Most building permits in Summit County are issued by the Summit County Division of Building Standards, at 1030 East Tallmadge Avenue in Akron, the county seat. It serves Akron, Cuyahoga Falls, Fairlawn (commercial work), Green, Hudson, New Franklin and Tallmadge, the villages of Boston Heights, Clinton, Lakemore, Mogadore, Northfield, Richfield and Silver Lake, and all nine townships. A few cities run their own certified departments.
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 Summit County. Barberton, Macedonia, Norton, Reminderville, Stow and Twinsburg run their own building departments, and Stow’s also serves Munroe Falls and Peninsula. Fairlawn issues its own residential permits. Akron has its own guide.
The county serves Akron and every township. Akron’s building department was combined with the county’s in 2009, and none of Summit County’s nine townships has its own certified department, so the county issues building permits in all of them. A handful of cities run their own departments; use the Board’s lookup for the specific address before preparing a submittal.
What requires a building permit in Summit 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)
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.
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Get a free quote →Which code edition applies
The county department and the municipal departments all enforce the statewide Ohio codes. The county adds the Summit County Building Code, which sets its fees and local procedures; since its March 2024 revision, owners who work on homes they do not or will not occupy must have a qualified contractor responsible for the installations.
Permits in Summit 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 Summit County?
The Summit County Division of Building Standards provides commercial plan review and inspection for 23 jurisdictions and residential plan review and inspection for 22, with its own building, electrical, plumbing and fire inspectors. Elsewhere, the municipal department certified for the address issues the permit.
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Authority | Summit County Division of Building Standards, or a municipal department where one is certified |
| County seat | Akron |
| County department | 1030 East Tallmadge Avenue, Akron 44310 · (330) 630-7280 · office Monday to Friday 7:30am to 4:00pm; inspections and application drop-off 8:00am to 3:00pm |
| Served by the county | Akron, Cuyahoga Falls, Fairlawn (commercial), Green, Hudson, New Franklin, Tallmadge, seven villages and all nine townships |
| Code authority | Ohio Board of Building Standards, which certifies the enforcing department |
| 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 | No annual county registration since March 2024: a certificate of insurance, federal ID number and any state licence with each application; OCILB licence for commercial electrical, HVAC, hydronics, plumbing and refrigeration work |
A homeowner may pull a county permit for work on a home in their own name, except gas lines, with a signed and notarized homeowner’s affidavit; the county asks owners to call first about electrical work. The county takes cash or cheques in the office (no cash after 3:00pm) and cheques or cards online.
Not sure this scope needs a permit?
Get a free quote →In 2025, building permits issued in unincorporated Summit County authorized 391 new privately owned housing units, 298 of them single-family homes, according to the U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey.
Zoning and topography approval come before the permit
The county needs zoning approval, and for new construction the lot topography approval, before it issues permits, although plans can be submitted for review at the same time. Zoning is handled by the city, village or township zoning office, which also deals with property violations and safety complaints.
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. The county does not require a permit for a shed of 200 square feet or less, or for a residential fence up to 6 feet, though the local zoning office may. Manufactured homes need county permits for repairs and alterations.
Commercial permits
Commercial buildings follow the Ohio Building Code. The county issues building, electrical, mechanical and plumbing permits for residential and commercial work, and issues certificates of occupancy after its occupancy inspections.
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
Summit County permit costs and fees
County permit fees are set in the Summit County Building Code, and 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 Summit 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
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
Rather not deal with the Summit County building department?
Get a free quote →How to apply for a Summit County building permit
Use the BBS lookup; certification does not follow from the type of local government.
Fairlawn, for example, issues residential permits while the county handles commercial work.
From the County Engineer in the townships, or the municipality elsewhere.
New county permit and inspection requests go through GovWell.
The county will not issue permits until zoning approval is in.
The state half and the local half are separate, and neither substitutes for the other.
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 Summit County
Schedule inspections with the department that issued the permit; the county takes requests online at any time and can carry out some inspections by video call. 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
Summit 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; Summit County Building Standards takes records requests online and has a separate request form for records from before 2021.
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.
- Summit County Building Standards
- 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
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 the county issue permits inside Akron?
Yes. The City of Akron’s building department was combined with the county department in 2009, and Summit County Building Standards issues building permits in Akron once the city has given its own approval.
Inspections are where schedules slip.
Get a free quote →Do contractors need to register with the county?
Not annually. Since March 2024 registration is per permit: each application includes a certificate of insurance naming Summit County Building Standards as certificate holder, a federal ID number and any state licence the work requires. The former $145 annual fee and $10,000 bond are gone.
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 Summit County permitting with Alliance Permitting
In Summit County the county department covers Akron, most other communities and every township, while a few cities run their own. 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 Summit County because the work is done by people who have stood at the counter:
- We confirm the certified department and the scope of its certification.
- We line up lot topography approval before the permit is due.
- We clear zoning before the building application.
- We sequence grading and retaining inspections before trades bury them.
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 Summit County permits while your crew stays on the job.
More Ohio permitting guides
This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Summit County permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.