Ferndale, Washington Building Permit Guide

The City of Ferndale’s Community Development Department reviews and issues building permits inside the city limits, along with the mechanical, plumbing, sign, pool and fire system permits that go with them, and every application goes in through the City’s SmartGov Online Permit Center. Electrical permits are not City permits: the state Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) issues and inspects them from its Bellingham office on Ellis Street. Under the 2026 Unified Fee Schedule the building permit is priced from the value of the work, and the plans check fee adds 65% of that permit fee.

Community Development works out of Ferndale City Hall at 2095 Main Street, which is open 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on weekdays. The department’s main line is 360-685-2379, the permit specialist answers 360-685-2369, and the planning and permit desk is on 360-685-2372. Michael Cerbone is the Community Development Director and Kyle Huebner is the Building Official and Fire Marshal. Land outside the city limits is permitted by Whatcom County.

What requires a building permit in Ferndale?

Ferndale Municipal Code (FMC) 15.04.140 makes it unlawful to erect, move, add to or structurally alter a building or structure, or to install, modify or remove parts of one, without a permit, unless the adopted codes exempt the work. Ferndale has not rewritten the exemption list, so the residential code’s own list applies, and the City posts a copy of it in the SmartGov document library as “Exempt for Permitting per IBC and IRC”.

Exempt work must still meet zoning, setback, critical area and shoreline rules. Ground work has its own trigger: most site improvements need a Land Disturbance Permit unless less than 50 cubic yards of earth moves and no infrastructure is installed, and a single-family house in an existing subdivision is exempt from the land disturbance requirements.

What the city decides and what the state holds

FMC chapter 15.04 (Ordinance 2238 of 2024) adopts the 2021 state codes, including the Wildland-Urban Interface Code and the energy code, with “any subsequent amendments or editions adopted by the state”. Ferndale sets the procedure around them: the Community Development Director acts as the Building Official, fees come from the City’s fee schedule, and the City writes its own expiry and reinstatement rules.

Washington has a mandatory statewide building code under chapter 19.27 RCW that every city and county enforces and may make stricter; electrical permits come from the Department of Labor and Industries unless the city runs its own program or Tacoma Power serves the site. Building codes in Washington

Ferndale building department: who handles permitting

Community Development holds planning, building review and inspection, and code enforcement. Planners check zoning and set impact and connection fees, engineers review civil plans and drainage under Ecology’s 2014 stormwater manual, and building staff review plans and inspect.

Permit types

Residential permits

Every application starts with the General Permit Application and the Owner Consent Form, signed by the legal owner with proof of ownership; the City will not accept an application without it. A new house also needs the Energy Code Whole House Worksheet, the Single Family Stormwater Form, the residential site plan and construction plan checklist, and the impact and connection fee deferment form, which the document library marks as required on new residential permits.

Site plans must be drawn to scale and show lot coverage as a percentage, easements, setbacks, utilities and drain fields, stormwater measures with 2-foot contours, fence heights and any critical area, shoreline or floodplain boundary. Driveways must be 12 feet wide and paved for at least the first 50 feet.

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

Commercial permits

Commercial and multifamily buildings use their own plans and site plan checklist, and new commercial sites usually go through a pre-application conference ($449) and site plan review ($1,050). Demolition and tenant improvement permits need the City’s waste management form, and fire sprinkler and alarm work is reviewed and inspected by the hour.

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

Common projects, such as a house in an existing subdivision, a remodel, an accessory dwelling unit or a short plat of up to four lots, are approved by staff; variances and conditional uses need a Hearing Examiner decision, and subdivisions of five or more lots also need City Council approval. Shoreline work starts with a shoreline exemption determination ($408) or a substantial development permit ($1,372 plus the Hearing Examiner fee), sites with streams, wetlands or slopes need a critical area review or exemption ($391), and SEPA review where it applies costs $1,123. Much of low-lying Ferndale lies in the Nooksack River’s mapped flood hazard area, and the site plan must show the floodplain boundary. Any work in a street or on City utilities needs an Encroachment Permit ($200), which the City calls the permit applicants most often forget. If a lot is not on City sewer, the septic system is permitted by Whatcom County Health and Community Services.

Ferndale permit costs and fees

Ferndale’s fees sit in one Unified Fee Schedule, effective January 1, 2026. Fees vest when paid, except residential impact and connection fees deferred under FMC chapter 14.07, and the schedule raises them each year by the Seattle-area CPI-W; it prints no adopting resolution or vote date. Valuation is the total value of the work, including electrical, mechanical and plumbing equipment, labor and materials.

