To look up construction permits on a property, search the online permit portal run by the building department in the city or county where the property is located. You search by street address or Assessor’s Parcel Number, and the database returns every permit on file, including the type of work, the contractor, and whether the project passed final inspection. When the online records are incomplete or the jurisdiction hasn’t digitized older files, you can visit the building department in person or submit a written public records request.
Find the Right Agency First
Permits are issued and stored at the local level, so the first question is which local government holds the file. Properties inside city limits are typically handled by the city’s building department or community development office. Properties in unincorporated areas fall under the county building department. If you’re not sure which applies, the local government’s main website usually has a lookup tool or a general information number that can point you to the right office.
Not every permit lives with the building department. Septic system permits are often kept by the local or county health department. Well permits may sit with a state environmental or water resources agency. If the property is in a designated historic district, exterior modifications likely required a certificate of appropriateness from a local historic review board, and those records may be filed separately. When you want a complete picture, ask the building department whether other agencies hold additional records for the address.
Information to Have Ready
The street address is the most common search key and works in nearly every online system. Use the full address: street number, street name, city, and zip code. If the address returns nothing or produces multiple hits, switch to the Assessor’s Parcel Number, a unique numerical code assigned to every parcel for tax purposes. You can find the APN on a property tax bill or through the county assessor’s website, which usually offers a free parcel lookup. Many counties also maintain GIS mapping tools that let you click on a parcel to see its APN and, in some systems, its linked permits.
Keep the property owner’s name as a backup. Owner-name searches help when address data is inconsistent, which happens most often with rural properties or parcels that have complicated addressing. If you’re researching a property you’re thinking of buying, the listing agent or seller’s disclosure often includes the APN.
Search the Online Permit Portal
Most cities and counties now maintain searchable permit databases on their websites. These are often branded as “citizen access portals” or “development trackers,” and they typically run on platforms like Accela or Tyler Technologies. On the local government’s site, look for links labeled “permits,” “building records,” or “development services.”
Inside the portal, enter the address or APN. Results usually appear as a list of every permit tied to the parcel, sorted by date. Click into a permit to see the project description, the permit status, inspection history, the contractor of record, and sometimes scanned copies of the original application or approved plans. On a well-maintained system, the whole search takes a few minutes.
Online databases have limits. Older permits, especially those issued before a jurisdiction went digital, may not appear at all. Some smaller or rural jurisdictions haven’t digitized their records. Even in well-run systems, the online data can lag what the department has on file internally. If a property was built before the 1990s and shows no permits online, that alone doesn’t mean the work was done illegally. The records may simply predate the digital system.
In-Person Searches and Public Records Requests
When the online records are incomplete or the jurisdiction doesn’t offer a portal, go to the building department in person. Bring the address and the APN. A clerk can search the department’s internal records, which often include physical files with original applications, approved blueprints, and inspection cards going back decades. Some offices have self-service terminals where you can pull the records yourself.
If you can’t visit, a phone call to the building department can sometimes get you basic information, such as whether permits exist for a property and their current status. For anything more detailed, submit a formal public records request in writing. Every state has its own public records law, and local building permit files fall within its scope.
Your written request should describe exactly what you want. Asking for “all building permits, inspection records, and certificates of occupancy associated with [address] and [APN]” is targeted enough to get a useful response without being so broad that the agency pushes back. Vague requests like “all records related to the property” can be denied for lacking specificity. State laws set the response window, and the range varies widely. At the federal level, the Freedom of Information Act gives agencies 20 business days to respond, and most state laws set similar or shorter deadlines.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 5 USC 552 – Public Information; Agency Rules, Opinions, Orders, Records, and Proceedings
If your request is denied, you can appeal. Federal FOIA gives you at least 90 days to file an administrative appeal after a denial, and the agency must decide that appeal within 20 working days.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 5 USC 552 – Public Information; Agency Rules, Opinions, Orders, Records, and Proceedings State appeal processes differ but generally follow the same pattern: a written appeal to a higher authority within the agency, followed by the option to seek judicial review if the denial is upheld. In practice, building permit records are rarely exempt from disclosure, so denials are uncommon. When they do happen, it’s usually a procedural issue with the request itself rather than a substantive exemption.
Agencies may charge fees for searches and copies. Simple requests are often filled at no charge, but if pulling physical files or scanning old documents takes staff time, expect per-page copy fees or hourly search charges. Certified copies cost more than standard photocopies. Ask about fees before the search starts so you know what to budget.
