Licensed Florida real estate brokerage
How can I find open or expired permits on my home before selling?
A straight answer from a licensed Florida real estate brokerage — then what you can check yourself and when to bring in a licensed professional. Free consultation: (888) 440-3766.
Search the permit records of the building department that covers your address. That is the city if your home is inside city limits, or the county if it is not. Most Florida building departments offer an online portal searchable by address or parcel number, and those that don't will take a records request by phone, email or in person.
The nuance is that a permit can be open, meaning work started but never passed final inspection, or expired, meaning it lapsed without being closed out. Either one can surface during a sale. Do the search before you list so you can decide how to handle it, rather than learning about it from a buyer's inspector or the title company.
Why it comes up in Florida
Florida homes often have had roof replacements, window and door upgrades, HVAC changes, electrical or plumbing work, and storm repairs. Older homes tend to have more of this history. If a contractor never requested the final inspection, or the original owner never followed up, the permit can sit open for years and transfer to you with the home.
Open permits often surface at sale because buyers' agents, inspectors, title companies and sometimes lenders or insurers look at permit history. Insurers also ask about roof age and condition and may request four-point or wind-mitigation inspections, so recent roof or opening work is worth tracing back to a permit.
Florida sellers are generally expected to disclose known material defects that are not readily observable. Whether known unpermitted work or an open permit falls under that is a legal question, so ask a Florida real-estate attorney. How an open permit is handled is also a contract matter and is negotiable between you and the buyer.
What you can check yourself
Search the building department portal
Look up your address or parcel number on your city or county permitting website. Note each permit's status, such as issued, expired, finaled or closed, and what work it covers.
Call or email the building department
If the portal is incomplete or older records are not online, ask the department for the permit history on your address. Ask what is needed to reopen, extend or close an expired permit.
Review your own closing and repair files
Look through your purchase paperwork, past inspection reports, insurance inspections, invoices and contractor contracts. Any roof, HVAC, window, electrical or plumbing work should point to a permit you can look up.
Check the county property appraiser record
Some property appraiser records show improvements or changes to the home. A mismatch, such as an addition that appears with no permit on file, is worth a closer look. Confirm with the building department.
Ask your association about alterations
If you are in an HOA or condominium, ask for any architectural or alteration approvals on file. These are separate from city or county permits, and you may need both.
When to bring in a licensed professional
Call us if the search shows an open or expired permit, if you see work with no permit at all, or if you can't tell which office handles your address. Closing out a permit usually involves the contractor who did the work or a licensed contractor you hire, and sometimes new inspections. Your building department sets those steps, and we can't say how long they will take.
We are a brokerage, not a law firm, so questions about disclosure duties or contract language belong with a Florida real-estate attorney. Call Premier Real Estate Group Inc at (888) 440-3766 or send the form on this page. A licensed real-estate professional, either our brokerage or an agent we refer you to, will contact you by phone or email.
Premier Real Estate Group Inc is a licensed Florida real estate brokerage (broker license BK3314523). Verify at Florida DBPR.
What a licensed real-estate professional will do
- Plan the permit issue before you listWe help you decide whether to resolve a permit first or sell with it disclosed and negotiated, based on your timeline and goals. The contract terms drive that choice.
- Run a comparative market analysisOur free analysis is an opinion of value from a licensee, not an appraisal. It shows how condition and open items may affect pricing.
- Prepare the home and the paperworkWe help you gather permit records, inspection reports and association documents so buyers see a complete file.
- Handle offers and inspection negotiationsIf a buyer's inspector or the title company raises a permit, we review contingencies and repair requests with you and keep the negotiation moving.
- Coordinate through closingWe work with the title company or closing attorney so open items are addressed ahead of closing wherever the contract allows.
Related questions
- Do I have to close an open permit before I can sell?
- That depends on your contract, the buyer, the lender and the title company, and it is often negotiable. Ask a Florida real-estate attorney about your obligations. We can walk you through the practical options on a free consultation.
- What if work was done on my home without a permit?
- Talk to your building department about what it would take to bring the work into compliance, and ask an attorney how to handle disclosure. We do not advise ignoring it, since buyers' inspectors and insurers may notice the work.
- Can an open permit affect my buyer's insurance or loan?
- It can raise questions, particularly for roof, electrical, plumbing or HVAC work. Whether it affects coverage or financing is up to the insurer and lender, so buyers should confirm with them.
- Do I need a permit and association approval for work in a condo or HOA?
- They are separate requirements. A building permit comes from the city or county, and alteration approval comes from the association under its documents. Check both before work begins and when you assemble sale documents.
Keep reading
Tell us about the home you're selling
A licensed real-estate professional will contact you to talk through pricing and next steps. No obligation.
Licensed brokerage
Premier Real Estate Group Inc
Broker of record Maxim Bohadana, Florida broker license BK3314523
(888) 440-3766