Outside its incorporated towns, Mason County requires a county building permit under its 2017 Building Permit Ordinance for any site preparation, development, renovation, construction or relocation of a building, including manufactured housing. The Addressing & Permitting Office of the Office of Emergency Services (304-675-8686) takes applications through an online portal; a house costs $25, or $50 in a flood zone, and work under $1,000 still needs a permit but pays no fee. Point Pleasant applies its own building code and floodplain permits.
What requires a permit in Mason County?
The Building Permit Ordinance, approved by the County Commission on June 29, 2017, covers all unincorporated areas of the county. A permit from the county Permit Officer must be in hand before any of this work starts:
Buildings
- New houses and apartment buildings
- Mobile and other manufactured homes
- Renovations and improvements that add usable space or raise a building’s value
- Garages, sheds, barns and other detached buildings
- Commercial buildings, campgrounds and mobile home parks
- Moving a building or structure
Site work
- Site preparation and development
- Filling, grading, paving, excavation or drilling
- Altering a natural waterway or drainage course
- Subdivisions
A job whose total cost of materials and labor is under $1,000 still needs the permit, but the fee is waived. In a mapped flood area the county Floodplain Ordinance applies as well. Work that affects a stream also needs a permit, or a written statement that none is required, from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Huntington office, 304-529-5710) and the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources Public Lands Corporation (304-558-3225). Septic systems are permitted by the Mason County Health Department.
Who issues permits in Mason County?
The Permit Officer is appointed by the County Commission, and applications go to the Addressing & Permitting Office of the Mason County Office of Emergency Services, which also assigns 911 addresses. The county Floodplain Ordinance names the OES Director and Deputy Director as Floodplain Administrators. The county posts no building code adoption, and the permit ordinance leaves compliance with all other local, state and federal codes to the property owner.
Short on time to read all of this?
Get a free quote →| Office | Contact |
|---|---|
| Addressing & Permitting Office, Office of Emergency Services | 911 Emergency Drive, Point Pleasant, 304-675-8686, Monday to Friday 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. |
| Mason County Commission | 200 Sixth Street, Point Pleasant, WV 25550, 304-675-1110 |
| Mason County Health Department (septic) | 216 Fifth Street, Point Pleasant, 304-675-3050, weekdays 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. |
The ordinance excludes the corporate limits of Point Pleasant, Henderson, Mason, Hartford City and New Haven. Leon, the county’s sixth incorporated town, is not named in that list, though the permit is written for unincorporated land.
| Town | Who to ask |
|---|---|
| Point Pleasant | City of Point Pleasant, 400 Viand Street, 304-675-2360: the City has adopted the State Building Code and runs its own floodplain permits |
| New Haven | Town office, PO Box 217, 304-882-3203 (weekdays 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.); no permit rules or code posted; floodplain contact on the state list 304-919-3068 |
| Mason | Town office, 656 Second Street, 304-773-5200, which the state list also gives as its floodplain contact; no permit rules or code posted |
| Hartford City | Town office, PO Box 96, Hartford, 304-882-2806 (Monday to Thursday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.); floodplain contact on the state list 304-593-0382 |
| Leon | No town website; floodplain contact on the state list 304-812-7070, with the county OES as alternate; ask OES (304-675-8686) whether the county permit applies |
| Henderson | No town website, no posted code and no entry on the state floodplain manager list |
Floodplain contacts come from the WV Flood Tool floodplain managers list dated October 24, 2025, which also names the county OES as the alternate contact for Mason and New Haven.
Applying for the Mason County building permit
The Addressing & Permitting Office takes applications through its Secure Online Permit Portal, linked from its Address and Permits page, and the county’s Development Permit Application form is also posted on the Commission website. Under the ordinance an application gives the applicant, landowner and contractor, the physical address assigned by Mason County 911, a short description with the estimated cost, and a site plan, plus floodplain forms where they apply. For new buildings and additions the form also asks for the frame type, heating fuel, stories, floor area, bedrooms, bathrooms and rooms, and how sewage and water will be supplied.
Not sure this scope needs a permit?
Get a free quote →Once issued, the permit placard, showing the permit number and issue date and signed by the Permit Officer, must stay on display while work is under way, and nothing in the application or plans may change without the Permit Officer’s written approval. The form also reminds applicants to call Miss Utility of West Virginia (1-800-245-4848) between 48 hours and ten days before any digging.
Mason County building permit fees
Fees are set in Section 3.6 of the 2017 Building Permit Ordinance and repeated on the Address and Permits page. Pay by check or money order to The County Commission of Mason County.
| Project | Fee |
|---|---|
| Any project with a total cost under $1,000 | No fee (permit still required) |
| Single-family dwelling | $25; $50 inside a flood zone |
| Multi-family dwelling, such as an apartment complex | $100; $150 inside a flood zone |
| Detached garage, storage shed or similar building | $25; $50 inside a flood zone |
| Barn or detached building, personal or hobby use | $25; $50 inside a flood zone |
| Barn or detached building, business or for-profit use | $75; $100 inside a flood zone |
| Subdivision, “2 acres or 5 lots and more” | $250 plus $25 per lot or unit |
| Subdivision, “2 acres or 5 lots and less” | $150 plus $25 per lot or unit |
| Campground or mobile home park | $250 plus $25 per lot or unit |
| Business, 0 to 2 acres and/or 1 to 3,000 sq ft | $250 |
| Business, 2.1 to 4 acres and/or 3,001 to 6,000 sq ft | $500 |
| Business, 4.1 to 10 acres and/or 6,001 to 10,000 sq ft | $750 |
| Business, 10.1 acres or more and/or 10,001 sq ft or more | $1,000 |
As printed, both subdivision bands include a site of exactly 2 acres or 5 lots; ask the office which rate applies at that size.
