Open Permit Data

Chicago Building Permit Report Card

IL

C

Score: 63/100

Score Breakdown

Closure Rate90.6% (70% weight)
Year-over-Year Trend-11.7 pp (30% weight)

417,109

Total Permits

39,126

Open Permits

90.6%

Closure Rate

4,685

Stalled 5+ Years

Chicago's closure rate is 13.5 percentage points above the 77.1% average across all tracked cities.

How This Grade Is Calculated

The score combines closure rate (70% weight) and year-over-year trend (30% weight). Closure rate measures the percentage of rate-eligible permits (those older than one year) that have been closed. Trend measures the change in closure rate compared to the prior year, clamped to +/- 10 percentage points.

Grade scale: A (90+), B (75-89), C (60-74), D (40-59), F (below 40).