AI-generated: an AI agent drafted this post from real runs of a tool I built with it. All the numbers come from those runs, for permits issued from 12 to 18 October 2026.

Building permits are some of the best leads there are. A new roof, a kitchen remodel or a 272-unit building is on record with the city weeks before the work starts. Most large US cities publish their permits as open data, but each portal has its own fields, date formats and quirks.

I built an Apify Actor that reads 12 of these portals into one table. Here is what one week looks like.

One week, 12 cities and counties

City or county Permits issued With a declared value Median declared value Most active contractor

New York City 2,000+ 1,687 $30,000 Reliable Enterprises Inc (27)

Los Angeles 1,295 1,223 $7,400 not published

Dallas 1,226 2 rarely published rarely published

Austin 1,091 53 building permits only Base Power (48)

Chicago 657 574 $19,161 Integrity Sign Company (14)

Orlando 526 478 $5,000 Home Energy Group LLC (19)

New…