Where Cleveland permits live
The portal is the live record; the tracker is the quick check. The tracker refreshes once a day and sends you back to the portal for live status (City of Cleveland, read 22 October 2026). Construction Permitting is in Room 505, 601 Lakeside Ave., on (216) 664-2910.
The City does not describe a contractor-name search. Our compare pages group the City's permits by the contractor named on them.
How to look up the permits on a Cleveland address
- Open the Permit Tracker for a quick look; no login is needed.
- For the full history, open the Permit Portal and search the address.
- Open each permit and read its current status and inspection results.
- Check that the contractor on each permit is the firm you hired, or the one a seller says did the work.
- If the history stops before the year you need, ask Building Records (below) for the paper file.
How to read Cleveland permit statuses
Cleveland's permit records carry a current task status. These are the ones we read, and how we count them:
| Status in the record | What it means | Finished in our data? |
|---|---|---|
| Inspection Approved / Inspection Passed | Final inspection passed | Yes |
| Inspection Approved - C.O. Req | Passed; certificate of occupancy required | Yes |
| Permit Closed | Closed after the final | Yes |
| Inspection Pending | Waiting for an inspection | Not yet |
| Permit Closed/Non-Compliant | Closed without passing | No |
| Permit Issuance Approved | Issued, never inspected | No |
A permit that was issued and never inspected is the one to ask about before you buy a house or pay a final invoice. Our completion rate is the share of a firm's permits a year or more old that passed final or were closed (Cleveland about page, methodology).
When the permit you want is not online
The Division of Records Administration "is responsible for handling, storing, and maintaining all building and commercial permits" for Building and Housing. Ask it for older permit files and plans at bhrecordsplans@clevelandohio.gov, 216.664.2825 or 216.664.2994, or in Room 517, 601 Lakeside Ave., weekdays 9 AM to 4:30 PM (Records Administration, read 23 October 2026). General requests go through the City's public records portal.
What our Cleveland file adds
The portal is organised by record. Ours is organised by firm: every Cleveland permit a firm pulled in three years and how many it closed.
| Trade | Permits | Firms | Finished | Usual days to final |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plumbing | 5,315 | 296 | 58.6% | 234 |
| HVAC | 4,916 | 235 | 80.8% | 142 |
| Roofing | 4,923 | 586 | 78.3% | 91 |
| Electrical | 4,049 | 361 | 64.3% | 146 |
| Windows | 2,938 | 236 | 75.2% | 140 |
| Remodel | 1,443 | 556 | 56.4% | 391 |
2,801 firms pulled the 27,300 permits. The finished shares are low by the standard of other cities: 58.6% of plumbing permits a year or more old had passed final or closed.
The Cleveland permit statistics page has the same file by trade, year and month; the firm lists are on the roofing, plumbing and HVAC compare pages. To check the licence behind a name on a permit, use the Cleveland contractor license lookup; to check whether your job needs a permit at all, see Do I need a permit?.
See every Cleveland roofer by finished permits →
What this does not tell you
Roofing, windows, siding and solar are split out of building-permit descriptions, so a mixed job sits under one trade. Ohio does not license residential contractors, so the permit is the main record you have. Our file covers October 2023 to September 2026.
How we know this
Portal and records details are quoted from the City of Cleveland's Construction Permitting and Records Administration pages, read 23 October 2026. Statuses are the current task status in the City's building permit data, October 2023 to September 2026.
Numbers come from City of Cleveland building permits, data through October 17, 2026. Nobody paid to be on this page and nobody can.
Questions
- How do I find out if a permit was pulled on my house in Cleveland?
Search the address in the City's Permit Portal (aca-prod.accela.com/COC), which shows permit history at a specific address, or use the Permit Tracker, which needs no login.
- Are Cleveland building permits public record?
Yes. The City says anyone can look up a permit on its Permit Tracker without logging in, and Building Records (bhrecordsplans@clevelandohio.gov, 216.664.2825) holds the older permit files.
- What does 'Permit Issuance Approved' mean in Cleveland?
The permit was issued but has not been inspected. If the work is finished, the permit holder still has to call for the final inspection; until then the job has not been signed off.
- Can I search Cleveland permits by contractor?
The City does not describe a contractor search. Our Cleveland compare pages list every permit from October 2023 to September 2026 under the firm named on it.
- How long do Cleveland permits take to close?
In our file the usual roofing permit took 91 days to pass final, HVAC 142 and plumbing 234.
Build your own list
Every firm with that kind of permit on record. Pick what you value. The list moves.
Related guides
- Minneapolis building permit search: how to look up permits on an address
- Cleveland contractor license lookup: the state trade license, City registration, and what the permits show
- Home improvement costs in Cleveland, OH (2026): what 12 kinds of jobs were filed at
- Home improvement costs in Aspen, CO (2026): what 7 kinds of jobs were filed at
- Do I need an HVAC permit in Cleveland? Yes for a furnace or AC: the $50 fee, the state license, and timing
- Do I need a plumbing permit in Cleveland? Yes: the fee per fixture, the homeowner affidavit, and why so many stay open
For one city
- Do I need a roofing permit in Cleveland? Yes for a reroof: the 10% repair rule, the fee on a $10,500 roof, and timing
- Hiring a roofer in Cleveland: City registration, the reroof permit, and what 4,900 roofing permits show
- Do I need a demolition permit in Cleveland? Yes: the project review, the $50 minimum fee, drawings, and what demolition firms charge
- Construction Permitting — City of Cleveland (2026-10-23)
- City of Cleveland Permit Portal (Accela) (2026-10-23)
- Permit Tracker — City of Cleveland (2026-10-23)
- Division of Records Administration — City of Cleveland (2026-10-23)
- Public Records portal — City of Cleveland (2026-10-23)