To check for open permits on a house, search the local building department’s records using the property address. Most cities and counties offer a free online permit lookup through their building department website; where no portal exists or the records look thin, call the department or visit in person. The search itself takes minutes. Reading what you find, and deciding what to do about any open permit, is the part that takes thought.
What to Gather Before You Search
A few pieces of information make the search go faster.
- The property’s full street address. This works in nearly every search system.
- The parcel identification number (sometimes called an APN or PIN). You’ll want this if the address is unusual, the parcel holds multiple structures, or the address is shared with another unit. The county assessor’s office or property tax records will have it.
- The current and previous owner’s name. Older permits may be filed under a prior owner. If you’re buying, the seller’s disclosure or title report usually lists this.
Where to Search
The Online Permit Portal
Most cities and counties now run an online permit search tool through the building department website. Search the jurisdiction’s name plus “permit search” or “building permit lookup” and you’ll usually land on a portal that takes a property address or parcel number. These systems typically show the full permit history: what was applied for, when the permit was issued, which inspections were requested and whether they passed, and the current status of each permit.
Quality varies. Some municipalities keep detailed records going back decades, with scanned plans and inspection notes. Others cover only recent years, and a few smaller jurisdictions have no online access at all. If the portal looks incomplete or only reaches back to a certain year, don’t assume older permits don’t exist.
In Person at the Building Department
For the most thorough search, especially on older properties, go to the building or planning department in person. Staff can pull physical files, search internal databases that aren’t fully digitized, and explain what they find. Bring the address, parcel number, and owner name. Some offices charge a small fee for copies of permit documents, but the search itself is generally free.
In person is also the right move when online records raise questions. A record might show cryptic status codes or incomplete inspection histories that department staff can decode in seconds.
A Phone Call
Calling works for a specific question: “Are there any open permits at this address?” Staff can usually check while you’re on the line. It won’t give you the full picture an in-person visit will, but it’s a fast way to find out whether you need to dig deeper.
A Public Records Request
If the building department is unresponsive, or you need formal documentation, submit a written public records request. Every state has its own open records or sunshine law giving the public access to government documents, including building permit files. The federal Freedom of Information Act does not apply to state or local agencies, so you’ll use your state’s equivalent.
The process is simple: a brief letter or email to the building department describing the records you want (permit history for a specific address). The agency must respond within a timeframe set by state law, typically a few days to a few weeks. Some jurisdictions charge copying fees. This formal route is rarely necessary for a routine permit search, but it’s useful when a department is slow or when you need certified copies for a legal matter.
Reading the Permit Statuses
Permit records use status labels that mean specific things.
- Open or active. The permit was issued and work was authorized, but the project never received a final inspection or final approval. This is the flag you’re searching for. It can mean the work is still in progress; more often, it means someone finished the work and never called for the final inspection.
- Closed or finaled. The work was completed, inspected, and approved. This is what you want to see. A closed permit means the building department confirmed the work met code at the time of inspection.
- Expired. The permit reached its expiration date without the work being completed or inspected. Most permits are valid for six months to a year, with renewal options. An expired permit is essentially an open permit that ran out of time; closing it usually means a new application.
- Voided or canceled. The permit was withdrawn, usually because the project was abandoned before work started or the scope changed enough to require a different permit.
Pay attention to the dates and the work descriptions on each permit. A closed electrical permit from 2015 sitting next to an open building permit from the same date usually means someone did a renovation, got the electrical signed off, but never scheduled the final building inspection. That pattern tells you exactly what went unfinished.
Why Open Permits Are Worth Finding
An open permit means a project was started under a valid permit but never received final inspection or approval. Work that skipped final inspection may not meet safety standards for electrical wiring, structural framing, plumbing connections, or fire separation. You’re living with construction nobody in authority ever confirmed was done correctly.
Insurance exposure follows from that. Insurers can deny claims when damage traces back to unpermitted or uninspected work. A room addition that catches fire because of faulty wiring gives an insurer grounds to argue the work was never verified as code-compliant. Some insurers cancel policies or exclude coverage for portions of a home with known permit issues once the problem surfaces in a claim investigation or routine inspection.
Open permits also complicate a sale. Lenders see unresolved permit issues as risk because uninspected work may not be code-compliant, which threatens the property’s value and their collateral. An appraiser who identifies unpermitted or uninspected improvements may reduce the valuation, sometimes substantially, estimating the cost of bringing the work into compliance and subtracting that from value. Buyers who find open permits during due diligence often walk away or demand steep price reductions. Sellers in most jurisdictions are legally required to disclose known unpermitted work or open permits; failing to disclose can expose a seller to claims for misrepresentation or breach of contract, even after closing.
How to Close an Open Permit
Start by calling the building department that issued the permit. Explain that you have an open permit and want to close it. The department will tell you what’s needed, which varies with the type of work, how old the permit is, and whether the work was actually completed.
Work Was Done but Never Inspected
The most common scenario. Someone finished the project and forgot or chose not to call for the final inspection. The fix is scheduling that inspection. An inspector comes out, looks at the work, and either approves it or notes corrections. If the work passes, the permit closes. If it fails, you fix the deficiencies and schedule a re-inspection, which may carry a small fee.
The catch with older permits: the inspector may apply current building codes rather than the codes in effect when the permit was issued. A wiring job that met code in 2005 may not satisfy today’s requirements. Costs can escalate unpredictably from there. Before scheduling an inspection on a very old open permit, it’s worth having a licensed contractor assess the work first so you know what you’re walking into.
The Permit Has Expired
An expired permit typically can’t just be reopened. Most jurisdictions require a new permit covering the same scope of work. You’ll pay a new permit fee, and the work will be evaluated against current codes. In many areas, if the permit expired more than 30 days ago, renewal isn’t an option and a fresh application is the only path forward.
Work Was Done Without Any Permit
If you discover work that was done without any permit at all, you can apply for an after-the-fact permit in most jurisdictions. The process mirrors a standard application: submit plans or descriptions of the completed work, pay the permit fee (often with an added penalty for the violation), and schedule inspections. The inspector may require you to expose finished work, meaning cutting open drywall to check wiring or framing, so they can verify it meets code.
Before contacting the building department about unpermitted work, consider talking to a contractor or real estate attorney who has handled these situations in your area. They can help you understand likely cost and scope before you formally notify the authorities, which in some jurisdictions triggers an investigation and a compliance timeline. Costs range widely with the type and scale of work, from a few hundred dollars for a simple permit fee and inspection to thousands if corrections are required to bring the work up to code.
When to Bring in a Professional
For a single open permit on recent work, you can handle this yourself. Call the building department, schedule the inspection, deal with any corrections.
A licensed contractor is worth hiring when the work in question is complex, like structural changes or major electrical work, or when you need someone to assess whether old work will pass a current-code inspection before you invite an inspector out. Hearing bad news from your own contractor is far better than hearing it from the building department, because a contractor can fix problems before the inspection creates an official record of violations.
A real estate attorney makes sense when open permits surface during a transaction on a tight timeline, when a seller won’t cooperate on disclosure, or when unpermitted work is extensive enough that the legal and financial exposure is significant. An attorney can also negotiate contract terms that keep you from inheriting someone else’s permit problems. Buyers in particular should put language in the purchase contract requiring an open permit search and making the seller responsible for closing any open permits before closing. That’s where leverage lives: before money changes hands.