Permit Fees in Colorado

Colorado leaves building codes to cities and counties; the state's own housing agency says it plainly: there is no statewide building code. What the state does reach into is energy. Under HB22-1362, any local government updating its building code before July 1, 2026 must adopt an energy code at least as strong as the 2021 IECC with electric-ready and solar-ready provisions, and updates after that date must meet the state's low energy and carbon code. Touching a code in Colorado now drags the energy chapter along with it.

Denver adopted the 2025 Denver Building and Fire Code, built on the 2024 I-codes, in June 2025, and the transition window closed December 31, 2025. Every new submittal files under the 2025 code, with electrical on the 2023 NEC.

Denver's homeowner permits come with conditions. A homeowner permit requires that you own and occupy the single-family home, that your photo ID matches the assessor's records, and that you keep living there for at least a year after the work is done. Trusts and LLCs cannot hold one. Want to do your own electrical, plumbing, or HVAC work? You pass a homeowner exam first; general construction and roofing skip it. The city also caps you at one new single-family construction permit every five years.

Outside Denver, ask who inspects before you ask what it costs. Where a town runs no electrical or plumbing inspection program of its own, those permits come from the state boards through DORA's online permitting system rather than city hall.

Sources: Colorado DOLA on local code adoption · HB22-1362 (energy code floors) · Denver homeowner permits · verified 2026-06