Los Angeles Building Permit Lookup
Search 1,582,928 LA Department of Building & Safety (LADBS) records covering 1988 to 2026. See what was filed, who filed it, and what was never closed out.
Searching in Los Angeles, California · Street address only, no city or state
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Navigating the Los Angeles permit registry
Building permits in Los Angeles are public records. Every renovation, addition and structural change that went through the proper process left a filing with LA Department of Building & Safety (LADBS), and the gaps in that record are often more revealing than the filings themselves.
We pull directly from LA Department of Building & Safety (LADBS), whose published records begin in 1988 and now run to 1,582,928 permits. That includes building work alongside the trade permits — electrical, mechanical and plumbing — that carry most of a house's renovation history.
Work started without a permit, or started under one that was never closed out, can surface at the worst possible moment: during an appraisal, at closing, or when you make an insurance claim. A permit that shows as open or expired years after the work finished is the signal worth chasing.
Across Los Angeles's whole record, 1,294,592 permits closed out properly, 179,660 are still open, and 107,680 expired without ever being finaled.
Use Cases
Most filed in Los Angeles
- Alteration / Repair956,045
- Addition184,089
- New Building103,137
- Grading85,510
- Non-building New82,110
- Swimming Pool / Spa54,579
Source
- Authority
- LA Department of Building & Safety (LADBS)
- Feed
- Socrata
- Index refreshed
- September 2026
- Typical review
- ~25 days
Los Angeles Permit Registry FAQ
How far back do the records go?
Los Angeles's published permit records begin in 1988 and run through 2026. Work done before then will not appear here, even if it was properly permitted at the time.
How many permits are in the database?
1,582,928 for Los Angeles, pulled from LA Department of Building & Safety (LADBS) over Socrata. Our index was last refreshed in September 2026.
Are these records official?
Yes. Every permit shown comes from LA Department of Building & Safety (LADBS) through its public data feed. We reformat the records, we do not create them.
Can I see which permits are still open?
Yes. Of the 1,582,928 permits on file, 1,294,592 closed out properly, 179,660 remain open and 107,680 expired without ever being finaled. Expired is usually the more serious of the two.
What if I find work without a permit?
Unpermitted work is common and usually negotiable before closing. Get a contractor's estimate for bringing it into compliance, and raise it with the seller while you still have leverage.
Does every minor repair need a permit?
Most cosmetic work does not. Anything structural, electrical or plumbing almost always requires a filing, which is why those are the gaps worth checking.
How current is the data?
We query LA Department of Building & Safety (LADBS)'s feed directly at search time. How fresh that feed is depends on the department, and some publish on a lag of days. The most recent permit in our Los Angeles index was issued 2026.
Ready to check another address?
Searching in Los Angeles, California · Street address only, no city or state
Not sure what you’ll get? See a sample report