Unincorporated Putnam County

County Planning and Development states building permits are required for agricultural, residential, and commercial construction, including additions, remodels, new construction, accessory structures such as storage buildings, carports, barns, detached garages, and swimming pools, plus manufactured homes, DCA modular homes, and existing home relocation.

Note: No public county exempt-work list for ordinary building permits was found in the county permit pages, fee schedule, or permit packets reviewed.

Building code

Putnam County Code section 18-36 adopts by reference the International Building Code, National Electrical Code, International Fuel Gas Code, International Mechanical Code, International Plumbing Code, International Residential Code, International Energy Conservation Code, International Fire Code, International Property Maintenance Code, and International Existing Building Code, with later editions or amendments as required by the Georgia Uniform Codes Act. Georgia DCA publishes the current statewide minimum standard code editions and amendments.

Permit validity

County forms state work must commence within 6 months of issuance and not be abandoned for more than 6 months. If plans are altered or additional work is done, an amended permit must be purchased. A county solar checklist also states permits expire after 6 months if work has not commenced and required inspections are not scheduled, and all work must be completed within 12 months.

Owner-builder

Public forms allow permit documents to be signed by the owner or authorized agent and include owner/contractor responsible-party affidavit language, but no standalone county owner-builder policy page was found.

Contractor requirements

The county requires copies of both the state contractor license and occupational tax certificate with each permit. For state-level contractor licensing information and license verification, use the Georgia Secretary of State.

1. 01
   Determine the permit type from the county Planning and Development forms page, then download the applicable county permit packet.
2. 02
   Obtain prerequisite approvals required by the packet, such as septic approval or location approval from the county health department, sewer approval from EPWSA or Piedmont where applicable, water approval, recorded plat, parcel identification, and driveway permit from Public Works if a new driveway is proposed.
3. 03
   Prepare the required plans and site documentation. Residential packets call for full plan sets plus a digital PDF set; commercial packets call for scaled plan packages and, for larger or specified occupancies, licensed design professional seals and signatures.
4. 04
   Submit the completed packet by email to pdsubmittals@putnamcountyga.us or hand deliver it to the Planning and Development office. The county states incomplete applications will not be processed.
5. 05
   County staff conducts plan review and coordinates any required zoning, environmental health, fire marshal, and land disturbance approvals.
6. 06
   Pay fees once review is complete and before issuance. Separate land disturbance fees and NOI fees apply when land disturbance permitting is triggered.
7. 07
   Do not start work until the permit is issued. County packets state construction may not begin until the building permit is issued.

Typical processing time: Residential/modular plan review may take at least 4 weeks. Commercial/industrial plan review may take at least 3 weeks. A county solar checklist states one- and two-family solar permit reviews are typically completed within 3 to 4 days and commercial/non-residential solar permits in 5 to 6 days, but those timelines are for solar permit review rather than all building permits.

Source: Putnam County Planning and Development ↗

The county fee schedule does not publish a detailed building-permit payment policy. A county solar permit checklist says payments can be made by cash, check, or credit card, including credit card payments by phone.

Fees change periodically. Confirm at the official fee schedule ↗ before budgeting.

• Call (706) 485-1898 (phone)
• Email putnamplanning@putnamcountyga.us (email)

Inspection hours

County offices are generally open Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM.

Typical sequence: County code confirms field inspections during permitted work. Public materials do not publish one universal building inspection sequence for all permit classes. The most specific publicly posted sequence found is from the solar checklist, which lists rough-in and final inspections.

The fee schedule publishes reinspection charges of $55.00 for the first and second reinspections and $110.00 for each additional reinspection.