Redmond is an eastside technology centre, and it writes the order of its permitting process into its zoning code. Nothing here is discretionary about the order: land use, then civil, then building, with one narrow exception written into the code.
The zoning code governs building and construction procedures and controls where it conflicts with other administrative sections. A Technical Committee makes administrative decisions and can hear pre-application conferences, which are highly recommended for anything beyond the simplest permit type.
This guide covers work inside the Redmond city limits. Unincorporated King County is permitted by the county, and the neighbouring eastside cities administer the state code themselves.
The rainy season is a permitting season here. A city-approved wet weather plan for erosion and sediment control is required for any work anticipated to occur during the rainy season, defined as the first of October to the thirtieth of April. An erosion control bond may be required as part of that plan where work is near critical areas such as wetlands, streams, steep slopes or their buffers, and review carries its own fees.
What requires a building permit in Redmond?
Washington has a mandatory statewide building code. The codes enumerated in chapter 19.27 RCW, the State Building Code Act, are adopted and amended by the State Building Code Council within the Department of Enterprise Services, and they are required in all cities and counties — local government administers and enforces them rather than deciding whether to have them. A city or county may make the state code stricter but cannot opt out of it, and local changes affecting houses or apartments need State Building Code Council approval. So the question in Redmond is not whether a code applies, but which edition is in force and what Redmond Development Services has added to it.
Permit required
- New buildings, additions, alterations and change of occupancy or use
- Structural alterations, load-bearing changes, foundations, decks and retaining walls
- Plumbing work under the Uniform Plumbing Code as adopted by the state
- Mechanical and HVAC change-outs, fuel gas work and ventilation
- Work affecting the Washington State Energy Code envelope or systems
- Re-roofing above the exempt scope, demolition, and work in critical areas
Often exempt
- Ordinary repairs and maintenance replacing materials in kind
- Small accessory structures below the code threshold, where zoning allows
- Painting, flooring, cabinetry and other finish work
- Like-for-like fixture swaps with no alteration to piping
Local amendments, fee schedules and exempt thresholds differ from one jurisdiction to the next, so an exempt list from a neighbouring city is not reliable. An exemption from a building permit is never an exemption from zoning, critical areas review, the energy code or a trade permit. Confirm scope with Redmond Development Services before work starts.
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The sequence is fixed by code. All land use permits required by the zoning code must be obtained before any building or construction permit may be issued, and civil construction drawings must be reviewed and approved before a building permit or clearing and grading permit issues. The single exception is narrow: the administrator may allow building permits for residential structures in the neighbourhood residential district ahead of civil approval where the applicant has executed an agreement with the city
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 programme or Tacoma Power serves the site. Building codes in Washington
Who handles permitting in Redmond?
Development Services runs land use, civil and building review for the city, with a Technical Committee taking administrative decisions and making recommendations to the hearing examiner or council on the more complex review types.
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Department | City of Redmond Development Services |
| Address | 15670 NE 85th Street, Redmond, WA 98052 |
| Phone | (425) 556-2473 |
| Pre-construction meetings | (425) 556-2746, scheduled within five business days of request |
| Wet weather plan | Required for work between the first of October and the thirtieth of April |
| Technical Committee | Makes administrative decisions and hosts pre-application conferences |
| Coordinated Civil Review | Construction and landscape drawings, performance bonds, engineering fees |
| Vesting | Building, electrical, mechanical, plumbing and fire permits vest on accepted complete application |
The Coordinated Civil Review is a substantial process in its own right. It covers review and approval of construction and landscape drawings, collection of performance bonds and development engineering review and inspection fees. Construction drawings must be submitted to the civil drawing checklist and to the conditions of approval in the notice of decision, and reviewed and approved by every applicable division. A kick-off meeting is recommended before submitting.
Submittal standards are precise on the technical side. Clear and grade submittals call for a composite drawing file with no external references, geo-referenced to the state plane coordinate system, with horizontal coordinates shown on at least two exterior boundary corners and electronic files tied to the city’s coordinate system.
In 2025, building permits issued in Redmond authorized 1,278 new privately owned housing units, 159 of them single-family homes, according to the U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey.
Permit types
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Get a free quote →Residential permits
Residential work follows the same sequence, with the one exception allowing building permits in the neighbourhood residential district ahead of civil approval under an executed agreement. Approved mylars must be submitted at least 24 hours before requesting the pre-construction meeting, which is then scheduled within five business days of the request.