Worked example. A new house valued at $350,000 falls in the $100,001 to $500,000 band: $993.75 plus 250 × $5.60 ($1,400) gives a building permit fee of $2,393.75. Plans check at 65% is $1,555.94, of which the $900 deposit has already been paid, and the house adds the $6.50 state fee and the $13 archiving fee, before mechanical and plumbing permits and the L&I electrical permit.

The City’s 2026 sheet for a new house adds a water connection of $6,947 and a sewer connection of $11,879 inside the city, a transportation impact fee of $4,218 (citywide rate; the Planned Action Area pays more and downtown less), a park impact fee of $2,667, a $500 storm and sewer mitigation fee and a Ferndale School District fee of $1,100, set by and paid to the district. The sheet is an estimate and prints the $2,001 band’s base as $69.50, where the adopted schedule says $69.25. With the deferment form, an owner may pay half of the water, sewer and storm charges and at least half of each impact fee at issuance and the rest before asking for the final inspection; school impact fees cannot be deferred.

Trade permits and who may pull them

Mechanical and plumbing permits are City permits at $55 each plus unit fees: $31 for a furnace up to 100,000 Btu/h, $81 for a woodstove, $10 per plumbing fixture or water heater and $22 per building sewer. Ferndale does not run an electrical program and is not on L&I’s list of cities that issue their own electrical permits, so wiring, panels and the electrical side of heat pumps and solar systems are permitted and inspected by L&I. The state’s registration and certificate rules are in our Washington licensing notes.

How to apply for a Ferndale building permit

Review, corrections and what causes delay

Some permits are held until infrastructure is installed, as settled at the Land Disturbance Permit pre-construction meeting. An approved application expires if the permit is not issued within 180 days of City approval, unless the Building Official grants a written extension of up to 180 days, and an application can be canceled if the applicant does not answer a request for corrections within 180 days.

Inspections in Ferndale

Inspections are requested through “My Inspections” in the SmartGov Online Permit Center, which also posts the inspection schedule and results. Under FMC 15.04.200 a re-inspection fee can be charged when work is not ready, corrections are not made or the approved plans are not on site (not for a first rejection); a re-inspection needs 24 hours’ notice and the fee paid first. L&I books and performs the electrical inspections separately.

The permit holder must keep the permit active; the City sends no reminders. A permit lapses if work does not start within 180 days of issuance, or if 180 days pass without an inspection or documented progress. The Building Official may grant extensions requested in writing within that period; the first is free and later ones cost $100 plus staff time. An expired permit can be reinstated once, within 12 months of the last approved activity and only if neither the plans nor the code edition has changed, for half of the original building permit fee; after that a new permit and new fees are needed. The first certificate of occupancy, or temporary certificate, is included in the permit fee.

Ferndale permit search and official resources

Anyone can look up permits, applications and inspection results through the Online Permit Center’s advanced search, and its activity map shows construction around the city. Older files and plans are requested through the City’s public records portal. Ferndale takes part in the National Flood Insurance Program as community 530201; the FEMA map now in effect for its Nooksack River flood hazard area dates from January 18, 2019.

• Ferndale SmartGov Online Permit Center
• SmartGov document library: applications, checklists and fee sheets
• 2026 Unified Fee Schedule (PDF)
• Single-family new construction permit fees for 2026 (PDF)
• Impact fees and connection fees
• Starting a project: common, discretionary and major projects
• FMC chapter 15.04, codes adopted and permit rules
• Floodplain management
• Public records request portal
• Whatcom County on-site sewage (septic) program
• L&I list of cities with their own electrical permits

Ferndale building permit FAQ

Who issues building permits in Ferndale?

The City’s Community Development Department at City Hall, 2095 Main Street (360-685-2379), through the SmartGov Online Permit Center.

How much is a building permit for a new house in Ferndale?

For a house valued at $350,000, the 2026 permit fee is $2,393.75 and the plans check $1,555.94, plus the $6.50 state fee and $13 archiving fee; connection and impact fees come on top.

Do I need a permit for a shed or a fence in Ferndale?

Not under the building code for a one-story shed of up to 200 sq ft or a fence up to 7 feet; zoning rules still apply, and fences must be shown with their heights on any site plan you file.

Can I pay impact fees later?

For a new house, yes in part: the deferment option lets you pay half of the connection, storm and impact fees at issuance and the rest before the final inspection. School impact fees cannot be deferred.

How long does a Ferndale permit stay valid?

Work must start within 180 days of issuance and pass an inspection at least every 180 days. One reinstatement within 12 months is allowed at half the original permit fee.

How do I schedule an inspection?

Through My Inspections in the SmartGov portal; re-inspections need 24 hours’ notice and payment of the re-inspection fee.

Simplify Ferndale permitting with Alliance Permitting

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