Open Permit Data

About

Open Permit Data tracks building permit closure rates across 35 US cities. We pull data from city open data portals and present it in a way that's easier to search and explore.

Why this exists

Many city open data portals have great data but aren't easy to use. We built this site to make building permit data more accessible — whether you're a homeowner checking on a contractor, a researcher studying permit trends, or just curious about construction activity in your area.

How it works

We download permit data from each city's open data portal, typically refreshed nightly. Closure rates measure the percentage of rate-eligible permits (those older than one year) that have been closed or finaled.

See Boston's methodology page for full details

Data Coverage

CityPermitsClosure Rate
Anaheim147,99398.1%
Atlanta8,41238.7%
Austin976,72288.3%
Boston539,40044.5%
Cape Coral40,49680.4%
Cary64,62785.8%
Chicago419,87990.5%
Cincinnati134,32085%
Cleveland171,73180.6%
Columbus654,03075.2%
Elk Grove120,13292.5%
Fort Worth1,465,79584.6%
Greensboro58,38094.2%
Henderson183,08273.4%
Honolulu339,99792.3%
Little Rock61,77272.5%
Los Angeles340,41672.3%
Mesa54,49018.2%
Miami201,37290.8%
Minneapolis118,05894.1%
New Orleans259,38059.2%
New York City871,48268.2%
Norfolk91,06981.5%
Orlando794,69497.7%
Philadelphia759,12185.7%
Pittsburgh59,62867.8%
Raleigh166,96596%
San Diego401,79869.9%
San Francisco528,37272.5%
Scottsdale136,93082.3%
Seattle135,92484.9%
Tacoma35,81390.2%
Washington, D.C.266,17629.3%
Wilmington272,33796.3%
Worcester45,55268.3%