# Building Permit Leads: Austin, Chicago, NYC (Open Data) (`atlasagent99/city-building-permits`) Actor

Fresh issued building permits from official Austin, Chicago and NYC open data in one schema: permit type, work description, address, date, contractor company and valuation where published.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/atlasagent99/city-building-permits.md
- **Developed by:** [Texasbread](https://apify.com/atlasagent99) (community)
- **Categories:** Lead generation, Real estate, Business
- **Security:** Limited permissions
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $3.00 / 1,000 results

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

An Actor is a serverless cloud program that runs on the Apify platform. It has two run modes.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.

Apify vocabulary and the platform model are defined once, in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md.

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.

Do not guess an integration path. Every one of them is in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md: the Apify MCP server, Agent Skills with the Apify CLI, the JavaScript and Python clients, the REST API, and the account-free path for an agent with no human to sign in. It also carries the rule on stating cost before the first paid run.

For examples already wired to this Actor's own input schema, see the [API](#api) section below.

Each client library has reference documentation the quickstart does not restate: [JavaScript/TypeScript](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md) (`npm install apify-client`) and [Python](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md) (`pip install apify-client`).

# README

## Building Permit Leads: Austin, Chicago, NYC (Open Data)

Fresh **issued building permits** from official city open-data portals for **Austin, Chicago and New York City**, in one schema: permit type, work class, work description, address, issue date, contractor company, and job valuation where the city publishes it. Built for contractors and suppliers looking for new projects.

### Who it's for

Roofers, solar installers, HVAC, pool, remodel and landscaping companies, building-material suppliers, and anyone selling to contractors or property owners with active projects.

### What you get

| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| `permitNumber` | Permit number |
| `permitType` | Permit type |
| `workClass` | Work class / filing reason |
| `description` | Work description |
| `address` | Site address |
| `city` | City display name (Austin, Chicago, New York) |
| `zip` | ZIP |
| `status` | Status |
| `contractorCompany` | Contractor company (business name only) |
| `contractorTrade` | Contractor trade |
| `cityKey` | Preset key |
| `borough` | NYC borough (Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Bronx, Staten Island); null for other cities |
| `issuedDate` | Issue date |
| `valuation` | Reported job value |
| `latitude` | Lat |
| `longitude` | Lng |
| `sourceDataset` | Source dataset URL |
| `error` | Set only on error rows (bad input, site unavailable). Error rows are billed like results; see README. |

### Input

- **Cities** (required): `austin-tx`, `chicago-il`, `new-york-ny`.
- **Issued within last N days** (default 7).
- **Keywords** (optional): matched against type, work class and description, e.g. `roof`, `solar`, `pool`, `hvac`.
- **Minimum valuation** (optional): only permits with a reported value at or above this (permits without a value are excluded when set).
- **Max permits per city** (default 500) / **Max results** (0 = no limit).

Example:

```json
{
  "cities": [
    "austin-tx",
    "chicago-il",
    "new-york-ny"
  ],
  "issuedWithinDays": 7,
  "keywords": [
    "roof",
    "solar"
  ],
  "maxPermitsPerCity": 100
}
```

Results appear in the **Output** tab and can be exported as JSON, CSV or Excel or pulled through the Apify API. Schedule the Actor daily or weekly to catch new items.

### Field coverage by city

Not every city publishes every field. `borough` is set only for New York. Austin and New York publish a contractor company; Chicago's dataset does not. Valuation is published by Chicago and New York; in Austin it is often empty.

### Pricing

Pay per result: you are charged for each row written to the dataset. Filters run *before* rows are saved, so you only pay for matches. A row that reports a bad input or an unavailable source (field `error`) also counts as one result, so you can see exactly what happened. Set a maximum cost per run in the run options and the Actor stops when it is reached.

### Data source

Official Socrata open-data APIs: data.austintexas.gov, data.cityofchicago.org and data.cityofnewyork.us. Fields that identify private individuals (names, phones, emails, license numbers) are dropped. Results are only as fresh as each city's published dataset.

### Privacy

The Actor never logs in and never collects personal data of private individuals. You are responsible for using the data in line with the source's terms and the law in your country.

### Questions or a missing feature?

Open an issue on the Actor's Issues tab.

# Actor input Schema

## `cities` (type: `array`):

austin-tx, chicago-il, new-york-ny

## `issuedWithinDays` (type: `integer`):

Date window.

## `keywords` (type: `array`):

Match type/work class/description, e.g. roof, solar, pool, hvac

## `minValuation` (type: `integer`):

Only permits with a reported value at or above this.

## `maxPermitsPerCity` (type: `integer`):

Cap per city.

## `maxItems` (type: `integer`):

Stop after this many results. 0 = no limit.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "cities": [
    "austin-tx"
  ],
  "issuedWithinDays": 7,
  "keywords": [],
  "maxPermitsPerCity": 500,
  "maxItems": 0
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

No description

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "cities": [
        "austin-tx"
    ]
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("atlasagent99/city-building-permits").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = { "cities": ["austin-tx"] }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("atlasagent99/city-building-permits").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "cities": [
    "austin-tx"
  ]
}' |
apify call atlasagent99/city-building-permits --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,atlasagent99/city-building-permits"
        }
    }
}
```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/OkEm77fpFmkWIdKlS/builds/rCm5RQCSsafRDkJZ7/openapi.json