Lea County occupies the south-eastern corner of New Mexico, on the state's side of the Permian Basin. Its permitting structure follows the ordinary New Mexico pattern for a county without a certified local enforcement agency: the Construction Industries Division of the Regulation and Licensing Department issues the building permits and carries the inspections directly outside Hobbs and its extraterritorial jurisdiction, enforcing the state codes at 14.7 NMAC, while the county administers land use, zoning and subdivision on its own account.
That division of labour matters more here than in most counties because of what is being built. Permian development brings well pads, gathering infrastructure, workforce housing, service yards and processing facilities across rural Lea County, much of it on land carrying oil and gas easements and mineral severances that constrain siting before any code question arises. Hobbs permits its own construction and is also the permitting agency for county land inside its extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ); every county project first files the Lea County Application — address, floodplain, liquid waste and fire code — with county Environmental Services at 1019 East Bender Boulevard, Hobbs.
This guide covers unincorporated Lea County. Hobbs permits its own construction and, inside its extraterritorial jurisdiction, county land too. Lovington issues a city building permit and signs the state application before it goes to the State, Jal uses the state’s building permit forms, and Tatum and Eunice have permit clauses in their codes but post no forms or fees; the town-by-town list below gives the offices. The Texas state line runs along the county's eastern edge with entirely separate requirements beyond it.
The state issues the permit here. Where a New Mexico county has no certified local enforcement agency, the Construction Industries Division permits and inspects directly — the county's role is land use and zoning rather than building permits. The exception in Lea County is Hobbs: the City issues the permits inside its limits and in its extraterritorial jurisdiction, 5 miles around them.
What requires a building permit in Lea County?
Every project on county land starts with the Lea County Application, a single form that collects the county’s sign-offs: addressing, floodplain, mobile home placement, planning and zoning, driveway, liquid waste and International Fire Code review. The county asks for the application with a site plan, a copy of the property owner’s driver’s licence and the warranty deed (or a letter from the owner), and says the process needs a minimum of 10 days.
Typically permit required
- Construction, alteration, relocation, enlargement, replacement, repair, change of occupancy or demolition of a building or structure
- County land use, zoning and subdivision approval, which is separate from the building permit
- Electrical, mechanical and plumbing work, each on its own permit and by a state-licensed contractor
- New buildings, additions and structural work, under the commercial or residential code as applicable
- Alteration, relocation, enlargement, replacement and repair of a building or structure
- Any change of use or occupancy, which brings the existing building code into the analysis
Often exempt
- Minor repairs, and the small items the state permit rule (14.5.2 NMAC) lists as exempt
- Swings and other playground equipment at a house
- Small accessory structures below the threshold — zoning and any local amendment still apply
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Each incorporated place in Lea County handles permits its own way:
- Hobbs (population 40,863): the City’s Building Safety & Permitting Services, 200 E. Broadway (575-391-8158), issues building and trade permits in the city and in its extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ), which the City describes as the area 5 miles around the city limits. For a site outside the city limits the City requires the approved Lea County Application before it issues a permit.
- Lovington (population 11,620): a two-permit city. The City’s Planning and Zoning Department at City Hall, 214 S. Love Street (575-396-9301), takes a City Building Permit Application with its Planning and Zoning Application, proof of ownership, a site plan, the county 911 address and a floodplain determination letter, inspects the staked-out site before work starts and charges a city permit fee. The City Planner and floodplain manager then sign the cover sheet of the state Construction Industries Division (CID) building permit application, which has to happen before it is submitted to the State, and the City makes its own final inspection after construction. The City also posts carport, sign, curb cut and mobile or manufactured home permit checklists.
- Jal (population 2,178): the City’s Code Enforcement office at City Hall, 710 W. Wyoming Ave, posts CID’s Multi-Purpose State Building Application and the state homeowner building permit application as its building permit forms, so the permit is the state’s. Jal has its own temporary dwelling permit under Ordinance 2024-07.
