Permit Clock / Seattle
How long does a building permit take in Seattle?
SDCI construction permits of type New that add at least one housing unit. Window: issued Oct 17, 2025 to Oct 16, 2026.
Typical wait (median)181 days
Middle half of permits130–253days
Slowest one in ten wait at least489days
Permits measured1,148issued in the window
By project type
| Project type | Median days | Middle half | Slowest tenth | Permits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| All new housing permits | 181 | 130–253 | 489 | 1,148 |
Seattle stopped recording the dwelling-unit type on recently issued permits, so the city table cannot split by home type for this window. See Seattle ADU permits for the latest period where the type is recorded.
ADU and DADU permits in Seattle
Is it getting faster?
By ZIP code
| ZIP | Median days | Middle half | Slowest tenth | Permits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 98133 | 152 | 117–226 | 360 | 65 |
| 98199 | 157 | 113–188 | 234 | 45 |
| 98116 | 161 | 119–204 | 211 | 51 |
| 98103 | 165 | 127–221 | 302 | 125 |
| 98115 | 165 | 143–228 | 309 | 135 |
| 98117 | 170 | 134–246 | 401 | 102 |
| 98126 | 171 | 135–214 | 233 | 36 |
| 98105 | 181 | 130–419 | 522 | 59 |
| 98125 | 181 | 117–209 | 245 | 85 |
| 98106 | 206 | 187–338 | 546 | 34 |
| 98108 | 208 | 117–609 | 654 | 58 |
| 98177 | 209 | 172–304 | 419 | 28 |
| 98136 | 217 | 161–243 | 279 | 65 |
| 98118 | 235 | 162–489 | 948 | 89 |
| 98119 | 273 | 214–292 | 1,033 | 50 |
ZIP codes with at least 25 permits in the window, fastest first.
Source: Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections (SDCI), Building Permits (76t5-zqzr). 18 permits with impossible or extreme gaps were excluded. How we calculate this.
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