Portland Building Permit Search & History Reports

Portland's Bureau of Development Services (BDS) is the single permit authority for all construction, renovation, and demolition within city limits. BDS uses the AMANDA permit management system and publishes permit data through Portland Maps — an authoritative GIS platform covering every permit issued in Portland. BDS permits cover all property types: single-family residential, multifamily, commercial, industrial, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and urban forestry. Portland's unique quadrant address system (NE, SE, SW, NW, N) is reflected in permit records and must be included for accurate address matching. Portland's dense inner-east neighborhoods (Division, Hawthorne, Belmont) and the Pearl District have seen intense permit activity since 2010 driven by ADU construction, seismic retrofits, and commercial buildouts. Multnomah, Washington, and Clackamas County jurisdictions outside Portland city limits use separate permit systems.

Records available

What's included in a Portland permit search.

BDS-issued permits from Portland Maps open data: residential and commercial construction, additions and alterations, demolition, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and urban forestry. Includes permit type, issue date, work description, and status. Live ArcGIS lookup available.

Source: Portland Bureau of Development Services (BDS) https://www.portland.gov/bds

Permit type and scope of work Full description of the work covered by each permit
Issue date, final date, current status Track open vs. finaled vs. expired permits
Contractor name & license Where recorded — required for OR permits
Original PDF document (Premium tier) Certified copy from Portland Bureau of Development Services (BDS)

Coverage limits

What this search does not include.

Multnomah County unincorporated areas; suburban cities (Beaverton, Gresham, Lake Oswego, Tigard — each has its own building department); permits still in active plan review.

Outside Portland, OR jurisdiction Adjacent counties and municipalities use separate systems
Pending / in-review permits Not yet issued — not in the public records database
Unpermitted work Not in the records — flagged via history gaps, not direct data
Voided / expired (cleared) records Portland may clear old records from public view after a retention period

Common questions

Frequently asked about Portland permits.

How far back do Portland BDS records go?

Portland Maps BDS data covers permit records back to the mid-1990s for most permit types, with good completeness from 2000 onward. Earlier records may require a direct BDS records request.

What is the Portland quadrant address system?

Portland addresses include a directional quadrant: NE (Northeast), SE (Southeast), SW (Southwest), NW (Northwest), and N (North). The quadrant is part of the address and affects permit record matching — 123 SE Burnside is a different address than 123 NW Burnside.

Can unpermitted additions be detected in Portland?

Yes — cross-reference BDS permit history with the Multnomah County Assessor's property records. ADU conversions, garage additions, and basement unit work are the most common unpermitted patterns in Portland's inner neighborhoods.

What changed with Portland ADU rules?

Oregon HB 2001 (2019) and subsequent Portland code changes allow ADUs on most residential lots. Portland has some of the most permissive ADU rules in the country — our lookup reflects the wave of ADU permits filed since 2020.

Does Portland require contractor registration?

Yes — contractors must hold a current Oregon Construction Contractors Board (CCB) license. CCB numbers are required on permits and are included in our results where recorded by BDS.

Portland Building Permit Search & History Reports

What's included in a Portland permit search.

What this search does not include.

Frequently asked about Portland permits.

Get permit data for Portland, OR.