- Tatum (population 711): the Town Code requires a town permit, applied for to the Director of Public Works, before any building or structure is built, altered, moved or demolished or a mobile home is set up. The code bars building within 50 feet of the centre line of U.S. Highway 380 or State Highway 18 inside the town, and its requirement for a plat filed with the Town Clerk-Treasurer applies only to a building with some part within 50 feet of the centre of one of those highways. Permit fees are set by the Town’s governing body. Town Hall is at 120 W Broadway (575-398-4633). The town’s pages do not say whether a separate CID permit is also needed.
- Eunice (population 3,037): the City Code calls for a building permit applied for through the City Clerk, but the City’s website posts no permit forms, fees or inspection contacts. City Hall (575-394-2576) can say whether the City or CID handles a project.
- Unincorporated county outside the Hobbs ETJ: CID, after the Lea County Application. The county posts a Hobbs ETJ map for checking which side of the line a parcel is on.
New Mexico adopts its building codes statewide; a city or county with its own certified building official issues its own permits, and elsewhere the state Construction Industries Division does. New Mexico rules
Who handles permitting in Lea County?
The Construction Industries Division issues building permits and carries inspections in the unincorporated county outside Hobbs’ extraterritorial jurisdiction, enforcing the state codes at 14.7 NMAC and licensing contractors statewide; inside the ETJ the City of Hobbs (Building Safety & Permitting Services, 575-391-8158) is the permitting agency. Lea County administers land use, zoning, subdivision, addressing, floodplain and liquid waste approvals through its own Lea County Application.
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Get a free quote →| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Building permits | Construction Industries Division, where no local enforcement agency exists |
| County offices | Planning & Zoning: Courthouse, 3rd floor, 100 North Main, Lovington, NM 88260 · Lea County Application: Environmental Services, 1019 East Bender Boulevard, Hobbs, NM 88240 |
| Phone | 575-396-8521 (county) · Planning & Zoning 575-396-8696 · applications and floodplain 575-942-8222; Environmental Services Monday to Friday, 8:00 am to 5:00 pm |
| County role | Land use, zoning and subdivision |
| Cities | Hobbs permits its own and its extraterritorial jurisdiction; Lovington issues a city permit and signs the state application; Jal uses the state permit forms; Tatum and Eunice have permit requirements in their own codes |
| County Environmental office | 575-391-2983 (fax 575-391-8764); applications are dropped off at 1019 E Bender Blvd, Hobbs |
| Driveway permits | Lea County Road Department, 5915 N. Lovington Hwy, Hobbs, 575-391-2940 |
| Liquid waste (septic) | New Mexico Environment Department, Hobbs field office, 2120 N Alto, 575-393-4302, after county pre-approval |
| Contractor licensing | Construction Industries Division, statewide |
Permit types
Residential permits
A house in unincorporated Lea County clears the county's land use and zoning requirements, then takes the building permit from the Construction Industries Division (or from the City of Hobbs inside its extraterritorial jurisdiction) against the New Mexico Residential Building Code as amended, with the electrical, mechanical and plumbing work carried out by contractors holding the matching state licence. On rural land a well and an on-site liquid waste system are the ordinary condition.
The county’s application guide sets the site plan rules. A house or mobile home needs at least 0.75 acres, rising to 0.88 acres for 4 bedrooms, 1.0 for 5 and 1.1 for 6. Side setbacks are 5 feet, and the front setback is 25 feet from a non-section line, 35 feet from a quarter section line and 45 feet from a section line. A septic tank must be at least 50 feet from a water well and a leach line at least 100 feet, and existing structures, wells and septic tanks must all be drawn on the plan.
A manufactured home may not be transported to a site in the unincorporated county without a county manufactured home placement permit under Ordinance 101. Any new septic or holding tank needs county pre-approval before the state will permit it, and an RV cannot be connected to a home septic system.
Commercial permits
Commercial and industrial work in Lea County is dominated by the oil field: service yards, processing facilities, workforce accommodation and the infrastructure supporting them. Each clears county land use, then plan review by the state division, or by the City of Hobbs inside its extraterritorial jurisdiction, against the New Mexico Commercial Building Code, with mineral and easement positions established from the title before siting.
