Legally permissible
Zoning, overlays, adopted plans, recorded restrictions, and the approvals a use would require.
Bellevue · Kirkland · Seattle
Puget Sound feasibility study expertise.
Know the rules. Find the opportunity.Highest & Best Use intelligence for property owners, buyers, brokers, builders, and investors across Washington—starting with Bellevue, Kirkland, Seattle, and the Eastside.
HBUHighest & Best Use
The use that is legally permissible, physically possible, financially feasible, and maximally productive.
What HBU means
Highest & Best Use is a four-part test.
A zoning allowance is only the first gate. A defensible opportunity must survive legal, physical, financial, and market scrutiny.
Physically possible
Lot geometry, access, utilities, critical areas, topography, existing improvements, and constructability.
Financially feasible
Probable yield, development cost, time, financing, market demand, and risk-adjusted return.
Maximally productive
The supportable use that produces the strongest value after the other three tests are satisfied.
Puget Sound feasibility study scope
From an address to a decision path.
Authority
Parcel, jurisdiction, official zoning, overlays, comprehensive-plan context, permit and site history.
Capacity
Allowed uses, unit count, setbacks, floor area, lot coverage, height, access, parking, and subdivision paths.
Constraints
Critical areas, steep slope, flood, shoreline, trees, utilities, easements, topography, and existing improvements.
Scenario
ADU, DADU, middle housing, lot split, retain-and-add, renovation, redevelopment, or no-build alternatives.
Economics
Probable yield, order-of-magnitude cost questions, timing, market support, financing, and unresolved diligence.
Decision
Proceed, investigate, redesign, hold, sell, or stop—with the next professional and public-agency checks named.
Planning and permit strategy
One project. Multiple review lanes.
A building permit is usually the end of a chain, not the beginning. Feasibility identifies the city, approvals, reviewers, specialists, and outside agencies before detailed plans are commissioned.
- 01Confirm jurisdiction
Address, parcel, city limits, utility districts, title, permit history, and recorded constraints.
- 02Screen the site
Zoning, allowed use, density, setbacks, critical areas, shoreline, trees, access, utilities, and septic status.
- 03Test the concept
Sketch plausible yield and identify the land-use, subdivision, environmental, and construction approvals it triggers.
- 04Meet early
Use city coaching, predevelopment review, or a pre-submittal conference before committing to a full design.
- 05Submit coordinated plans
Land-use and construction applications route to the required planning, building, utility, fire, transportation, and environmental reviewers.
- 06Resolve corrections
The applicant team answers review comments, updates drawings, pays fees, and obtains linked outside-agency approvals.
- 07Build and close
After issuance: preconstruction meetings, inspections, revisions, utility releases, final approvals, and occupancy when required.
Bellevue
Development Services is the front door. Its paperless process runs through MyBuildingPermit, but a single project can be reviewed by several city groups.
Bellevue permit center ↗- Permit Center
Intake, application routing, fees, permit status, issuance, and inspection scheduling.
- Land Use
Zoning, subdivisions, design review, SEPA, shorelines, critical areas, variances, and predevelopment review.
- Building + Clearing & Grading
Building-code plans, structural and trade review, demolition, earthwork, erosion control, and construction inspections.
- Utilities Review
Water, sewer, storm drainage, service availability, extensions, easements, and utility inspections.
- Transportation + Right of Way
Access, traffic mitigation, frontage improvements, driveways, sidewalks, hauling, lane closures, and work in public right-of-way.
- Fire Prevention
Fire access, fire flow, hydrants, alarms, sprinklers, suppression systems, plan review, and field inspection.
- Land Use tree review
Significant and landmark trees, retention, replacement, critical-area trees, and qualified tree-professional documentation.
Kirkland
Kirkland identifies three major development departments—Planning & Building, Public Works, and Fire—with specialized groups coordinating through Development Services.
Kirkland development permits ↗- Planning & Building
Zoning, land use, subdivisions, design review, shorelines, SEPA, building and trade plans, permit intake, and inspections.
- Public Works Engineering
Utilities, water and sewer connections, stormwater, clearing and grading, access, frontage, and right-of-way permits.
- Fire Prevention
Emergency access, fire flow, hydrants, fire-code review, protection-system permits, and inspections.
- Development Review Arborist
Tree-retention plans, regulated and landmark trees, removal requests, arborist reports, replanting, and site inspection.
- Boards or Hearing Examiner
Design Review Board or Hearing Examiner involvement when the applicable land-use process requires it.
Seattle
Seattle uses the Seattle Services Portal, with private-site permitting led by SDCI and infrastructure reviews divided among several departments.
Seattle construction permits ↗- SDCI
Zoning, land use and Master Use Permits, building and trade permits, grading, critical areas, private-property trees, plan review, and inspections.
- Seattle Department of Transportation
Street-use permits, access, curb cuts, frontage work, shoring near right-of-way, traffic control, and street trees.
