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The City of Charleston, SC building permits

Data through September 2026 · updated 19 Oct 2026

7,775 building permits in the City of Charleston's issued-permit file were issued in the City of Charleston from October 2024 to September 2026, about 3,888 a year. Remodel and repair permits lead with 2,722, then new homes (1,142) and additions (591). 67% were for homes. The city's file doesn't name contractors, so we can't rank, compare or profile firms here: these pages show what was built, where, when and how fast the city signed it off.

What this file covers: The city's layer holds building permits only, so trade permits are few.

7,775permits issued
3,888a year
67%for homes
55%finished (Oct 2024–Sep 2025 permits)
202days, usual issue to final
Sep 2026records through

What gets built here

Remodels & repairs

2,722permits
1,397last 12 mo
212days to final

New homes

1,142permits
634last 12 mo
208days to final

Additions

591permits
308last 12 mo
256days to final

Demolition

479permits
241last 12 mo

Garages, sheds & shade structures

391permits
186last 12 mo

Roofing

260permits
162last 12 mo

What this page can and can't show

  • ✓The permits in the City of Charleston's issued-permit file, by kind of work, month and ZIP code.
  • ✓How long a permit takes from issue to the city's final inspection.
  • ✓Which permits finished, are still open or expired.
  • ✓What the job was declared at on the permit.
  • Who did the work. The city's file doesn't name contractors, so we can't rank, compare or profile firms here.
  • Street addresses or owners. We publish counts and permit rows without them.

Building permits the City of Charleston Department of Permitting & Inspections issues inside the city limits only: the Peninsula, West Ashley, James Island, Johns Island, Daniel Island and Cainhoy parts of the city. North Charleston, Mount Pleasant, Summerville and unincorporated Charleston County run their own permit offices and are not in this file. Business-license certificates of occupancy, tree removal, rental registrations and sidewalk dining permits are left out.

Hiring someone here?

The permit file can't tell you who does good work. Ask for the contractor's license number and look it up at the South Carolina LLR license lookup, then ask the city whether they pulled the permit for your job.

Permits by kind of work

Permits issued October 2024 through September 2026, every kind of work with 100 or more. Last 12 months is Oct 2025–Sep 2026. Homes is the share issued as residential permits.

Kind of workPermitsShareLast 12 mo
Remodels & repairs2,72235%1,397
New homes1,14215%634
Additions5918%308
Demolition4796%241
Garages, sheds & shade structures3915%186
Roofing2603%162
Other2,07127%1,082

Fewer than 100 permits, so no row: pools & spas (59), ADUs & casitas (31), fences & walls (15), plumbing (8), solar (2), electrical (2), HVAC (2).

Download this table (CSV)

Charleston permit statistics →How long permits take in Charleston →Charleston permits by ZIP code →Charleston, SC building permit search: how to look up permits on an address →

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How these numbers are made

Source: City of Charleston GIS, Permits All Issued (Dashboard View), EnerGov layer External/Applications 1134, read 19 Oct 2026. We count permits issued October 2024 through September 2026; denied and withdrawn permits are left out.

Building permits the City of Charleston Department of Permitting & Inspections issues inside the city limits only: the Peninsula, West Ashley, James Island, Johns Island, Daniel Island and Cainhoy parts of the city. North Charleston, Mount Pleasant, Summerville and unincorporated Charleston County run their own permit offices and are not in this file. Business-license certificates of occupancy, tree removal, rental registrations and sidewalk dining permits are left out.

  • The city's public permit layer names no contractor, so there are no contractor lists, rankings or firm pages for Charleston.
  • The layer holds building permits only: the city's separate electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits are not published, so trade counts come only from single-family alteration permits whose description names one trade (roofing above all) and are far below the real number of trade jobs.
  • The value is the valuation on the permit application, which sets the fee. It is not a final cost.
  • Many permits stay marked Issued after the work passed its final inspection. A permit counts as finished if the city marked it Completed, recorded a finaled date or recorded a passed final inspection; only those with a finaled date add days.
  • Permits the city marked void or that were cancelled or denied are not counted.

Counts are permits, not jobs: one job can need several permits. Nobody paid to be on this page and nobody can. Sources and definitions →

Cite this page

Free to reuse with attribution (CC BY 4.0). Please credit Contractor Records and link to this page. Suggested citation:

Contractor Records, "The City of Charleston, SC building permits", https://contractorrecords.com/charleston-sc/, data through September 2026, from the City of Charleston Department of Permitting & Inspections building-permit records.

Link to a table: By kind of work · Browse the permits · Permits each month.

Download the tables (CSV): Permits by kind of work · Permits in the last 12 months.

Common questions

  • How many building permits does Charleston issue a year?About 3,888 a year in the City of Charleston: 7,775 permits issued October 2024 through September 2026, 4,074 of them in the last 12 months. That counts the permits in the City of Charleston's issued-permit file, homes and commercial, not denied or withdrawn applications; the file doesn't hold every permit the city issues (see what it covers above).
  • Can I find a contractor's permits in Charleston?Not from this file: the city publishes its permits without the contractor's name, so we can't list or rank firms. Check a license at the South Carolina LLR license lookup and ask the contractor for the permit number of a past job.
  • What do people build most in Charleston?Remodels & repairs: 2,722 of the 7,775 permits (35%), then new homes (1,142), additions (591), October 2024 through September 2026.
  • How long does a building permit take in Charleston?The usual permit took 202 days from issue to the city's final (middle half: 134 to 324 days), from 1,122 permits issued Oct 2024–Sep 2025 that reached a final. Each kind of work →
  • How do I look up a building permit in Charleston?Filter the permit list on this page by month, kind of work and ZIP code to see what was issued. For one property's permits, search the city's own records by address or permit number; we don't publish addresses. How to look up a permit in Charleston →
  • How many permits were issued in Charleston last month?324 in September 2026, the last full month on file; 4,074 over the last 12 months.

Browse the permits

Browse 7,775 permits

Every permit in the file issued October 2024 through September 2026, newest first. Pick a month, a kind of work, a ZIP code or a status. Each row is one permit: no street address, no names.

The list loads as you reach it (7,775 permits).

IssuedKind of workCity permit typeStatusZIP

Permits each month, the last 12 months

Permits issued each month and the kind of work with the most. A month opens its permits in the list above.

MonthPermitsTop kind of work
Sep 2026324Remodels & repairs (119)
Aug 2026344Remodels & repairs (127)
Jul 2026352Remodels & repairs (129)
Jun 2026340Remodels & repairs (124)
May 2026367Remodels & repairs (101)
Apr 2026395Remodels & repairs (158)
Mar 2026383Remodels & repairs (135)
Feb 2026304Remodels & repairs (104)
Jan 2026312Remodels & repairs (107)
Dec 2025315Remodels & repairs (104)
Nov 2025248Remodels & repairs (82)
Oct 2025390Remodels & repairs (107)

Download this table (CSV)