Early accessYou found us early — Done By the Book is free while we finish testing, and the app tells you plainly what's still being verified.
Get your Camrose basement permit ready
the first time.
Below: everything Camrose asks for, researched from the municipality's own pages. Better: a free tool that reads a photo of your hand-drawn plan and tells you what's missing — before the permit counter does.
Why bother getting it right first
The paperwork is the cheap part
1 in 5
permit applications audited in Toronto were missing required documents at intake — and cities everywhere are cracking down on incomplete files
$1,200–$8,000
what permit consultants and design firms charge to do this thinking for you
$0
to find out if your own drawing is ready — the free tier covers the whole planning stage
Sources: Toronto Auditor General building-permit audit, Feb 2024; published GTA consultant rate guides. Alberta has its own version of the same problem — that's why Camrose's list below matters.
The official list
What Camrose asks for
Researched from camrose.ca on 2026-07-19. Not yet independently verified — requirements change, and the municipality's own page always has the final say. No fees listed on purpose: fee schedules change, so check the municipality's page for current amounts.
- 1
Building permit application
'Basement Development' is a checkbox on the general form. Homeowner applicants sign an owner-occupancy certification: 'I own or will own and occupy this dwelling.'
- 2
Two sets of drawings, to scale
Must include energy-efficiency (code) requirements — this is the city's general residential standard; no basement-specific checklist exists.
- 3
Sub-contractor list
Part of the city's residential construction package, with current addresses — one of the categories on it is basement development.
- 4
Separate electrical, plumbing, gas, and HVAC permits
The city's words: 'Separate permits needed for work involving all separate sub-disciplines.'
- 5
Permit fee
The city's fees and charges page lists current amounts.
How to apply
Apply through the city's online e-permitting portal (Cityworks), in person at City Hall 2nd floor (5204-50 Avenue), or by email to permits@camrose.ca. Processing runs about 5–10 business days. Minor work under $5,000 with no health or safety risk is exempt from a building permit.
Here's the part nobody else does
A list is nice. A checked drawing is ready.
Every item above has to actually appear on your drawing — and missing items are exactly how applications bounce. Done By the Book closes that gap in three steps:
Print the free worksheet
A drawing worksheet built for permit drawings — measurement checklist on one side, sketch grid on the other. Pencil and paper. No signup.
Photograph your sketch
Snap it with your phone. The app reads your hand-drawn plan — room labels, dimensions, windows, the works.
See exactly what's missing
A readiness report, item by item, in your municipality's own terms — with where to write each missing thing on your drawing. Fix, re-scan, repeat until it's ready.
Then it walks the whole build with you
The app won't open the construction stage until your permit is issued — on purpose. After that: a stage-by-stage walkthrough in build order, with inspection checkpoints so nothing gets covered up before it's inspected.
And it shops your materials list around
Quantities from your measurements, priced at real stores from their own listed prices — one-stop totals, plus the cheapest-per-item route. On our test basement it found $703 in savings just by splitting the list across three stores.
Who inspects in Camrose
City of Camrose Safety Codes departmentmunicipal
Phone: 780-672-4428 · website
Call 780-672-4428 (or permits@camrose.ca) with your name, project location, permit number, and access details — two days notice
7 money programs may apply to a Camrose basement or suite project
Every program on our list is checked against its official page, with the date shown — including the closed ones that ads still sell. Most of them require a permitted, inspected project, which is exactly what this app gets you.
See the verified money listShow up to the Camrose counter ready
Sketch it tonight, scan it tonight, and know what's missing tonight. Free to start, works on your phone, in 8 languages — and it never pretends to be the municipality: the final say is always theirs.
Start my Camrose project — freeDone By the Book is independent, source-linked guidance for homeowners. It is not affiliated with the municipality and never guarantees approval — it helps you show up prepared. Permits in Alberta are required under the Safety Codes Act before regulated building, electrical, plumbing, gas, and HVAC work.