How Washington contractor credentials work
A general registration does not let anyone touch the wiring or the pipes. A general contractor needs a licensed electrical contractor and a licensed plumbing contractor for that work, or must hold those licences itself, and each electrical contractor must name a master electrician or a certified administrator. Owners may do their own electrical and plumbing work on their own property, with limits for buildings meant for sale or rent. Verify the registration is active and the bond and insurance current with Redmond Development Services and with the department, because registration lapses are common and an expired registration invalidates the credential the permit relies on.
Commercial permits
Commercial work typically moves through a site plan entitlement decision by the Technical Committee, then Coordinated Civil Review, then building permit review. Pre-application conferences with the Technical Committee are highly recommended for the more involved review types and optional only for the simplest.
Registrations, trade certifications and design professionals
Three credential layers appear on Washington projects: the state contractor registration under chapter 18.27 RCW, which nearly everyone doing the work needs; separate state trade certification for electricians and plumbers, each examined and administered by its own programme; and, on commercial and larger residential work, drawings stamped by a Washington-licensed architect or professional engineer. Confirm what Redmond Development Services requires for the specific building before filing.
Most Washington contractors register with the Department of Labor and Industries (with a surety bond and insurance) rather than holding a licence; electrical and plumbing contractors also need an L&I contractor licence. Contractor licensing in Washington
Redmond permit costs and fees
Redmond fees cover land use review, coordinated civil review including development engineering review and inspection charges, and the building permit itself, with performance bonds collected through the civil process and wet weather plan review carrying its own fees.
Washington sets the code statewide but leaves the fee schedule local, so two jurisdictions on the same edition can price the same project very differently. The electrical fee is the one that most often surprises people, because it is a separate city permit with its own fee. Ask Redmond Development Services for the schedule in force on your filing date, and confirm the electrical route separately.
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Call 1-855-478-4290 →Need a real number for a specific Redmond project? Send us the scope, address and valuation and we will identify the edition in force, the local amendments, the electrical route and the fee categories that will apply.
Fees are set locally, plus a small state permit fee (RCW 19.27.085); the electrical fee goes to whichever body issues the electrical permit. Permit fees in Washington
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 and backflow, plus gas piping (usually on a mechanical or gas permit)
- HVAC installation and change-out, ductwork, venting and commercial kitchen exhaust
- Sprinkler, standpipe and fire alarm work on commercial and multi-family structures
Typically exempt
- Replacing a fixture, switch, receptacle or light with no alteration to wiring or piping
- Clearing a stoppage without replacing or rearranging concealed piping
- Filter, thermostat and routine component service
- Like-for-like appliance repair that does not alter the connection
Plumbing and mechanical permits are local; electrical permits come from the Department of Labor and Industries unless the city runs its own electrical programme or Tacoma Power serves the site. Trade permits in Washington
How to apply for a Redmond building permit
Work anticipated between the first of October and the thirtieth of April needs a city-approved wet weather plan.
One may be required as part of the wet weather plan where work is near wetlands, streams, steep slopes or their buffers.
All land use permits required by the zoning code must be obtained before any building or construction permit may be issued.
Construction and landscape drawings, performance bonds and engineering fees, reviewed by every applicable division.
Composite drawing file with no external references, geo-referenced to the state plane system and tied to the city coordinate system.
Submit approved mylars at least 24 hours ahead; the meeting is scheduled within five business days of the request.
Rather not deal with the building department?
Get a free quote →Review, corrections and what actually causes delay
In Washington the first cause of delay is the energy code, because the state code is its own instrument and more demanding than the international one most designers default to. After that comes critical areas review, which reaches ordinary residential work near wetlands, streams, steep slopes and shorelines and adds its own study and mitigation timeline. Then edition confusion around the switch-over date, when a new state edition takes effect and local amendments change with it. Build review time into the schedule and confirm the checklist with Redmond Development Services before filing.
The state code sets a 180-day default for permit validity, but Redmond may change it, so confirm the expiry on phased or delayed work. Permit validity in Washington
Inspections in Redmond
Where a permit is required, standard checkpoints include footing and foundation, framing, rough-in plumbing and mechanical, insulation and energy code compliance, fire systems on commercial work, and final, with a certificate of occupancy before the building is used. The applicant and the contractors attend the pre-construction meeting with city staff, and the meeting is the gate to breaking ground rather than a formality afterwards.