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Call 1-855-478-4290 →For commercial sites the county’s example plan shows an entrance at least 41 feet wide and a driveway with 6 inches of compacted base course supported by an engineer’s study, and the liquid waste contractor submits the state application to Lea County Environmental before it goes to the state. An RV park must meet Liquid Waste Ordinance 83 and Chapter 5 of the fire code: spaces of at least 30 by 60 feet, and no more than 3 RVs for each 1,500-gallon holding tank.
A driveway onto a county road needs a county driveway permit. At the right-of-way line a residential driveway is 10 to 22 feet wide and a commercial one 30 to 40 feet, with no more than two driveways on a parcel with under 600 feet of frontage. A commercial driveway is paved with 3 inches of hot mix or 6 inches of concrete for at least 30 feet from the edge of the traveled way.
Which authority issues the permit
In Lea County the Permian Basin's wells, pipelines and easements cross a great many rural parcels, mineral severance is the norm rather than the exception on the surface estate, and the cities carry their own permitting inside their limits.
New Mexico licenses contractors at state level through the Construction Industries Division, in classifications tied to a qualifying party. New Mexico rules
Lea County permit costs and fees
Building permit fees follow the state division's schedule where it permits, with county land use approvals charged separately by the county.
| Item | Fee or rule |
|---|---|
| Building permit | The Construction Industries Division's schedule where it is the permitting authority |
| County land use | Zoning and subdivision approvals, charged by the county |
| Trade permits | Electrical, mechanical and plumbing permits from the Construction Industries Division outside Hobbs’ ETJ (from the City of Hobbs inside it), for state-licensed contractors |
| Contractor licence | Issued by the Construction Industries Division, valid statewide |
| Well and liquid waste | Separate approvals where the parcel is unserved |
| City permits | Hobbs charges its own fees, including inside its ETJ; Lovington charges a city permit fee as well as the state’s; Tatum’s code leaves its permit fees to the Town’s governing body |
| Manufactured home restoration permit | $100 for each 90-day period or part of one, for no more than 12 months in total (Lea County Ordinance 101) |
| Floodplain | County development permit under Flood Damage Prevention Ordinance 70, through the Lea County Application |
The surface estate is rarely the whole estate. Across Lea County the mineral estate is commonly severed from the surface, and the mineral owner's rights of access can override the surface owner's plans. A building site chosen without checking the mineral position, existing wells and gathering easements may be a site the operator is entitled to reach through. It is a title question, and it precedes both the county and the code.
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Permit required
- Rural parcels — mineral, well and easement position established from the title before siting
- Electrical — state-licensed electrical contractor; separate permit and inspection
- Mechanical — state-licensed mechanical contractor; separate permit, covering heating, cooling and refrigeration
- Plumbing — state-licensed plumbing contractor; separate permit under the New Mexico Plumbing Code. Natural gas piping needs a gas-fitting licence and follows the New Mexico Mechanical Code
- Liquefied petroleum gas work, which the division regulates separately
Typically exempt
- Building, plumbing or electrical work a homeowner does on their own primary residence under a homeowner permit; heating, cooling and gas work need a licensed contractor
Electrical, mechanical and plumbing work is permitted separately and done by contractors holding the matching state licence. New Mexico rules
How to apply for a Lea County building permit
Inside the extraterritorial jurisdiction the City of Hobbs is the permitting agency; outside it the state Construction Industries Division is.
Drop it off at 1019 E Bender Blvd in Hobbs, or send it by email or fax, with the site plan, the owner’s driver’s licence and the warranty deed. Allow at least 10 days.
Show setbacks, acreage, every existing structure, water wells and septic tanks, with measurements.
The Road Department approves any driveway built in a county road right-of-way and inspects the grading before it is surfaced.
To the City of Hobbs with the approved county application inside the ETJ, or to the state division’s online portal outside it.
Hobbs inspects what it permits; the state division inspects the rest, and the certificate of occupancy follows the final.
Review, corrections and what actually causes delay
Lea County's building review sits with the state division where no local agency exists, and its land use review with the county. What delays a project here is filing the building application with the wrong office (the city inside Hobbs’ ETJ, the division outside it), skipping the Lea County Application, and a site chosen before the mineral and easement position was checked.
