Building permits across most of Greene County come from the county’s Department of Building Regulation at 667 Dayton-Xenia Road in Xenia, the county seat. It provides residential and commercial permit and inspection services in every township and in Beavercreek, the county’s largest city with 48,134 people in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate, as well as Bellbrook, Jamestown and Spring Valley.
This guide covers the department and how to reach it, the local conditions that shape a filing here, what permits cost and who may pull them, and how inspections are booked. Rules that apply everywhere in Ohio are summarized in each section, with a link to the full statewide explanation.
This guide covers the areas served by Greene County Building Regulation. The county excludes Fairborn, Xenia, Yellow Springs, Cedarville, Bowersville and Clifton, and federal and state-owned property. The Board’s lookup lists Fairborn, Xenia and Yellow Springs with their own departments and Cedarville for residential work only. It shows no certified department for Bowersville or Clifton, or for commercial work in Cedarville, so those commercial plans go to the state, and houses in Bowersville and Clifton need no state or county building permit (ORC 3791.04).
Federal and state property is outside the county’s service. Greene County Building Regulation does not provide permit or inspection services for federal or state-owned property or buildings, so establish who owns the land before assuming the county process applies. The county’s building page also carries a Wright-Patterson Air Force Base airport zoning regulation.
What requires a building permit in Greene County?
Under the Ohio Building Code and the Residential Code of Ohio, a permit is required for most construction activity.
Permit required
- New residential and commercial construction, additions, alterations and conversions
- Structural and load-bearing work, foundations, decks, porches, ramps and stairs
- Finishing basements and attics, and any change of occupancy or use
- Electrical service changes, panel work, new circuits, solar and EV charging equipment
- Plumbing alterations, repipes, water heaters, backflow and sewer or gas connections
- HVAC installation and change-out, ductwork and venting; reroofing, siding, windows, pools and signs
Typically exempt
- Painting, wallpapering, tiling, carpeting and cabinet installation
- Minor repairs that do not cut away walls, touch structural supports or change the means of egress
- Fences up to 6 feet at houses (7 feet under the Ohio Building Code) and retaining walls up to 4 feet that support no surcharge
- One-story detached sheds and playhouses up to 200 square feet at houses (120 square feet under the Ohio Building Code)
Short on time to read all of this?
Get a free quote →The exempt list is set statewide in Section 102.10 of the Ohio Building Code and the Residential Code of Ohio, and an exemption from a building permit is not an exemption from zoning, setbacks, floodplain rules, utility approval or a fire authority review. Confirm scope with the department before work starts rather than after.
Which code edition applies
Greene County Building Regulation and the municipal departments all enforce the statewide Ohio codes. What differs between them is fees, submittal procedures and inspection scheduling.
Permits in Greene County are governed by Ohio’s statewide codes: the Ohio Building Code for commercial and other nonresidential buildings, and the Residential Code of Ohio for detached one-, two- and three-family dwellings. The Ohio Building, Mechanical and Plumbing Codes in force since 1 March 2024 are based on the 2021 International Codes; the Residential Code of Ohio is the 2019 edition, based on the 2018 International Residential Code; both use the 2023 National Electrical Code. Only departments certified by the Ohio Board of Building Standards may approve plans, and residential rules are uniform statewide. How Ohio’s statewide code works
Who handles permitting in Greene County?
Greene County Building Regulation issues residential and commercial permits and carries out inspections in the areas it serves. Zoning is handled by the applicable zoning jurisdiction, and zoning approval, where required, must be obtained before the county issues a permit.
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Authority | Greene County Department of Building Regulation |
| Offices | 667 Dayton-Xenia Road, Xenia, Ohio 45385 |
| Phone | 937-562-7420 |
| Counter hours | Monday to Friday, 7:30am to 4:00pm |
| Federal land | Federal and state-owned property is outside the county’s service |
| Serves | Every township and all cities and villages except Fairborn, Xenia, Yellow Springs, Cedarville, Bowersville and Clifton |
| Confirm the department | Use the BBS building-department lookup before filing |
| Code | Ohio Building Code on the 2021 International Codes (since 1 March 2024); Residential Code of Ohio, 2019 edition on the 2018 IRC; 2023 NEC |
| Contractor credentials | OCILB licence for commercial electrical, HVAC, hydronics, plumbing and refrigeration work; any local licence or registration the department requires |
Before starting, the county asks applicants to check with the local zoning, plumbing, health and engineering departments that all their requirements are met.
Not sure this scope needs a permit?
