Garage permits across Texas
Where each city draws the line on garage work. Sort any column — useful if you build across several towns and need to know where the rules change.
Cities compared
28
Always need one
9
Depends on size
5
| Where the line falls | Fee | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Houston | 2,390,125 | Unconfirmed | — | — |
| San Antonio | 1,526,656 | Unconfirmed | — | Permit fee per city fee schedule based on estimated project… |
| Austin | 993,588 | Depends | Over 200 sq ft | — |
| El Paso | 681,723 | Depends | Under 200 | — |
| Corpus Christi | 317,317 | Unconfirmed | — | $0.461 per sq ft, minimum $146.41 (residential new construc… |
| Plano | 293,286 | Depends | Over 120 | Per city's approved building inspections fee schedule; no d… |
| Laredo | 261,260 | Unconfirmed | — | Residential plan-checking fee for enclosed accessory struct… |
| McKinney | 227,526 | Unconfirmed | — | — |
| Grand Prairie | 207,331 | Unconfirmed | — | — |
| Amarillo | 203,729 | Yes | No size threshold in the code | Per Sec. 4-1-21 residential dwelling fee schedule; nonresid… |
| Brownsville | 191,967 | Unconfirmed | — | Residential new construction: base fee $40.00 plus $0.25 pe… |
| Denton | 165,998 | Yes | No size threshold in the code | Fee per permit per schedule established by ordinance of the… |
| Killeen | 160,616 | Yes | Over 20 | — |
| Mesquite | 150,140 | Yes | No size threshold in the code | — |
| Pasadena | 149,617 | Yes | Only storage buildings under 100 sq ft are exempt; garage… | $0.20 per sq ft covered by roof, minimum $50; garages over … |
| Waco | 146,608 | Unconfirmed | — | Fee schedule for building permits approved by city council … |
| Midland | 143,687 | Unconfirmed | — | Per current adopted Fee Schedule |
| Lewisville | 135,983 | Unconfirmed | — | Building permit fees set out in city fee schedule (Sec. 2-2… |
| Round Rock | 135,359 | Unconfirmed | — | Permit fees established by city council resolution; specifi… |
| Abilene | 130,501 | Unconfirmed | — | — |
| Pearland | 129,620 | Depends | Over 200 | Fees established in City of Pearland Code of Ordinances App… |
| College Station | 128,023 | Unconfirmed | — | Residential building permit fee based on heated square foot… |
| League City | 118,456 | Unconfirmed | — | Per city council fee schedule (plan review, permit, and ins… |
| Richardson | 118,221 | Yes | Only one-story detached structures used as tool/storage s… | Per Master Fee Schedule (specific amounts not stated in cod… |
| New Braunfels | 116,477 | Depends | Over 200 sq ft | Residential permit application fee: $50.00; building permit… |
| Conroe | 114,581 | Yes | No size threshold in the code | One- and two-family residential (R3): based on total square… |
| Allen | 113,746 | Yes | Detached accessory structure exemption applies only to sh… | Permit fees established by resolution of City Council; plan… |
| Sugar Land | 109,851 | Yes | No size threshold in the code | — |
“Unconfirmed” means the city's code doesn't state the rule plainly enough to publish. Those city pages link straight to the ordinance section instead.
Why neighboring cities disagree
Every city starts from a model code and then edits it. One town raises the shed cutoff, the next lowers the fence height, a third exempts the structure where its neighbor only exempts repairs to it. None of that is visible from a national article — you have to read each ordinance, which is what these pages do.