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Inspections follow the adopted codes' sequence — footing, foundation, framing, rough trades, insulation and final — and are requested from whichever authority issued the permit, with the trades inspected on their own permits. Work that passes final receives a certificate of occupancy for new buildings and changes of occupancy. Inspections in unincorporated Lea County are carried by the Construction Industries Division where it is the permitting authority; inside Hobbs and its ETJ, inspection is the city's, and Lovington makes its own preliminary and final inspections alongside the State's.
Lea County permit search and official resources
- New Mexico Construction Industries Division — the statewide codes, direct permitting and contractor licensing
- Lea County — the county government, land use and zoning
- 14.7.2 NMAC — New Mexico Commercial Building Code — the 2021 International Building Code as amended by the state
- New Mexico Construction Industries Division — the statewide codes, contractor licensing and the division's own permitting
- 14.7.3 NMAC — New Mexico Residential Building Code — the 2021 International Residential Code as amended by the state
- Lea County addressing and new construction — how to file the Lea County Application
- 2026 Lea County Application (PDF) — the application, driveway permit, site plan examples and county directory
- Lea County addressing and new construction FAQs — acreage, RV parks and the Hobbs ETJ
- Hobbs ETJ map (PDF) — the extraterritorial jurisdiction boundary
- Lea County floodplain — the flood damage prevention ordinance
- Lea County liquid waste — Ordinance 83 and county pre-approval of septic systems
- City of Hobbs Building Safety & Permitting Services — permits in Hobbs and its ETJ
- City of Lovington Planning and Zoning — zoning and floodplain review in Lovington
- City of Lovington building permit checklist (PDF) — the city permit steps and the state application sign-off
- City of Jal Code Enforcement — the state permit forms Jal uses
- Town of Tatum Code, Chapter 110 Buildings — the town permit requirement
- New Mexico Environment Department liquid waste contacts — the Hobbs field office
Inspections are where schedules slip.
Get a free quote →Frequently asked questions
Who issues my building permit?
In the unincorporated county, the Construction Industries Division — except inside Hobbs’ extraterritorial jurisdiction, where the City of Hobbs issues it. The county handles land use, addressing, floodplain and liquid waste separately, through the Lea County Application.
What does the county do, then?
Land use, zoning and subdivision approval — which precedes the building permit and is a separate application.
Which code applies?
The state code adopted by the Construction Industries Division, on the 2021 International Codes as amended, at 14.7 NMAC.
What should I check on a rural parcel?
The mineral estate, existing wells and gathering easements — mineral severance is common here and the operator's access rights can override the surface owner's plans.
Do the cities permit their own work?
Hobbs does, inside its limits and also on county land within its extraterritorial jurisdiction. Lovington issues a city building permit, inspects the site and signs the state application before the State issues its building permit, and Jal posts the state’s building permit applications as its forms. Tatum’s code requires a town permit from its Director of Public Works, and Eunice’s code calls for a permit through the City Clerk; neither posts forms or fees, so start at Town Hall or City Hall in those two.
Who licenses my contractor?
The Construction Industries Division, at state level, valid throughout New Mexico.
How long does the Lea County Application take?
The county says the process needs a minimum of 10 days. The form gathers the addressing, floodplain, mobile home placement, planning and zoning, driveway, liquid waste and fire code sign-offs before a building permit is applied for.
How many acres do I need to build a house in Lea County?
The county requires 0.75 acres for each house or mobile home. Its application guide raises that to 0.88 acres for 4 bedrooms, 1.0 acre for 5 and 1.1 acres for 6.
What is the Hobbs ETJ?
The extraterritorial jurisdiction is the area 5 miles around the Hobbs city limits. Inside it the City of Hobbs issues the building permit for county land, after the Lea County Application is approved, and the county posts a map of the boundary.
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In Lea County the permit comes from the state and the constraint comes from the title. We confirm the permitting authority and the mineral position before a site is chosen.
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More New Mexico permitting guides
More New Mexico permitting guides
This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Lea County permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.