Buncombe County building department

Buncombe County Permits and Inspections issues building permits and performs inspections in all unincorporated parts of Buncombe County. Under contracts, it also serves the towns of Biltmore Forest, Weaverville, and Woodfin. The City of Asheville is not in its service area. Asheville runs its own Development Services Department and asks applicants to confirm city jurisdiction on its Simplicity map. Permits are obtained by the property owner or the owner’s agent. The office at 35 Woodfin Street is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. It doesn’t process permit applications or fees after 4 p.m. The program is funded by user fees rather than property taxes.

When a permit is needed

North Carolina law exempts work costing $40,000 or less in a single-family home, farm building, or commercial building, as long as it follows the State Building Code. The county lists six exceptions where a permit is still required:

1. Adding, repairing, or replacing load-bearing structures. Replacing windows, doors, siding, or the pickets, railings, stair treads, and decking of porches and decks is still exempt.
2. Adding or changing the design of plumbing. Replacements that don’t change size or capacity are exempt.
3. Adding, replacing, or changing the design of heating, air conditioning, or electrical equipment. Like-kind replacement of electrical devices and light fixtures is exempt.
4. Using materials the State Building Code doesn’t permit.
5. Adding roofing. Replacement doesn’t count.
6. Any change covered by the NC Fire Prevention Code.

The NC Office of State Fire Marshal has published a guidance memo on these exceptions. Contracted work over $40,000 per project requires a North Carolina general contractor license.

What the county permits

The Permitting Division reviews plans and issues permits for single-family homes, duplexes, log homes, modular and manufactured homes, moved houses, residential accessory buildings, decks, commercial buildings, change of use, day cares, signs, ABC license inspections, and demolitions. For demolitions, also contact the Asheville-Buncombe Air Quality Agency at 828-250-6777. The fee schedule is posted on the department’s website. Tenants or owners can also request a rental-property inspection against the state’s fit-premises law (NCGS 42-42).

Site plan review comes first

In unincorporated Buncombe County, any land with a zoning district needs a Certificate of Zoning Compliance before a building permit. Areas in overlay districts, such as the Steep Slope Overlay, also need one. Some development in the Open Use district with no overlay may not need it. You get the zoning permit by filing a Site Plan Review (SPR) application in the county portal.

SPR routes your plan to every division that applies: zoning, flood, watershed, erosion and stormwater, hillside, retaining walls, exterior lighting, the Fire Marshal, and E-911 addressing. In an incorporated town, you must first get a zoning approval letter from that town. The SPR fee is $25, and each review takes at least five business days. Once the SPR is approved, you apply to Permits and Inspections for the building permits.

Electronic plan files must be PDF, up to 100 MB. Every page needs a sheet number or bookmark, page sizes must be between 8.5 by 11 inches and 36 by 48 inches, and site plans need a north arrow. Building plan resubmittals need a response letter from the design professional that answers every hold.

Helene “Reduce to Rebuild” fee waiver

The county waives 100% of planning and permitting fees for repairing or rebuilding primary residences damaged by Helene. The FY2027 budget extended the program through June 30, 2027. The home must be documented as destroyed or as having major, moderate, or minor damage in a county or federal assessment. Covered permits include residential additions and renovations, retaining walls, watershed permits, demolition reviews, and existing septic system inspections. The waiver doesn’t cover home expansions.

Inspections

The Inspection Division has building, electrical, mechanical, and plumbing inspectors. To schedule online, you need a registered account in the county’s Accela portal. Open the permit record, choose Inspections, and pick a type and date. Inspections can be booked for the next business day or up to five business days out. They happen between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. on weekdays, excluding holidays, and the county can’t guarantee a time. Every inspection is listed as optional in the portal, but it’s your job to know which ones your project requires. Call 828-250-5360 if you’re unsure.

A zoning inspection is required before a certificate of occupancy or temporary CO. Request it at least five business days before you ask Permits and Inspections for the CO. All decks, porches, steps, and roof overhangs must be finished first. The county suggests requesting it after a passed framing inspection.

Expiration and codes

A permit expires six months after issue if work hasn’t started. It also expires if work stops for 12 months after the last inspection. See permit expiration and extensions. The department enforces the NC State Building Code. The NC Office of State Fire Marshal’s code page lists the 2018 NC codes as current.