Derry building department

Derry’s Code Enforcement / Building Department handles building, electrical, plumbing, well, septic, sign, and demolition permits, inspections, zoning enforcement, and the yearly licensing and inspection of mobile home parks for the Town of Derry. The office is in the Derry Municipal Center at 14 Manning Street, which is open Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Town lists its code edition as the 2021 codes.

Mechanical, gas-piping, and oil-burner permits are not building permits in Derry. They go to Derry Fire Administration at (603) 432-6751, and the Town asks applicants not to file them through the building application.

Applying through PermitEyes

Building permit applications are only accepted online, through the Town’s PermitEyes portal. Create a username and password, choose New application, and pick the permit type from the drop-down on the first page: Chimney, Commercial, Demolition, Electrical, New Residential, Plumbing, Residential Additions and Renovations, Septic Installation, Sign, or Well. Plot plans and supporting documents are uploaded in the portal, and inspectors and office staff correspond with you by email through it. Allow pop-ups in your browser. Password resets go through the software vendor at [email protected].

Choose Residential Additions and Renovations for accessory dwelling units, breezeways, decks, family rooms, farmer’s porches, garages, gazebos, replacement and temporary mobile homes, renovations, roof-pitch or other structural changes, above-ground and in-ground pools, screen porches, three-season rooms, sheds, and new or resized windows. Solar arrays have their own Solar Array System type plus a separate electrical permit, and the Certificate of Completion must be left on site for the inspector to sign.

Since January 1, 2022, Derry requires every required document to be in hand before you submit, whether online or in person. The Town asks you to wait to apply if the project is several months away. An application is treated as abandoned 180 days after filing unless it is being pursued in good faith or a permit has been issued; the building official can grant written extensions of up to 180 days each.

Fire Prevention plan review

New houses, residential additions that add sleeping rooms, and all commercial projects need two filings: the building permit with Code Enforcement and a separate plan-review application with the Derry Fire Prevention Bureau, which uses its own online permitting system. The Fire Prevention page also publishes the Town’s Chapter 51 Fire Prevention Code, its cistern regulations, and the fire department fee schedule.

What needs a permit in Derry

The Town’s list of work that needs a building permit includes:

• new construction and additions (residential, commercial, industrial)
• attached or detached garages
• interior renovations
• new or replacement decks and screen porches
• sheds of any size
• above-ground and in-ground pools
• new or replacement wells and septic systems
• chimneys, demolition, and new or replacement signs

Derry publishes these exceptions:

Work	Permit?
Fences	No permit and no regulations; the Town suggests setting the fence about 2 feet inside your line so you can maintain it
Replacement windows, same size	No, unless you add windows, resize openings, or change framing
Re-shingling a roof	No, unless you replace sheathing, change pitch, extend eaves, or make other structural changes
Replacing siding and trim	No, unless you replace sheathing, add or change doors or windows, or make structural changes

Electrical and plumbing: licensed trades or resident owners

Electrical and plumbing permits can only be pulled by a New Hampshire licensed Master Electrician or Master Plumber. The exception is a property owner who lives in the home as a primary residence. That owner files a notarized Homeowner Affidavit with a copy of a driver’s license and a diagram of the proposed work, which the building inspector must approve before work starts. Homeowner plumbing applicants must also come into the office in person. One affidavit covers the whole project.

Paying for and receiving the permit

After review and internal sign-offs, you get an email saying the permit is ready for payment. Credit cards are accepted only through the online system; permits paid that way are issued the next business day. At the counter the office takes checks payable to the Town of Derry or exact cash, since there is no cash register. No work may start until the permit is issued, and no inspection happens until it is paid.

Scheduling inspections

Inspections are booked by phone at (603) 432-6148, with at least 24 hours’ notice. They are usually set for the next business day, but in busy periods scheduling can take from a few days to a week, so the Town suggests calling ahead for the date you need.

Records, flood zones, and septic plans

• Permit reports: Derry posts yearly building-permit reports from 2017 onward on its Building Permit Reports page.
• Flood zones: Staff will not issue letters on whether a property is in a flood zone. Use the Town’s online GIS map, which has 100-year and 500-year flood layers, or review the FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Maps for Rockingham County (effective May 17, 2005) in the building office. An elevation certificate has to come from a licensed land surveyor.
• Septic plans: Copies of septic designs on file can be emailed on request. Put “septic request” and the property address in the subject line and allow three business days. Systems built before 1967 may have no plan on file; newer designs may also be available from NHDES.

The Zoning Board and Planning Board are listed under the Town’s Planning Department, not the building office.