- Seattle Public Utilities
Water availability and service, sewer, side sewer, drainage, stormwater, main extensions, and utility improvement requirements.
- Seattle City Light
Electrical service capacity, vaults, transformers, service design, and utility coordination.
- Seattle Fire
Fire-code plan review, emergency access, alarms, sprinklers, suppression systems, and inspections.
- Public Health — Seattle & King County
Seattle plumbing and gas piping permits, plus on-site sewage and private-water review where applicable.
Conditional agency reviews
Some constraints leave City Hall.
Septic or private water
If a parcel is not served by public sewer, additions, new homes, lot divisions, or boundary changes can require septic records, design approval, reserve-area analysis, and an approved water source.
Official guidance ↗Trees and arborist work
Tree location and ownership determine the lane. Private-property and right-of-way trees may have different authorities. Development can require inventory, retention plans, replacement, and a qualified arborist report.
Official guidance ↗Shoreline, wetland, or water work
Start with the city. Shoreline conditional uses and variances also involve Ecology; work that changes the bed or flow of state waters can require a WDFW Hydraulic Project Approval.
Official guidance ↗Construction stormwater
Sites disturbing one acre or more—and smaller sites within a larger common plan meeting that threshold—may need Construction Stormwater General Permit coverage in addition to local erosion-control review.
Official guidance ↗This is a routing framework, not a guaranteed permit list. The address, scope, utility provider, critical-area mapping, and current code determine the actual reviewers. Research verified August 5, 2026.
Washington housing law
New rules create options. The parcel decides what survives.
Middle housing
Seattle's current Neighborhood Residential framework generally allows at least four homes on residential lots, with six-home pathways near major transit or when affordability requirements are met. Parcel conditions and development standards still control what fits.
Official source ↗Accessory dwelling units
Washington requires fully planning jurisdictions to allow two ADUs on residential lots that allow a principal home within urban growth areas, subject to statutory limits and local site standards. Seattle now allows two ADUs with a principal dwelling.
Official source ↗Administrative lot splits
Washington created a simpler lot-splitting framework for qualifying residential land. Implementation timing, access, utilities, critical areas, and whether resulting lots are actually buildable remain essential diligence questions.
Official source ↗Transit and parking reform
New state direction for transit-oriented density and residential parking can change site capacity across Puget Sound as local implementation proceeds. The governing jurisdiction and effective local code must be confirmed for every address.
Official source ↗Research verified August 5, 2026. Local adoption, effective dates, exemptions, and site standards vary. Always confirm the current code with the governing jurisdiction.
Washington first
Puget Sound depth. Statewide reach.
First focus
Zoning, middle housing, subdivisions, trees, critical areas, utilities, transportation, fire access, and redevelopment.
Eastside opportunity
Land-use pathways, tree retention, ADUs, utilities, frontage, shoreline conditions, and neighborhood-level demand.
Jurisdiction by jurisdiction
State law sets the framework. Each city and county writes the rules that must be applied to the property.
Property strategy lead
Aditya Kasturi
Licensed real estate broker · NWMLS #153910
Aditya leads the early property strategy: identifying the governing facts, framing plausible uses, testing market logic, and coordinating the next diligence step. The work starts with the property—not a predetermined sale, design, or development answer.
Architecture, engineering, surveying, legal conclusions, valuation opinions, and permit decisions remain with the appropriate licensed professionals and public authorities.
More about Aditya ↗Research standard
Authority before assertion.
Every review starts with current public records and the governing jurisdiction. Source links, assumptions, and unresolved verification items stay attached to the conclusion.
Questions
Puget Sound feasibility study FAQ
What is a Puget Sound feasibility study?
It is an early property review that connects the governing jurisdiction, zoning and overlays, permit history, physical constraints, plausible development scenarios, and economic questions before a buyer or owner commits more capital.
Which department issues a development permit?
There is rarely one universal department. The lead city receives the application, then routes it to the land-use, building, utility, transportation, fire, tree, environmental, or outside-agency reviewers triggered by the address and proposal.
Who reviews septic systems in Bellevue, Kirkland, or Seattle?
Public Health — Seattle & King County administers the on-site sewage program. The city still reviews the land use and building proposal, while Public Health handles the septic approval and related private-water questions when applicable.
When does a project need an arborist?
A qualified arborist may be needed when regulated, landmark, exceptional, hazard, critical-area, shoreline, or right-of-way trees are affected. The correct city reviewer and submittal depend on tree location, size, condition, and whether the work is part of development.
Is this an appraisal or a permit approval?
No. HBUAI provides early feasibility intelligence and property strategy. Appraisal, architecture, engineering, surveying, legal advice, and permit approval must come from the appropriate licensed professional or public authority.
Professional affiliations and trust marks
Marks identify Aditya Kasturi’s brokerage, professional memberships, fair-housing commitments, and review source. No government agency or source linked on this page endorses HBUAI.