The city issues its own electrical permits, so electrical inspections are requested from the city rather than from the state.
Do not cover work before the required inspection has been approved. Keep the issued permits — plural — the approved plans and the energy code documentation available on site.
Redmond permit search and official resources
Permit records in Washington are split the same way the permits are. Where Redmond Development Services is the authority for the City of Redmond, it holds the building, plumbing and mechanical records — and the electrical record too, because the city issues its own electrical permits and carries out its own electrical inspections. If you are buying, refinancing or renovating, check both, because a clean local record does not mean the electrical work was ever permitted.
Want this handled start to finish?
Get a free quote →Confirm the edition, the local amendments and the electrical route. Washington sets a mandatory statewide minimum under chapter 19.27 RCW, the edition changes on a three-year cycle, and every jurisdiction may make it stricter. All three questions have to be answered for the parcel and the filing date.
These are the primary sources behind this guide. Codes, fee schedules and procedures change — confirm the position for your filing date.
- Redmond civil site permits
- Redmond Zoning Code 21.76.020, overview of the development process
- Redmond Zoning Code 21.76.050, permit types and procedures
- Redmond applications and forms
- Chapter 19.27 RCW, the State Building Code Act
Frequently asked questions
What is a wet weather plan and do I need one?
A city-approved plan for erosion and sediment control, required for any work anticipated to occur during the rainy season, which the city defines as the first of October to the thirtieth of April. An erosion control bond may be required as part of it where there will be work near critical areas such as wetlands, streams, steep slopes or their buffers.
Can I apply for the building permit before the land use permit?
No. All land use permits required by the zoning code must be obtained before any building or construction permit may be issued, and civil construction drawings must be approved before a building or clearing and grading permit issues.
Is there any exception to that sequence?
One, and it is narrow. The administrator may allow the approval of building permits for residential structures within the neighbourhood residential zoning district in advance of civil construction drawing approval, where the applicant has executed an agreement with the city.
How quickly can I get a pre-construction meeting?
Within five business days of the request. Submit paper copies of the approved mylars to the development services centre at least 24 hours before requesting it, and the applicant and contractors attend with city staff.
Inspections are where schedules slip.
Get a free quote →Which code edition applies?
The state edition as amended by the city. Washington has a mandatory statewide building code. The codes enumerated in chapter 19.27 RCW, the State Building Code Act, are adopted and amended by the State Building Code Council within the Department of Enterprise Services and are required in all cities and counties, so local government administers and enforces them rather than choosing whether to have them. The 2021 editions took effect on the fifteenth of March, 2024 after two delays, and the 2024 editions are dated to take effect on the third of May, 2027. The state adopts a new edition every three years and reviews the codes in two groups, but all of them take effect on the same date (the 2021 codes on 15 March 2024, the 2024 codes on 3 May 2027). A city or county may make the state code stricter but cannot opt out of it; local changes affecting houses or apartments need State Building Code Council approval, and the residential energy code cannot be changed locally.
Who registers my contractor?
The state. Most Washington contractors register rather than hold a licence; electrical and plumbing contractors must also hold an L&I contractor licence. Under chapter 18.27 RCW a contractor registers with the Department of Labor and Industries, files a continuous surety bond of $30,000 as a general contractor or $15,000 as a specialty contractor, and keeps liability insurance on file, renewing every two years. Registration is not a competence test and does not authorise trade work: electrical certification comes under chapter 19.28 RCW and plumbing under chapter 18.106 RCW. The electrical permit comes from the city, which runs its own electrical permits and inspections; elsewhere in Washington the Electrical Program at the Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) usually issues them.
Simplify Redmond permitting with Alliance Permitting
Redmond writes its sequence into code, which means it can be planned exactly. We plan it, including the seven months of rainy season.
Trusted by leading builders, developers, and national contractors — 21+ years of filing in the jurisdictions we write about.
Contractors and builders choose Alliance for Redmond because the work is done by people who have stood at the counter:
- 21+ years of filing, so the edition and the electrical route are settled before submission
- We confirm which state code group governs each part of the work on your filing date
- State contractor registration, bond and insurance verified as active before filing
- Energy code and critical areas documentation prepared rather than discovered in review
- Two inspection queues sequenced so a cover-up never waits on the wrong inspector
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.
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More Washington permitting guides
This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Redmond permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.