Bismarck building & ADU permits
Recent permit activity, updated continuously.
Bismarck is North Dakota's state capital, regulating ADUs locally as the state has no statewide mandate. Igni filters the city's ArcGIS feed to residential and commercial building permits, which carry a native site-ZIP column, and normalizes them into typed, classified records.
Igni is tracking 1,348 residential and building permits in Bismarck, ND — including 1 classified accessory-dwelling-unit (ADU) filing. The most active ZIP is 58503. The most recent filing Igni tracked was Oct 28, 2026. All records come from City of Bismarck Open Data (ArcGIS), an official government open-data feed, and are refreshed continuously.
1348
Permits tracked
1
ADU permits
3
Distinct ZIP codes
Oct 28, 2026
Newest permit
Recent permits
A sample of the freshest permits in this jurisdiction — ZIP and city only (no street addresses).
| ZIP | Permit type | ADU type | Valuation | Applied |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 58504 | Commercial | — | $1,089,670 | Oct 21, 2026 |
| 58503 | Residential | — | $397,055 | Oct 22, 2026 |
| 58503 | Residential | — | $24,553 | Oct 22, 2026 |
| 58503 | Residential | — | $385,769 | Oct 22, 2026 |
| 58503 | Residential | — | $383,761 | Oct 22, 2026 |
| 58503 | Residential | — | $260,905 | Oct 23, 2026 |
| 58503 | Residential | — | $283,807 | Oct 23, 2026 |
| 58503 | Residential | — | $283,807 | Oct 23, 2026 |
| 58503 | Residential | — | $260,905 | Oct 23, 2026 |
| 58503 | Residential | — | $352,854 | Oct 26, 2026 |
| 58503 | Residential | — | $23,226 | Oct 26, 2026 |
| 58501 | Residential | — | $5,380 | Oct 27, 2026 |
| 58504 | Residential | — | $6,176 | Oct 27, 2026 |
| 58501 | Residential | — | $2,268 | Oct 27, 2026 |
| 58504 | Commercial | — | $10,000 | Oct 28, 2026 |
| 58501 | Residential | — | $2,142 | Oct 14, 2026 |
| 58504 | Commercial | — | $750,000 | Oct 14, 2026 |
| 58503 | Residential | — | $7,020 | Oct 15, 2026 |
| 58501 | Residential | — | $5,000 | Oct 15, 2026 |
| 58501 | Residential | — | $4,500 | Oct 16, 2026 |
Top ZIP codes by recent activity
Permit activity in Bismarck
Igni counted 765 permits issued in Bismarck over the last 12 months (Oct 2025 – Sep 2026) — down 17.1% on the 923 in the 12 months before. The forecast expects about 200 over the next 6 months.
Forecast: seasonal naive, typical error ±27% in backtests one to six months ahead. How we forecast
| Permit type | Last 12 months | Year over year | Forecast, next 6 months |
|---|---|---|---|
| All permits | 765 | Down 17.1% | ≈ 200 |
| Residential building | 609 | Down 12.4% | ≈ 157 |
| Commercial building | 156 | Down 31.6% | — |
| Trade (electrical, plumbing, mechanical) | 0 | — | — |
| ADU | 0 | — | — |
Monthly figures
| Month | Permits | 10th–90th percentile |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 2023 | 67 | — |
| Nov 2023 | 41 | — |
| Dec 2023 | 23 | — |
| Jan 2024 | 32 | — |
| Feb 2024 | 43 | — |
| Mar 2024 | 57 | — |
| Apr 2024 | 87 | — |
| May 2024 | 120 | — |
| Jun 2024 | 65 | — |
| Jul 2024 | 80 | — |
| Aug 2024 | 120 | — |
| Sep 2024 | 117 | — |
| Oct 2024 | 90 | — |
| Nov 2024 | 35 | — |
| Dec 2024 | 28 | — |
| Jan 2025 | 31 | — |
| Feb 2025 | 23 | — |
| Mar 2025 | 58 | — |
| Apr 2025 | 80 | — |
| May 2025 | 124 | — |
| Jun 2025 | 74 | — |
| Jul 2025 | 156 | — |
| Aug 2025 | 123 | — |
| Sep 2025 | 101 | — |
| Oct 2025 | 66 | — |
| Nov 2025 | 52 | — |
| Dec 2025 | 18 | — |
| Jan 2026 | 24 | — |
| Feb 2026 | 17 | — |
| Mar 2026 | 64 | — |
| Apr 2026 | 92 | — |
| May 2026 | 114 | — |
| Jun 2026 | 70 | — |
| Jul 2026 | 97 | — |
| Aug 2026 | 66 | — |
| Sep 2026 | 85 | — |
| Oct 2026 (forecast) | ≈ 55 | 32–69 |
| Nov 2026 (forecast) | ≈ 43 | 25–48 |
| Dec 2026 (forecast) | ≈ 15 | 7–17 |
| Jan 2027 (forecast) | ≈ 20 | 10–22 |
| Feb 2027 (forecast) | ≈ 14 | 7–16 |
| Mar 2027 (forecast) | ≈ 53 | 27–59 |
Counts are permits issued per calendar month as Bismarck publishes them to its open-data feed — not a complete census; a change in what the city publishes moves them too. The current month is left out, and the most recent months are provisional. A forecast is a statistical estimate with a range, not a prediction for any project. Informational only.
How long do permits take in Bismarck?
Based on 2,340 Bismarck permits applied for between Nov 2023 and Aug 2026, the typical (median) permit was issued 9 days after application, and the middle half of permits took 4–29 days. One in ten took longer than 93 days.
| Permit type | Median | Typical range | Permits |
|---|---|---|---|
| All permits | 9 days | 4–29 days | 2,340 |
| Residential building | 7 days | 2–18 days | 1,756 |
| Commercial building | 26 days | 14–64 days | 584 |
Typical, not guaranteed: individual permits vary with project scope, application completeness and plan-review workload. Days are calendar days from application to issuance; applications still pending are counted as not-yet-issued rather than dropped. Informational only, not legal advice. How we calculate approval times.
Housing law — North Dakota
Accessory dwelling units in North Dakota are handled locally; with no statewide ADU mandate, requirements vary by city and county.
North Dakota has no statewide upzoning law; residential density is governed by local zoning.
Data source
Sourced from City of Bismarck Open Data (ArcGIS). Public records (no declared open license).
Learn more about ADUs & building permits
Background reading on accessory dwelling units, building permits, and how Igni turns Bismarck permit records into leads.
Bismarck permit data — FAQ
Where does Igni get Bismarck permit data?
How fresh is Bismarck permit data?
How long does it take to get a building permit in Bismarck?
Is construction activity growing in Bismarck?
Does Bismarck allow accessory dwelling units (ADUs)?
Get permit leads — Bismarck
Fresh, filterable residential and ADU permit leads from Bismarck — delivered before your competitors even know.
Informational only, not legal advice. Headline counts reflect all permits Igni has tracked for this jurisdiction; the table shows recent activity. Housing law changes — verify current statutes before relying on this.