Melrose, MA Building Department and Permits

In Massachusetts, most permits are pulled by the licensed contractor doing the work, not the homeowner. For one- and two-family homes the state building code requires a licensed construction supervisor or a registered design professional to oversee construction, and for existing owner-occupied one- to four-family homes the contractor must also be registered with the Home Improvement Contractor program.

The homeowner exception is narrow. The building code lets an owner-occupant of a one- or two-family home apply for a building permit for work on their own home, but it applies to building permits only: electrical work may only be done by a master or journeyman electrician licensed by the state, and plumbing and gas work only by a licensed plumber or gas fitter, each under a permit issued to that licensee. It also has a cost the state warns about directly: a homeowner who pulls the building permit themselves may not be eligible for the Guaranty Fund if the contractor's work goes wrong.

Need a licensed contractor? See HVAC, roofing and other contractors serving Melrose on Mass Home Comfort.

Sources: When is a Construction Supervisor License required?; Massachusetts State Building Code, 780 CMR; HIC Homeowner Resources; Electricians consumer fact sheet; Plumbers and gas fitters consumer fact sheet.

Melrose's Inspectional Services, on the ground floor of City Hall at 562 Main Street, administers the codes for new construction, alterations, accessibility, electrical, plumbing and gas, sprinklers and fire protection, use and occupancy and zoning, and issues permits for everything from additions, decks, roofing, siding, sheds and fences to pools, solar, wood and pellet stoves, signs, tents, chimneys, demolition and HVAC. All permits are applied for on the city's online portal — paper forms exist in the office but are accepted only in extreme circumstances — and the city's permitting guide lists what a complete application carries: the contractor's HIC and CSL, a plot plan where the scope calls for it, an architect's affidavit for a structure over 35,000 cubic feet, design plans, a stretch energy code report for additions and new structures, an accurate construction cost including all sub-trades, and any conservation or historical approval. Melrose is a stretch code community and has adopted the specialized code, reviewing every application against the 2021 IECC; applications submitted from 1 January 2025 must comply with the tenth edition of 780 CMR. Owners of one- and two-family homes may pull their own permit, with the guide's warning that an owner who then hires a contractor may not be protected by the Home Improvement Guaranty Fund. Zoning also requires permits for sheds, fences, driveways and retaining walls that the code itself does not regulate.

Inspections run Monday to Thursday only, with none on Friday, and each is booked by phone on the day it is wanted: building inspections with Stephen Doucet between 8:30 and 9:30 a.m., electrical with Tom Minniear between 8 and 9:30 a.m., and plumbing and gas with Kenny Rogers between noon and 2 p.m. — email is not used for scheduling. Rough plumbing and electrical inspections must both be passed before a building inspection is requested, and solar inspections need the rooftop photos sent as a single PDF beforehand. The office is open Monday to Thursday 8:30 to 4 and Friday 8:30 to 12:30, and the city posts a property building permit history lookup and an ADU submission checklist.

Sources: City of Melrose — Inspection Services; City of Melrose — Permitting guide and common questions; City of Melrose — How to schedule inspections.