Checking building permits when purchasing a Boston home in 2025

Boston Condos for Sale & Boston Apartments

Checking building permits when purchasing a Boston home in 2025

Many Boston homeowners aren’t aware of their property’s permit history, and that can lead to unwelcome surprises during a sale. If there are missing details or unresolved permits, it can create delays or even affect your home’s value.

Every permit issued  shows whether the work was completed and officially signed off by city inspectors. It also notes any permits that are still open or have expired—a potential red flag that the work may never have been done or properly approved. This is especially important for work behind the walls like plumbing or electrical, where inspector sign-offs ensure everything meets building code and safety standards.

It’s not uncommon for Boston home sellers to assume past work was fully permitted and finalized, only to discover discrepancies. While contractors are generally responsible for closing out permits, sometimes final signoffs get lost in the scrum. Those kind of oversights can become a sticking point during your sale.

To stay ahead of these issues, it’s smart to have your Boston condo sales agent check permits as soon as you’ve signed the listing paperwork. In the meantime, your agent can also pull your property’s permit history online to start reviewing. Tackling any permit-related issues early can help ensure a smoother sale. And remember — keeping records such as inspector-signed job cards for all major improvements can save you time, stress and money down the line.

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Checking building permits when purchasing a Boston home in 2025

Sometimes it is hard to get work done in certain downtown Boston neighborhoods like Beacon Hill because of our strictly enforced building codes and laws. The cost of simple repairs can be very expensive if they are done correctly and the permits are pulled.

Downtown Boston Contractors

It is tempting to have work done without pulling permits. There are licensed plumbers and electricians who do not like working on Beacon Hill homes because of all the rules and will do the work without pulling a permit. There are homeowners who do work without pulling permits and sometimes they just don’t know any better and other times they don’t want to work through all of the approvals when the work is finished.

Buying Boston Real Estate

My advice is before you put your home on the market look it up on the property look-up section on the city of Boston web site.  If you home is like most older homes in Beacon Hill or Back Bay there will be open permits, closed permits, “finaled” permits and maybe if you’ll will even be permits that are “closed without approval”.

Boston Real Estate and the Bottom Line

Boston condo buyers might want to check the condominium or Boston suburb home to see if there are any open permits before the sale closes, otherwise it could come back to haunt you when its your turn to sell.

Downtown Boston real estate for sale