erosion agency for Melvindale: earth changes over one acre or within 500 feet of a lake, stream or open drain need a county permit (734-326-3936).
• County roads. Work in a Wayne County road right-of-way needs a county construction permit from the DPS Permit Office in Wayne (734-858-2774).

Melvindale permit costs and fees

The city’s Comprehensive Fee Schedule was adopted on May 15, 2005 (Council Resolution 05-04-106) and last revised on October 6, 2021 (Resolution 21-10-194); the posted copy is revision 5, dated January 1, 2023. On every permit it adds a non-refundable $50 service fee and an administrative fee of $15 on items under $200 or $25 on items of $200 or more.

Worked example from the schedule: tearing off and replacing the roof on a house is $75, plus the $50 service fee and a $15 administrative fee (the total is under $200), for $140. The 2023 general building application prints a flat $25 administrative fee instead, which would make it $150, so confirm the figure at the counter.

Trade permits and who may pull them

Every contractor working in Melvindale registers with the Building Department, whether or not the job needs a permit. Registration costs $15 and is paid in cash, check or money order, with copies of the contractor or master license, insurance and a driver’s license. Building registrations run to May 31 each year, plumbing and mechanical registrations expire with the state license, and electrical registrations at year end.

• Who signs: only the registered officer may pull permits under a building license; others need a notarized contractor limited power of attorney (a notary is available at City Hall, and fees may apply).
• Furnaces: a furnace installation needs both a mechanical permit and an electrical hook-up permit, and a final inspection; the department posts a furnace safety test form.
• Electrical by homeowners: the homeowner application says the owner will do the work personally with no contractor hired, will submit to examination by the electrical inspector, and that the house is or will be the owner’s own residence with no part of it rented. Some items on the electrical permit must be done by a licensed contractor.
• Plumbing: the schedule starts at a $50 base fee, with fixtures from $10 each; sewer taps carry their own charges, a riser repair needs an escrow deposit, and a sewer repair may need one.
• Plan review: plans go in person, digitally or by mail, at least three sets, with electrical specifications where electrical approval is sought.

How to apply for a Melvindale building permit

Review, corrections and what causes delay

The department lists a two-week submission period for plans. Fences and concrete cannot start until an inspector has pre-approved them. Unpaid fees hold up scheduling, two or more inspection visits without access mean paying the permit or inspection fee again, and work found without a permit pays double. Permits are good for six months from the date of issue.

Inspections and certificates in Melvindale

General, permit and occupancy inspections are booked into two weekly blocks: Wednesday and Friday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., excluding major holidays. Fees must be paid before you try to schedule. Results arrive fastest by email; otherwise call 313-429-1060 after 1 p.m. on the next business day.

• Fences: pre-approval, post-hole and final inspections.
• Concrete: a form inspection before the pour and a final.
• Furnaces: a final inspection on every installation.
• Special inspections outside the regular days, including evenings and weekends, cost $100 on top of the permit fee.

The sale inspection sends the building, plumbing, mechanical and electrical inspectors once each (commercial and apartment buildings may also need a fire inspection), and the certificate it leads to is good for two years. A buyer who closes before the certificate is issued must sign a waiver of compliance at least a week before closing and deposit an escrow of at least $500, plus a $45 application fee and a $25 administrative fee; corrections then need permits in each trade, and work on commercial property must be done by registered contractors.

Rental inspections can be booked with a clerk at least seven days ahead (Monday and Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 4:30 to 6 p.m.; Friday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.) or arranged directly with the rental inspector. New occupants may not move in until every trade’s corrections are approved and the certificate of occupancy is issued, although existing occupants who are not moving may stay if the inspectors find the home reasonably fit. Vacant properties must be registered within 30 days under Section 5-358 and are checked routinely.

Michigan building code in Melvindale

FEMA’s Community Status Book lists the City of Melvindale (community 260310) as participating in the National Flood Insurance Program, with flood maps effective October 21, 2021.

Michigan enforces one statewide construction code under the Stille-DeRossett-Hale Single State Construction Code Act (1972 PA 230); local units cannot amend it, and enforcement sits with the city, village or township, a county program or the state Bureau of Construction Codes, sometimes split by trade. Michigan rules

Melvindale permit search and official resources

Permits can be paid and tracked through the city’s BS&A Online site. For copies of permits, inspection reports or plans, the City Clerk’s Office coordinates Freedom of Information Act requests: mail the request form to 3100 Oakwood Blvd., deliver it in person or fax it to 313-383-3993, and the office will tell you the cost. An affidavit of indigency can waive the first $20 of fees.

• Melvindale Building Department, forms and fees
• Comprehensive fee schedule (rev. 5, 2023)
• General building permit application
• New construction and special use application
• Fence permit application
• Zoning and cement permit application
• Electrical permit application
• Homeowner electrical application
• Mechanical permit application
• Plumbing permit application
• Building contractor registration
• Plan review application
• Site plan review application
• Certificate of occupancy (sale) packet
• FOIA request form
• BS&A Online payments
• Wayne County soil erosion permits
• Wayne County road right-of-way permits
• Bureau of Construction Codes Statewide Jurisdiction List
• FEMA Community Status Book, Michigan

Melvindale building permit FAQs

How much is a building permit in Melvindale?

Building and remodeling work is $50 for the first $1,000 of cost and $10 for each further $1,000, plus a $50 service fee and a $15 or $25 administrative fee.

Do I need a permit for a fence in Melvindale?

Yes. A fence needs an inspector’s pre-approval, a post-hole and a final inspection, and may not exceed 6 feet.

Do I need an inspection to sell my house?

Yes. A certificate of occupancy inspection is required before every sale; for a single-family house it costs $195.

Can a homeowner do their own electrical work?

Yes, on the homeowner application, if the owner does the work personally in a home that is or will be their own residence and not rented; some items still need a licensed contractor.

When does the city inspect?

Wednesday and Friday mornings, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., after the permit fees are paid.

Does my roofer need to register with the city?

Yes. Every contractor working in Melvindale registers with the Building Department for $15, even for work that needs no permit.

How long is a Melvindale permit valid?

Six months from the date it is issued.

What happens if I start work without a permit?

The fee schedule lists a $100 delinquent permit fee on top of the regular fee, and also says permit fees are doubled for work started or completed without a permit.

Simplify Melvindale permitting with Alliance Permitting

Alliance Permitting is a permit documentation and submission company in Michigan. 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 Melvindale permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.