What needs a building permit? 99 cities compared
We read the published building code of 99 cities across Florida, Texas, Tennessee and Arizona and pulled the permit rule for 17 common home projects — each traced to a numbered ordinance section. Here is where cities agree, where they split, and the strictest lines we found. The numbers below are computed from our dataset and update whenever the data does.
1. Four projects almost always need a permit
Across every city we checked, a handful of projects trigger a permit almost without exception — the work touches structure, gas, or the electrical service, and cities do not leave those to chance.
| Project | Cities requiring a permit |
|---|---|
| Electrical Panel | 100% (96 of 96) |
| ADU (Accessory Dwelling Unit) | 100% (95 of 95) |
| Basement | 100% (74 of 74) |
| Demolition | 100% (60 of 60) |
| Sign | 97% (71 of 73) |
| Short-Term Rental | 96% (25 of 26) |
| Water Heater | 94% (67 of 71) |
| HVAC Replacement | 92% (65 of 71) |
| Roof Replacement | 90% (84 of 93) |
The takeaway for a homeowner: if the job involves an electrical panel, a water heater, a demolition, or a new dwelling unit, assume a permit and budget for it.
2. Sheds are where cities disagree most
A detached shed or accessory structure is the clearest example of local divergence. Most cities set the exemption at 200 square feet (46 of the cities with a numeric cutoff), following the International Residential Code's model figure of 200 sq ft. But the outliers are dramatic.
Strictest shed thresholds
| City | Permit required above |
|---|---|
| Killeen, TX | 20 sq ft |
| Richardson, TX | 40 sq ft |
| North Port, FL | 50 sq ft |
| Pasadena, TX | 100 sq ft |
| Smyrna, TN | 100 sq ft |
| Tampa, FL | 120 sq ft |
Killeen, Texas sets the strictest line we found: a shed over 20 square feet — a box barely 4×5 feet — needs a permit. Richardson follows at 40. At the other end, the most lenient cities let far larger structures go permit-free:
Most lenient shed thresholds
| City | Permit required above |
|---|---|
| San Antonio, TX | 300 sq ft |
| Nolensville, TN | 200 sq ft |
| Goodlettsville, TN | 200 sq ft |
A shed that is exempt in one city needs a permit — and inspections — one town over. This is the single most common way homeowners get the answer wrong: they read a neighbor's experience, not their own city's code.
3. Tree removal is the least predictable
Where structural projects cluster around "yes," tree removal scatters. Of the cities we checked for tree-removal rules, 1 require no permit, 8 require one only for protected species or sizes, and 17 require one for any removal. There is no regional default — a heritage-tree ordinance in one city sits next to a no-rules city.
4. Many cities exempt nothing on pools
Swimming pools carry a safety-barrier rule that most cities are unwilling to waive. Of the cities we checked, 56% (53 of 94) require a permit for a swimming pool at any size, with no small-pool exemption at all.
How the data was gathered
Each rule is extracted from a city's published code of ordinances (via Municode) and, where a state building code applies, layered with that baseline. Every answer is tied to a numbered section and carries a confidence score; low-confidence findings are excluded from the counts above. The full method — including what it can and can't see — is on the methodology page.
Cite or reuse this
You're welcome to cite these findings with a link back to this page. For a specific city's rule, link to that city's page directly — for example the Killeen shed rule — so your readers land on the sourced answer. Questions or a data request for research? Contact us.