Building permit services: a guide for pros

What customers ask, how to win the job, and what to put on your profile.

Offering building permit services

You prepare permit applications and drawings, track review comments and schedule inspections so approved work can move forward. Customers hire you for a clean submittal, fast and complete responses to review comments and a permit closed out correctly.

What customers ask

Which permits does my project need, and from which office?
How many review rounds should I expect, and how do you handle them?
Who prepares or stamps the drawings?
Who schedules the inspections, and what happens if one fails?
Do you handle the fees, or do I pay the office directly?
What documents will I receive at closeout?

How to win the job

On the first call, ask for the project scope, the location, the drawings you have and the permits the owner expects, then say which permits you think are needed and which office issues them
Check the local office's submittal checklist and the current requirements for the project type before you quote
List the permits, the drawings and the forms in the proposal, with who prepares each item and who stamps it
Put the number of review rounds and the response to each round in the quote, so the owner knows what is included
Show a sample submittal and a sample response to review comments, with the changes marked on the sheets
Give the owner a written inspection schedule with the stage each inspection covers

What to put on your profile

List the jurisdictions where you have submitted permits, and the permit types you handle
Post examples of organized submittal packages, with personal and client details removed
Show your review-comment log and the way you track responses to each round
State whether you prepare drawings, coordinate stamped sheets or manage submittals only

Follow-up that helps the customer

Offer a closeout check of the permit record and the final inspection certificate after the work is done
Suggest a permit check before any new work is added to the project, since new work may need its own permit
Offer to keep the permit file, the drawings and the inspection records on hand for the owner's future use

Licenses and permits

Permit services are often performed by licensed architects, engineers or contractors, and some submittals must be stamped by a licensed professional. Check with your state licensing agencies and your local building department for who may prepare and submit the drawings and the forms in your jurisdiction before you take the work.

Questions

How do I handle a review comment I disagree with?

Respond in writing with the code reference or the drawing detail that supports your design, and ask for a call with the reviewer if needed. Do not change the design without the owner's approval.

What do I do if the office changes the requirements mid-review?

Get the change in writing, update the scope and the schedule, and tell the owner what it means. Keep the response log current so the next review round is based on the latest requirement.

How do requests reach me on infinibell?

Customers describe the job and pick the pros they want by name, and only the pros they picked see the request. Joining is free. You pay only for the leads you accept, and you can decline a request for free. Every pro is reviewed before going live.

Pro reviewers

Pros who offer building permit services remotely can improve this guide, like Wikipedia. We check every edit before it goes live. Every approved edit is credited in the edit history and on the pro's profile.

Edit history

Oct 29, 2026: Drafted by infinibell to our content guidelines.

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