Building permits in Nashville, Tennessee
Of the 10 common home projects we have verified in Nashville, 7 need a permit outright and 1 depends on size or scope. Click any project for the full rule, fee, and how to apply.
By Mario Bailey Last checked · 2 official sources
Verified against official sources- Project types verified
- 10
- in Nashville
2 things Nashville does not make you permit
Worth knowing before you call anyone. Most jurisdictions we cover require all of these.
- Fence Permit
No permit required for this work.
- Roof Replacement Permit
No permit required for this work.
Metro Nashville Codes and Building Safety Department
- 800 President Ronald Reagan Way, 1st Floor, Nashville, TN 37210
- Phone: 615-862-6500
- Email: codes.permitting@nashville.gov
- Official permit page
- Permit portal
- Official fee schedule
Look up a permit in Nashville
Nashville permit records are public, and you can check a property's permit history online.
What needs a permit in Nashville
Of the 10 common home projects we have verified in Nashville, 7 need a permit outright and 1 depends on size or scope. Click any project for the full rule, fee, and how to apply.
| Project | Permit needed? | Threshold | Typical fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deck Permit | Permit required | Not specified | Billed as a residential building permit at $5 per $1,000 of total valuation plus a $25... |
| Electrical Permit | Permit required | Not specified | Flat minimum of $75 per permit with itemized add-on charges for circuits, panels... |
| Fence Permit | No permit needed | Not specified | No permit fee |
| HVAC Permit | Permit required | Not specified | Flat minimum of $75 per gas/mechanical permit plus $32 per 100,000 Btuh or fraction for... |
| Patio Permit | Permit required | Not specified | Uses the same residential building permit rate as decks, $5 per $1,000 of valuation plus... |
| Plumbing Permit | Permit required | Not specified | Flat minimum of $75 per permit plus $11 per plumbing fixture, per Metro Code 16.12.220... |
| Pool Permit | Permit required | Not specified | Billed as a residential building permit at $5 per $1,000 of valuation plus a $25 zoning... |
| Roof Replacement Permit | No permit needed | Not specified | Roof work beyond normal maintenance (repairs over 33 percent of roof area) is billed as... |
| Shed Permit | It depends | accessory structures 100 sq ft or larger require a permit; structures under 100 sq ft may not require a permit | Sheds of 100 sq ft or more are billed as a residential building permit at $5 per $1,000... |
| Solar Permit | Permit required | Not specified | $75 minimum permit fee |
Planning a project in Nashville?
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Schedule an inspection in Nashville
Permitted work is not finished until it passes inspection. Codes and Building Safety has a dedicated Requesting an Inspection page.
Schedule or request a Nashville inspection
When the portal will not take the date you need, the office still books by phone: 615-862-6500.
Checked . If the office has changed its process, report it.
Nashville permit fees compared with nearby Tennessee localities
| Tennessee locality | Deck Permit | HVAC Permit | Electrical Permit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nashville | Billed as a residential building permit at $5 per $1,000... | Flat minimum of $75 per gas/mechanical permit plus $32 per... | Flat minimum of $75 per permit with itemized add-on... |
| Memphis | CONSTRUCTION/REPAIR/ALTERATION TO DECKS, SPAS AND SIMILAR... | M-0 fee issuance cost per permit $20.00, M-3.1 fee for the... | E-0 fee issuance cost per permit $20.00, E3.1 minimum fee... |
| Williamson County | Deck permits follow the county's general building permit... | Mechanical Permit Fee Schedule: $10.00 permit fee plus... | State-issued via the TN CORE system: a $5 issuing fee plus... |
Each cell is the opening clause of that Tennessee jurisdiction's own fee schedule; the full wording and source sit on each permit page.
Nashville permit questions, answered from the data
- Do you need a permit in Nashville?
- For most projects, yes. Of the 10 permit types we have verified for Nashville, 7 always require a permit (for example a deck permit), 1 depends on size or scope (a shed permit, for instance), and 2 need no permit at all in Nashville. Each Nashville permit type's page states the exact rule and its source.
- How much does a permit cost in Nashville?
- Nashville publishes a fee for 10 of the 10 permit types we cover, each quoted on its page from the jurisdiction's own schedule (linked on every page that carries one). Fees are set by Metro Nashville Codes and Building Safety Department; we do not estimate or mark them up.
- Where do you apply for a permit in Nashville?
- Metro Nashville Codes and Building Safety Department issues permits in Nashville, with an online portal for applications, plan uploads and status checks, and takes questions at 615-862-6500. The Nashville official page and portal are linked in the office section above.
How the Nashville pages were verified. 10 permit types, 9 distinct official sources, most recently checked . Every rule is read from Metro Nashville Codes and Building Safety Department or the applicable code and cited on its page; anything we could not confirm for Nashville is marked rather than estimated. How we verify.
Permitting activity in Nashville
In 2024, Nashville authorized permits for 6,799 new residential housing units (2,662 single-family, 4,137 in multi-family buildings), valued at $1.2B , down from 11,158 the year before. That works out to about 10.1 permits per 1,000 residents. It is a useful gauge of how busy the local permit office is.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey, 2024 annual data · population 671,295.
About Nashville
Nashville has about 333,074 housing units. The median home is valued at $383,100, against a median household income of $75,197. About 53% of homes are owner-occupied, and the typical home was built around 1985. Older housing stock usually means more renovation, electrical, and plumbing permits.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2023 5-year.