Tacoma building & ADU permits
Recent permit activity, updated continuously.
Tacoma sits on Puget Sound south of Seattle and falls under Washington's HB 1337 ADU rules and HB 1110 middle-housing law, which scale density requirements by city size. Igni pulls Tacoma permits from the city's ArcGIS open data, released as public records under the Washington Public Records Act.
Igni is tracking 2,367 residential and building permits in Tacoma, WA — including 45 classified accessory-dwelling-unit (ADU) filings. The most active ZIP is 98404. The most recent filing Igni tracked was Nov 1, 2026. All records come from City of Tacoma ArcGIS open data (Esri), an official government open-data feed, and are refreshed continuously.
2367
Permits tracked
45
ADU permits
14
Distinct ZIP codes
Nov 1, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 98403 | Residential | — | $25,550 | Nov 1, 2026 |
| 98403 | Residential | — | $43,000 | Oct 30, 2026 |
| 98407 | Residential | — | $0 | Oct 30, 2026 |
| 98407 | Residential | — | $0 | Oct 30, 2026 |
| 98405 | Residential | — | $200,000 | Oct 30, 2026 |
| 98409 | Residential | — | $12,000 | Oct 30, 2026 |
| 98408 | Residential | — | $14,125 | Oct 30, 2026 |
| 98408 | Residential | — | $16,774 | Oct 30, 2026 |
| 98465 | Residential | — | $13,500 | Oct 29, 2026 |
| 98409 | Residential | — | $10,000 | Oct 29, 2026 |
| 98409 | Residential | — | $0 | Oct 29, 2026 |
| 98406 | Residential | — | $50,000 | Oct 29, 2026 |
| 98407 | Residential | — | $136,000 | Oct 29, 2026 |
| 98404 | Residential | — | $450,000 | Oct 28, 2026 |
| 98405 | Residential | — | $22,861 | Oct 28, 2026 |
| 98407 | Residential | — | $37,905 | Oct 28, 2026 |
| 98409 | Residential | — | $3,170 | Oct 28, 2026 |
| 98409 | Residential | — | $16,032 | Oct 28, 2026 |
| 98405 | Residential | — | $7,479 | Oct 28, 2026 |
| 98408 | Residential | — | $14,000 | Oct 28, 2026 |
Top ZIP codes by recent activity
ADU types in the recent set
Permit activity in Tacoma
Igni counted 3,214 permits issued in Tacoma over the last 12 months (Oct 2025 – Sep 2026) — up 13.7% on the 2,826 in the 12 months before. The forecast expects about 1,608 over the next 6 months.
The source's volume stepped up around October 2022 (×1.8) — likely a change in what the city publishes, so we don't compare year over year across it.
Forecast: trailing mean, typical error ±14% in backtests one to six months ahead. How we forecast
| Permit type | Last 12 months | Year over year | Forecast, next 6 months |
|---|---|---|---|
| All permits | 3,214 | Up 13.7% | ≈ 1,608 |
| Residential building | 1,185 | Up 15.3% | ≈ 594 |
| Commercial building | 0 | —* | — |
| Trade (electrical, plumbing, mechanical) | 2,029 | Up 12.8% | ≈ 1,014 |
| ADU | 27 | —* | — |
* No year-over-year figure: the source's volume for this permit type stepped up within the last two years — likely a change in what the city publishes — so the two 12-month windows are not comparable.