Reading a Permit Record
A permit record packs a lot of information into a compact format. Each field tells you something different:
- Project description: A short summary of the work, such as “kitchen remodel,” “200-amp panel upgrade,” or “new detached garage.” This tells you the scope of what was authorized.
- Permit type: Building, electrical, mechanical, or plumbing. A major renovation usually generates several separate permits covering different trades.
- Status: The most important field. “Issued” means the permit was approved but the work may still be in progress. “Finaled” or “closed” means the work passed all required inspections and the permit is complete. “Expired” means the work wasn’t finished within the allowed timeframe, which is a red flag worth investigating.
- Inspection history: A chronological log showing each inspection date, what was inspected (framing, rough plumbing, final electrical), and the result. A string of passed inspections followed by a final approval is what you want to see. Failed inspections followed by a re-inspection and eventual pass are normal. Failed inspections with no follow-up are a concern.
- Contractor of record: The name and often the license number of the contractor who pulled the permit. Most states maintain an online database where you can verify a contractor’s license status, complaint history, and whether the license was active at the time of the work.
- Valuation: The estimated cost of the project, used to calculate permit fees. This gives you a rough sense of the project’s scale.
When you’re reviewing records during a home purchase, look for consistency between what you can see at the property and what the permits describe. A finished basement with no building permit, a bathroom that doesn’t appear in any plumbing permit, or an addition that doesn’t match the permit’s description are signs that work may have been done outside the permit process.
Open, Expired, and Missing Permits
This is where permit research pays for itself. An open permit means work was started under a valid permit but never received final inspection approval. The contractor may have finished the job and simply never called for the final inspection, or the work may have genuinely been left incomplete. Either way, an open permit becomes the current owner’s problem, regardless of who pulled it.
An expired permit is similar but worse. The jurisdiction let the permit lapse because no inspections were requested within the required timeframe. Closing out an expired permit typically requires hiring a licensed contractor or engineer to verify the work meets code, followed by new inspections. In some cases, the building department may require you to open finished walls or ceilings so an inspector can examine the framing, wiring, or plumbing behind them. The cost can be substantial.
Open and expired permits will not show up on a title search. Unlike liens and easements, which are recorded against the property’s title, open permits sit in the building department’s records. Finding them requires the separate permit lookup this article describes. That gap catches buyers off guard, because a clean title report doesn’t mean the property has clean permits.
If you find open or expired permits on a property you own, contact the building department about next steps. Some jurisdictions are straightforward: schedule the overdue inspections, fix anything that doesn’t pass, and the permit gets closed. Others require you to apply for a new permit to cover the remaining work. A few municipalities run amnesty programs that reduce penalties for legalizing old unpermitted work, though these programs are typically limited in scope and duration.
When your search turns up nothing for work that clearly exists on the property, you’re likely looking at unpermitted construction. The fix is a retroactive permit, sometimes called an “as-built” permit. You apply to the building department, and an inspector evaluates the existing work against current building codes. If it meets code, the work gets legalized. If it doesn’t, you’ll need to bring it into compliance, which can mean opening walls, upgrading wiring, or redoing portions of the work.
Check for a Certificate of Occupancy
A certificate of occupancy is a separate document from a building permit, and it serves a different purpose. A building permit authorizes construction to begin; a certificate of occupancy certifies that the finished building is safe and legal to occupy. Local building departments issue one after confirming that the completed work matches the approved plans, passes all final inspections, and complies with applicable building and safety codes.
Certificates of occupancy are generally required for new construction, major renovations that change a building’s use or occupancy classification, and conversions such as turning a commercial space into a residence. Minor alterations that don’t change the building’s use typically don’t require a new one. Some jurisdictions issue a letter of completion for smaller projects instead.
When you pull permit records, look for a certificate of occupancy alongside any permits for major work. A finaled building permit without a corresponding certificate on a project that should have one is worth questioning. A temporary certificate of occupancy means the building was approved for occupancy before all work was complete, usually with conditions and a deadline for finishing the remaining items. If that deadline passed without a final certificate being issued, the situation is similar to an open permit and needs resolution. Lenders and title companies increasingly check for certificates of occupancy on properties with recent major construction, and some municipalities won’t connect utilities or issue business licenses to buildings without a valid one on file.