Contractor Records
Home › Raleigh › How the records work

How the records work in Raleigh

We use public records to help you make a shortlist. They show what a contractor has filed and where they have worked in Raleigh. They can't tell you whether someone will be right for your home.

Is a contractor licensed in Raleigh?

NC licenses general contractors, electricians, plumbers and HVAC contractors.

We don't hold the licensing board's file for Raleigh, so we don't show license status for the 2,436 firms on the permit file. Check each one yourself.

How to check one firm

Ask the contractor for the license number and look it up at NC Licensing Board for General Contractors. How to check a contractor's license in North Carolina →

What the numbers mean

Typical cost

The middle value recorded on this contractor's matching permits. It's a permit value, not a quote or the final price. Ask for a written estimate.

Permits in the last 12 months

Matching Raleigh permits in the most recent year of our data. It shows recent recorded activity here, not every job the company did.

Speed

How long electrical, plumbing and HVAC permits take to reach final, compared with other Raleigh contractors in the trade. Shown for firms with 10+ permits.

License

Not shown yet for Raleigh — see the note below.

About the ranking: The score combines how much of this exact work a contractor has on record, how often their older permits reached completion (where we can measure it), how well their usual job size matches your budget, how recently they've been active, and how much of their work is near you. A measure we can't calculate is left out rather than guessed, and a thin record pulls the score toward the middle. A contractor whose matched license has a problem is listed after everyone else. You set the weights with the sliders on every list.

Raleigh specifics: North Carolina's licensing boards don't publish bulk license lists, so license status isn't shown yet. Check the NC Licensing Board for General Contractors (or the electrical and plumbing/HVAC boards) before you hire. Completion rate is not shown: it didn't separate contractors reliably in our tests.

Common questions

  • Where does the information come from?Work history comes from City of Raleigh building permits. Home values come from Wake County parcel values. The current data covers October 2023 through September 2026, so it won't reflect a filing made after that.
  • If I don't see a permit, does that mean the contractor did something wrong?No. Some jobs don't need a permit, some are filed under a different business name, and work outside Wake County isn't in this view. A blank record is a reason to ask questions, not an accusation.
  • How do I check if a contractor is licensed in Raleigh?Ask the contractor for the license number and look it up at NC Licensing Board for General Contractors. How to check a contractor's license in North Carolina →
  • Does a high score mean I should hire them?It means their public record looks like a match for the settings you chose. Before hiring, get references, confirm insurance and licensing, and agree on scope and price in writing.

Compare Raleigh contractors by project

Electrical

942firms
16,812permits

Plumbing

513firms
9,188permits

HVAC

638firms
10,761permits

Deck

459firms
1,101permits

Swimming Pool

69firms
328permits

Backyard Unit (ADU)

102firms
139permits

New Home

206firms
1,703permits

Build your list All Raleigh firms A–Z

The numbers: Raleigh permit statistics · How long permits take in Raleigh

Other cities: Nashville Orlando New York City Chicago Austin Cincinnati Cleveland Pittsburgh Miami Minneapolis St. Louis Denver San Diego Colorado Springs Honolulu Albuquerque Boulder Greensboro Saint Paul Arlington, VA Scottsdale Henderson Cambridge Somerville Cary Mesa Naperville Bellevue Cape Coral Provo Palo Alto Bellingham Bend Ames Denton Sugar Land Burlington, VT Seattle San Francisco Medford Anaheim Elk Grove Wilmington, NC Bismarck Tyler, TX Columbus, OH Wheaton, IL San Diego County (unincorporated) Marin County (unincorporated) Sacramento County (unincorporated) Citrus Heights, CA Waco, TX