Monthly figures
| Month | Permits | 10th–90th percentile |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 2023 | 297 | — |
| Nov 2023 | 269 | — |
| Dec 2023 | 207 | — |
| Jan 2024 | 235 | — |
| Feb 2024 | 222 | — |
| Mar 2024 | 217 | — |
| Apr 2024 | 245 | — |
| May 2024 | 242 | — |
| Jun 2024 | 261 | — |
| Jul 2024 | 279 | — |
| Aug 2024 | 233 | — |
| Sep 2024 | 249 | — |
| Oct 2024 | 243 | — |
| Nov 2024 | 230 | — |
| Dec 2024 | 274 | — |
| Jan 2025 | 258 | — |
| Feb 2025 | 225 | — |
| Mar 2025 | 251 | — |
| Apr 2025 | 212 | — |
| May 2025 | 226 | — |
| Jun 2025 | 207 | — |
| Jul 2025 | 273 | — |
| Aug 2025 | 221 | — |
| Sep 2025 | 206 | — |
| Oct 2025 | 303 | — |
| Nov 2025 | 207 | — |
| Dec 2025 | 254 | — |
| Jan 2026 | 220 | — |
| Feb 2026 | 243 | — |
| Mar 2026 | 284 | — |
| Apr 2026 | 270 | — |
| May 2026 | 247 | — |
| Jun 2026 | 306 | — |
| Jul 2026 | 282 | — |
| Aug 2026 | 295 | — |
| Sep 2026 | 303 | — |
| Oct 2026 (forecast) | ≈ 268 | 240–337 |
| Nov 2026 (forecast) | ≈ 268 | 246–337 |
| Dec 2026 (forecast) | ≈ 268 | 247–337 |
| Jan 2027 (forecast) | ≈ 268 | 266–345 |
| Feb 2027 (forecast) | ≈ 268 | 268–347 |
| Mar 2027 (forecast) | ≈ 268 | 268–348 |
Counts are permits issued per calendar month as Tacoma 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 Tacoma?
Based on 8,803 Tacoma 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 3–37 days. One in ten took longer than 217 days.
| Permit type | Median | Typical range | Permits |
|---|---|---|---|
| All permits | 9 days | 3–37 days | 8,803 |
| Residential building | 36 days | 18–143 days | 3,549 |
| Trade (electrical, plumbing, mechanical) | 3 days | 1–7 days | 5,254 |
| ADU | 219 days | — | 126 |
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 — Washington
Washington's HB 1337 (2023) requires cities to allow at least two ADUs per lot in urban growth areas, bans owner-occupancy requirements, and limits parking and impact fees.
HB 1110 (2023) ends single-family-only zoning in larger cities, requiring duplex-to-sixplex middle housing scaled by city size, with Puget Sound cities phasing in compliance from 2025.
Tacoma ADU rules
Tacoma allows up to two accessory dwelling units on a residential lot — an interior or attached ADU within the primary home, or a detached ADU (DADU) in the rear yard — regardless of lot size, a change that took effect February 1, 2025. There is no owner-occupancy requirement, so an owner may rent both the main house and the ADU.
Detached units are generally limited to about 1,000 square feet of living area, and no off-street parking is required for an ADU; any parking that is provided must be reached from the rear and cannot displace the primary home's required spaces. Typical detached-ADU siting allows a modest side setback and no setback from an alley, though exact figures are set by the zoning code. ADUs are handled through the building-permit process rather than a discretionary land-use hearing.
These rules come from 'Home in Tacoma' Phase 2 — the city's housing-reform package that replaced single-family-only zoning with low- and mid-scale residential zones and added the two-ADU allowance (Tacoma Municipal Code 13.06.150), implementing Washington's HB 1337 and HB 1110. Tacoma also publishes a pre-approved detached-ADU program to streamline permitting.
This is an informational summary — verify current rules with the city's planning/permitting department; not legal advice.
See also: Washington ADU law and what is an ADU?
Data source
Sourced from City of Tacoma ArcGIS open data (Esri). Public records (WA Public Records Act).
Nearby cities — Washington
Learn more about ADUs & building permits
Background reading on accessory dwelling units, building permits, and how Igni turns Tacoma permit records into leads.
Tacoma permit data — FAQ
Where does Igni get Tacoma permit data?
How fresh is Tacoma permit data?
How long does it take to get a building permit in Tacoma?
Is construction activity growing in Tacoma?
Does Tacoma allow accessory dwelling units (ADUs)?
Get permit leads — Tacoma
Fresh, filterable residential and ADU permit leads from Tacoma — 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.