Get a free quote →One further point applies across every Ohio jurisdiction and is worth confirming here rather than assuming. Residential rules are uniform statewide: a local code may differ from the Residential Code of Ohio only on subject matter the state code does not address, or after review by the Board of Building Standards (ORC 3781.10, 3781.01). Municipalities may add nonresidential regulations that do not conflict with the state rules. Ask the issuing department whether any local regulation affects your project type.
In 2025, building permits issued in unincorporated Greene County authorized 216 new privately owned housing units, 192 of them single-family homes, according to the U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey.
Zoning approval comes before the permit
Where zoning approval is required, it must be obtained from the applicable zoning jurisdiction before Greene County Building Regulation issues the permit.
The Ohio Board of Building Standards certifies which departments may enforce the code, and for which buildings; the certified department’s political subdivision sets fees, and zoning is a separate approval. Where no certified department has jurisdiction, nonresidential plans go to the state, while houses need no plan submission. The Board’s building-department look-up shows which department has authority over an address. Who has authority in Ohio
Permit types
Residential permits
One-, two- and three-family dwellings follow the Residential Code of Ohio, and Greene County Building Regulation issues those permits across the areas it serves, including Beavercreek and the townships.
Commercial permits
Commercial buildings follow the Ohio Building Code. Fire alarm and fire suppression inspections are called in directly to the county; in Beavercreek and the Beavercreek Township Fire Department’s area, fire suppression inspections go through that fire department, except kitchen hood and chemical suppression systems, which stay with the county.
Two statewide topics shape most Ohio submittals: energy compliance (the 2021 IECC or ASHRAE 90.1-2019 for commercial buildings, Chapter 11 of the Residential Code of Ohio for houses) and work on existing buildings, where alteration, repair, addition and change of occupancy each carry their own requirements. Energy and existing buildings in Ohio
Greene County permit costs and fees
Greene County Building Regulation fees must be paid before plan review begins and are non-refundable once processing has begun. Municipal departments charge under their own schedules. A Board of Building Standards assessment of 3 percent of nonresidential and 1 percent of residential fees is added (ORC 3781.102).
Rather talk it over?
Call 1-855-478-4290 →| Fee component | How it works |
|---|---|
| Plan review | Charged under the issuing department’s adopted schedule |
| Building permit | Set by the issuing certified department's adopted fee schedule |
| Trade permits | Electrical, plumbing and mechanical work is charged under the issuing department’s schedule |
| State BBS assessment | Collected on top of local fees for the Board of Building Standards: 3% of nonresidential and 1% of residential fees (ORC 3781.102) |
| Certificate of Occupancy | A separate fee where applicable |
| Work without a permit | Orders, including stop-work orders, and prosecution (OBC and RCO Section 109) |
Need a real number for a specific Greene County project? Send us the scope, address and valuation and we will identify the filing path, the reviews it will trigger and the fee categories that will apply.
Fee schedules are revised on each jurisdiction’s own cycle, so ask the issuing department for the schedule in force on your filing date, and ask separately about plan review, trade, re-inspection and revision charges. A Board of Building Standards assessment of 3 percent (nonresidential) or 1 percent (residential) is added to local fees. How Ohio permit fees work
Trade permits and who may pull them
Permit required
- Service installations, panel upgrades, new circuits, solar PV and EV chargers
- New plumbing, repipes, water heater change-outs, fixtures, backflow and gas piping
- HVAC installation and change-out, ductwork, venting and commercial kitchen exhaust
- Sprinkler, standpipe and fire alarm work under the OBC fire-protection provisions
Typically exempt
- Replacing lamps, reinstalling plug receptacles and replacing circuit breakers of the same capacity and type in the same location
- Clearing stoppages and repairing leaks, where no more than one fixture is replaced and no pipes are rearranged
- Replacing a mechanical-equipment part that does not alter the equipment’s approval or make it unsafe
- Replacing a minor gas-appliance part that does not alter the equipment’s approval or make it unsafe
Rather not deal with the Greene County building department?
Get a free quote →Ohio licenses five commercial trades statewide through the Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board: electrical, HVAC, hydronics, plumbing and refrigeration. The state does not license general or residential contractors, so those are licensed or registered locally, if at all. Home construction contracts of $25,000 or more must be in writing under ORC 4722. Contractor licensing in Ohio
How to apply for a Greene County building permit
Federal and state property is outside the county’s service.
County submittals are electronic only.
Plan review starts only after payment.
The county asks applicants to do this before they apply.
Use the BBS lookup; certification does not follow from the type of local government.
The county will not issue the permit until any required zoning approval is in.
