Miami Springs.
The $500 rule
and its long list of exceptions.

Yes, and the City sets out its reasoning. Under the Electrical Code, replacing cabinets means bringing outlets up to current code as to distance, number and GFI protection, so a permit is required for that and for any change to the plumbing configuration. On top of that, the cabinets themselves require a miscellaneous permit so that the installation can be inspected. It is the single most commonly missed permit in a kitchen remodel.

No. The City is specific: the dollar value is based on the Means Manual value and not on the contract price that any particular Contractor may offer, nor on the cost of materials if a homeowner does the work themselves. The threshold measures the work, not the invoice, so a low quote does not move a job across the line.

No, and this is the rule that most changes how a job runs here. The City states that corrections will not be accepted if there are any disciplines pending review, that the portal remains closed until all reviews are complete, that partial corrections will not be accepted for plan review, and that all disapproved trades’ comments must be addressed and submitted together. So you wait for the complete set of comments, resolve them across every discipline, and resubmit once.

Applications are filed through the City’s eTrakit portal, entering the permit type and subtype, a description of the work, the job value, and the property by address or folio number; progress can then be monitored online. The Building Department is open Monday to Friday 8:00 a.m. to 4:45 p.m., permit submittal runs to 4:00 p.m., and the department is closed daily from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.

More than most municipalities ask for. Two sets of schematic floor plans with rooms and spaces labelled; the size and location of every window and door opening; the product approval number of each component — windows, doors, fixed glass and mullions; and the wind load pressure of each opening. Plus two sets of product control approval from Miami-Dade County or the State with the applicable connection details marked, and two sets of wind load calculations signed and sealed by a Florida registered architect or engineer, or the Miami-Dade wind load table.

Then the City requires a separate shutter permit, with its own two sets of product control approvals from Miami-Dade County or the State and the applicable connection details marked. It is a second permitted scope rather than a note on the first, so it is worth deciding impact glazing versus shutters early, while it is still a design question rather than a paperwork one.

Yes. The City states that every bedroom shall have at least one egress opening with a minimum opening size of 20 inches wide by 24 inches high. This matters most on replacements: a new frame set inside an existing masonry opening loses width and height to the frame itself, and a window that looks like a like-for-like swap can end up below the minimum clear opening.

Yes. The City requires a permit for all slabs, pavers, driveways, walkways or any other type of permanent ground covering, and adds gravel driveways explicitly so there is no argument about it. Stucco and fascia are separately on the list too — the City notes fascia as a newer rule, because it can affect structure, roof and drip edge.

All of it, with one narrow exception. The City requires a permit for all mechanical and air conditioning work, including any replacement of condensing units or air handlers and any addition of duct. For maintenance such as cleaning coils or ducts, the general under-$500 rule applies. The same logic runs through the electrical and plumbing entries: a change-out means a fixture removed and replaced without any change to the configuration, and almost every remodel changes a configuration somewhere.

Talk to us, and to the City, before doing anything else. The Building Department issues all permits in the City and publishes that failure to get one can result in fines to the homeowner, as well as leaving work that was never inspected. What we can do is document what is there, work out what would have been required, and put a permitted scope in front of the department rather than a discovery.

Not from a page. What we can do before any money changes hands is sort your scope into the permitted and the exempt using the City’s own published list, tell you what the drawings will have to carry, and explain how the corrections rule shapes the programme. Then we price against drawings. We do not publish fees or review durations for Miami Springs.