Across 16 jurisdictions the middle one files a median of $27,866, and 7 of them land within a quarter of that. The gap in the headline is between Seattle and Anaheim — a difference between cities, not a range to expect inside one.

Within a single city the spread is wider still. New York runs from $5,000 at the tenth percentile to $148,881 at the ninetieth, 29.8× end to end, while Anaheim is the tightest at 4.0×. That is the number worth carrying into a conversation with a contractor: a quote outside your own city's range is worth asking about, and a quote outside another city's tells you nothing.

14 of these 16 jurisdictions cleared 60 permits, which is the bar this site sets before a city may hold either end of a comparison. The rest are shown because their own page is worth reading, not because they are precise enough to headline.

Full numbers

City	10%	Median	90%	Permits
Seattle, WA	$11,750	$51,271	$206,762	316
Kansas City, MO	$9,763	$50,000	$190,476	118
Corona, CA	$12,000	$46,000	$135,295	56
Raleigh, NC	$16,204	$44,844	$192,653	203
Los Angeles, CA	$6,000	$35,000	$120,000	6,240
Montgomery County, MD	$7,946	$30,000	$200,000	218
Detroit, MI	$8,000	$28,180	$184,000	251
Baton Rouge, LA	$6,000	$27,866	$72,714	33
New York, NY	$5,000	$26,500	$148,881	2,336
Chicago, IL	$9,700	$25,000	$64,000	2,461
New Orleans, LA	$7,100	$24,000	$115,000	117
Marin County, CA	$7,000	$23,870	$157,620	110
Everett, WA	$6,000	$20,500	$125,000	211
San Francisco, CA	$6,178	$20,000	$125,000	751
Sacramento, CA	$5,000	$20,000	$100,000	136
Anaheim, CA	$5,000	$10,000	$20,000	68

Declared permit values, last 24 months. Updated 2026-09-24. Methodology.