Approved plans become invalid if work has not started within twelve months, with one twelve-month extension available. Before filing, confirm the department has authority over the address for the work, whether the Ohio Building Code or the Residential Code of Ohio governs, and which approvals must be in hand first. Review and corrections in Ohio
Inspections in Greene County
Greene County inspections are booked through the iWorQ portal or on (937) 562-7420 by 3:00pm the workday before, for a morning or afternoon window, and a confirmation email follows on the day. The building official lists the required inspections when the plans are approved (OBC and RCO 108.2); they include foundation, framing, rough-in trades, insulation and energy, and final, with a Certificate of Occupancy required before legal occupancy of new or changed-use space.
No building may be occupied until a certificate of occupancy or completion is issued, and a change of occupancy needs approved construction documents even without other work. Address correction notices before requesting a re-inspection, and do not cover work before it has been inspected and approved. Inspections and occupancy in Ohio
Greene County permit search and official resources
Permit records sit with the department that issued them, which in Ohio makes record research a certification question first. A property may have records with a municipal department, a county department, a township department or the state, depending on who held authority at the time the work was done — and that can have changed if a department gained or gave up certification, or if the property was annexed. If you are buying, refinancing or renovating, ask the department that serves the address; for the county’s area that is Greene County Building Regulation, through the county’s public records request process.
Want this handled start to finish?
Get a free quote →The Board's building-department lookup helps here too: it establishes who has authority today, which is the right starting point even when the history is more complicated.
Confirm two things before you file: the code, and the department. The Ohio Building Code has been based on the 2021 International Codes since 1 March 2024, the Residential Code of Ohio is the 2019 edition based on the 2018 International Residential Code, and both use the 2023 National Electrical Code — but the department with authority over your address, and the scope of its certification, is the answer that changes from parcel to parcel. Use the Board's building-department lookup, then confirm fees, submittal requirements and review turnaround with that department for your filing date.
These are the primary sources behind this guide. Codes, fee schedules and portal procedures change. Confirm the position for your filing date.
- Greene County Building Regulation
- Ohio Board of Building Standards
- BBS — find the building department for your address
- Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board
- ORC Chapter 4722, home construction service contracts
Frequently asked questions
What about work on federal land?
Greene County Building Regulation does not provide permit or inspection services for federal or state-owned property or buildings. Establish land ownership before assuming the county process applies.
Does the county issue permits in Beavercreek?
Yes. Beavercreek is served by Greene County Building Regulation, which provides its residential and commercial permit and inspection services.
Inspections are where schedules slip.
Get a free quote →How do I know which department issues my permit?
Use the Board of Building Standards building-department lookup, which maps an address to the department with authority over it. Only a BBS-certified department, or the state, may approve plans and issue permits, and certification does not follow automatically from being a city, county or township.
Does my project fall under the OBC or the RCO?
Commercial, industrial and public buildings follow the Ohio Building Code. One-, two- and three-family dwellings follow the Residential Code of Ohio. Ohio’s residential code reaches three-family dwellings, where the International Residential Code stops at two.
What if no certified department serves the area?
The Division of Industrial Compliance performs commercial plan review and inspection where no certified department serves. Residential code enforcement, however, is carried out only by certified local departments, so the fallback is commercial-only.
Does my general contractor need an Ohio licence?
There is no statewide general-contractor licence in Ohio. The state licenses five commercial trades through the OCILB — electrical, HVAC, hydronics, plumbing and refrigeration — while general contractors, and trade contractors on residential work, are licensed or registered only where a local government requires it. Home construction and improvement contracts of $25,000 or more on one-, two- and three-family dwellings must be in writing under ORC 4722, and the supplier must carry at least $250,000 of general liability insurance.
Simplify Greene County permitting with Alliance Permitting
In Greene County the county department serves Beavercreek, most other municipalities and every township, with electronic submittals and fees paid up front. We confirm the department for the address and file there.
Trusted by leading builders, developers, and national contractors — 21+ years of filing in the jurisdictions we write about.
Contractors and builders choose Alliance for Greene County because the work is done by people who have stood at the counter:
- We establish land ownership where federal property may be involved.
- We submit complete packages through the county’s iWorQ portal.
- We confirm current review times at the outset.
- We resolve rural sewage, water and access before design.
- We clear zoning with the township or municipality separately.
Alliance Permitting is a permit documentation and submission company in Ohio. We prepare your paperwork, file it correctly and coordinate with the building department 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.
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Let Alliance prepare, file, and track your Greene County permits while your crew stays on the job.
More Ohio permitting guides
This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Greene County permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.