What permits actually do
A permit is not bureaucracy for its own sake. It triggers inspections that catch the corners you cannot see: an undersized circuit, missing waterproofing, a beam that is not carrying the load it should. Those inspections are the reason a permitted job protects you long after the crew leaves.
Who should pull it
Your contractor. Always. If someone asks you to pull your own owner-builder permit, treat it as a warning. It often means they are avoiding liability or papering over a licensing gap. When the contractor pulls the permit, the responsibility for code compliance sits with them, where it belongs.
The resale trap
Unpermitted work is invisible until you sell. Then a buyer’s inspector flags the addition, the finished basement, or the relocated panel, and you are tearing out and redoing it to code, paying twice. Lenders and insurers can balk at unpermitted square footage entirely.
Permitting is local
Rules vary city to city, sometimes block to block. Austin’s process differs from Houston’s. Miami-Dade enforces the toughest wind code in the country. Denver requires radon-resistant construction. A builder worth hiring knows your jurisdiction and files complete the first time. We pull the permit and manage inspections on every job. See how we work.