Rather talk it over?
Call 1-855-478-4290 →What to attach to a Mason County application
Every application
- Names and addresses of the applicant, landowner and contractor
- Copies of the contractor’s licence, proof of workers’ compensation coverage and a certificate of insurance
- The physical address assigned by Mason County 911
- A short description of the project and its estimated cost
- A site plan with the size and location of the project and any existing buildings (it need not be to scale but must show dimensions)
In the floodplain
- The floodplain forms required by the Floodplain Ordinance
- A copy of the floodplain map with the property marked
- An elevation certificate, or a floodproofing certificate for a non-residential building that is not elevated
- Corps of Engineers and Public Lands Corporation permits or statements for stream work
How to get a Mason County permit: 6 steps
The county permit covers unincorporated land; inside Point Pleasant apply to the City, and in the other towns ask town hall.
The application needs the physical address assigned by Mason County 911, which the same Addressing & Permitting Office issues.
Look the property up on the WV Flood Tool and print the map with the site marked.
Apply to the Mason County Health Department for a septic system, and to the Corps of Engineers and Public Lands Corporation if a stream is affected.
Submit through the Secure Online Permit Portal with the site plan and contractor documents, and pay by check or money order to The County Commission of Mason County.
Display the permit placard on site and contact Miss Utility of West Virginia at 1-800-245-4848 at least 48 hours ahead.
Rather not deal with the Mason County building department?
Get a free quote →Inspections, appeals and penalties
During construction, the Permit Officer or another authorized official may inspect the site to see that the work matches the application and the law. If it does not, or the application was false, the Permit Officer revokes the permit and reports it to the County Commission.
A Permit Officer’s decision can be appealed in writing to the County Commission within 30 days, and the Commission holds a hearing 10 to 30 days after receiving the appeal. A violation carries a fine of $50 to $500 plus prosecution costs, each day counts as a separate offense, and the Commission may declare non-compliant work a public nuisance.
Floodplain rules that shape Mason County projects
County floodplain ordinance: the Mason County Floodplain Ordinance, passed on second reading in October 2013, requires new, relocated and substantially improved homes in the special flood hazard area to have the lowest floor, including the basement, ductwork and utilities, 2 feet above the base flood elevation. Non-residential buildings may be elevated the same way or made watertight up to 2 feet above it, and manufactured homes also need the lowest floor, ductwork and utilities 2 feet above it. The county’s older Development Permit Application still prints “at least as high as” the base flood elevation and 1 foot for floodproofing; the 2013 ordinance is the adopted rule.
Point Pleasant: the City’s floodplain ordinance requires a permit or certificate of compliance from its Floodplain Administrator for any development, new building, substantial improvement or manufactured home in the city, sets elevation at 2 feet above the base flood elevation, and asks for signed contracts to be shown to the Floodplain Administrator within five business days.
Septic: the Mason County Health Department at 216 Fifth Street in Point Pleasant issues septic permits; the county form asks whether the building will use public sewer or a private system.
West Virginia building code
West Virginia lets each county and city adopt the State Building Code or no building code at all; no other building code may be adopted, and floodplain, sewage and fire rules can apply either way. West Virginia rules
Official Mason County permitting resources
County, city and state pages:
Want this handled start to finish?
Get a free quote →- Mason County Addressing & Permitting Office: fees, hours and forms
- Mason County Secure Online Permit Portal
- Mason County Building Permit Ordinance (2017)
- Mason County Floodplain Ordinance (2013)
- Mason County Address Ordinance
- Mason County Development Permit Application
- Mason County Commission website
- Mason County Commission contacts
- Mason County Health Department
- City of Point Pleasant: local contacts, including county offices
- Point Pleasant code Article 1707, State Building Code
- Point Pleasant code Article 1721, floodplain ordinance
- Town of New Haven
- Town of Mason
- Town of Hartford City
- West Virginia Flood Tool
- WV Flood Tool floodplain managers list (October 2025)
- West Virginia Code 15A-11-5, State Building Code
- State Fire Marshal laws and rules
Inspections are where schedules slip.
Get a free quote →Mason County permit FAQs
Does Mason County, WV issue building permits?
Yes, in unincorporated areas. The 2017 Building Permit Ordinance requires a county building permit for site preparation, development, renovation, improvement, construction or relocation of any building, including manufactured housing. Apply to the Addressing & Permitting Office of the Office of Emergency Services (304-675-8686).
Do I need a permit to place a mobile home in Mason County?
Yes. Manufactured housing is named in the ordinance, and in the floodplain the lowest floor, ductwork and utilities must be 2 feet above the base flood elevation.
How much is a Mason County building permit?
$25 for a single-family house or a detached garage or shed, or $50 inside a flood zone. Work costing under $1,000 pays no fee but still needs the permit, and business permits run from $250 to $1,000 depending on acreage or floor area.
Who issues building permits in Point Pleasant?
The City of Point Pleasant, which has adopted the State Building Code and its own floodplain ordinance. City Hall is at 400 Viand Street (304-675-2360).
Who issues septic permits in Mason County?
The Mason County Health Department, 216 Fifth Street, Point Pleasant (304-675-3050).
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More West Virginia permitting guides
This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Mason County permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.