Building permits in Wake County, NC
15,297 permits were filed in Wake County in the last 12 months, and 1,158 in the last 30 days. The most common work: electrical (53%), new build (23%) and accessory structure / ADU (5%).
Wake County issues building permits for unincorporated Wake County. Raleigh, Cary, Morrisville and Garner run their own permitting and have their own pages.
- Last 30 days
- 1,158
- Last 90 days
- 3,816
- Last 12 months
- 15,297
- New single-family home
- $422K
- median construction cost on permits
Permits by month
What's being permitted
Every permit filed in Wake County in the last 12 months, by type of work.
- Electrical8,079 (53%)
- New Build3,553 (23%)
- Accessory Structure / ADU767 (5%)
- Alteration / Remodel744 (5%)
- Deck / Porch721 (5%)
- Pool / Spa243 (2%)
- Addition220 (1%)
- Garage / Carport204 (1%)
Busiest ZIP codes in Wake County
Where the permits are. Each linked ZIP has its own page.
- 275912,126 permits
- 275872,079 permits
- 275451,892 permits
- 276031,043 permits
- 275971,013 permits
- 27614987 permits
- 27571877 permits
- 27613822 permits
- 27606598 permits
- 27539556 permits
- 27615471 permits
- 27592391 permits
Raleigh 4,485 · Wendell 2,297 · Wake Forest 2,163 · Knightdale 1,920 · Zebulon 1,133 · Rolesville 913 · Apex 741 · Willow Spring 403 · Fuquay Varina 334 · Garner 295
Most active contractors in Wake County
Ranked by permits pulled in the last 12 months. Placeholder names like “owner” and “TBD” are left out.
| Contractor | Last 12 months | Last 90 days |
|---|---|---|
| Garman Homes | 381 | 67 |
| Air Experts Heating Cooling LLC | 368 | 87 |
| Ars | 340 | 95 |
| Lennar Carolinas, LLC | 254 | 24 |
| NVR Inc. d/b/a Ryan Homes | 238 | 43 |
| DR Horton INC | 236 | 106 |
| MOF LLC DBA: Michael & Son Services of NC LLC | 232 | 55 |
| Lennar Homes | 223 | 65 |
| DRBHomes | 206 | 36 |
| Meritage Homes | 194 | 2 |
| Starlight Homes | 171 | 8 |
| Weather Master Heating & Air Conditioning, Inc. | 171 | 42 |
Recent permits in Wake County
The latest filings. Permit Search has every one, with the contractor behind it.
| Address | Type | Value | Status | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 539 BRATTON ROCK LN WENDELLWendell | New BuildResidential - New One- and Two-Family Dwelling | $270K | Submitted | |
| 615 BAY FOREST DRKnightdale 27545 | Fence / Retaining WallCommercial Structures other than Buildings | $65K | Submitted | |
| 817 NOLSTEAD CTRaleigh 27614 | ElectricalResidential Trade Permit. Plumbing, Mechanical, or Electrical | $7,500 | In review | |
| 1625 TALL CANE CIRWillow Spring 27592 | ElectricalResidential Trade Permit. Plumbing, Mechanical, or Electrical | $15K | Submitted | |
| 340 FREESTALL DRWake Forest 27587 | New BuildResidential - New One- and Two-Family Dwelling | $118K | Submitted | |
| 8205 SANDYBROOK LNWake Forest 27587 | ElectricalResidential Trade Permit. Plumbing, Mechanical, or Electrical | $1,000 | In review | |
| 342 FREESTALL DRWake Forest 27587 | New BuildResidential - New One- and Two-Family Dwelling | $118K | Submitted | |
| 8417 CROWDER RDRaleigh 27603 | ElectricalResidential Addition | $130K | Submitted | |
| 1210 HERD WAYWake Forest 27587 | New BuildResidential - New One- and Two-Family Dwelling | $118K | Submitted | |
| 1212 HERD WAYWake Forest 27587 | New BuildResidential - New One- and Two-Family Dwelling | $118K | Submitted |
Wake County building permits: common questions
- How many building permits are filed in Wake County?
- 15,297 in the last 12 months and 1,158 in the last 30 days, counting every permit type the office files.
- What kind of construction is most common in Wake County?
- By permit count over the last 12 months: electrical (53%), new homes (23%) and accessory buildings and ADUs (5%).
- Who pulls the most building permits in Wake County?
- Over the last 12 months: Garman Homes (381 permits), Air Experts Heating Cooling LLC (368 permits) and Ars (340 permits). Placeholder names such as "owner" are left out of the ranking.
- What does a new home cost to build in Wake County, going by permits?
- The median construction cost builders declared on new single-family home permits over the last 12 months was $422K, and $308K for townhomes. That is the cost of the building as written on the permit: it leaves out the land, site work and the builder's margin, so it runs well below what a new home sells for.
- How do I look up a building permit in Wake County?
- Search by address, ZIP code or contractor in TarSignal's Permit Search, which covers every permit Wake County has filed in our records. Each property shows its full permit history.
- How often is this page updated?
- Every day. New permits are collected from public records several times a day, and the numbers on this page are rebuilt each morning.
Get the permits, not just the totals
Permit Search has every permit filed in Wake County: the address, the contractor behind it and the permit history of each property. Or get new Wake County permits emailed to you each morning.
From public building permit records, most recent October 2, 2026. Updated daily. Counts include every permit type a jurisdiction files — trade permits (electrical, plumbing, mechanical) as well as building permits — so one project can appear more than once. Values are what the applicant declared, where the jurisdiction records one. We keep improving how we collect each office's permits, so a count that steps up suddenly usually means more complete records, not more construction.