# Detroit Building Permits & Contractor Leads (`permitflow/detroit-building-permits-contractor-leads`) Actor

Fresh Detroit building, trades and demolition permits straight from the city's official open data, with costs, addresses and contractor names.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/permitflow/detroit-building-permits-contractor-leads.md
- **Developed by:** [mehdi](https://apify.com/permitflow) (community)
- **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

## Detroit Building Permits & Contractor Leads (BSEED permit data API)

Get fresh **Detroit building permits**, **electrical, plumbing and mechanical (trades) permits** and **demolition permits** as clean, filterable data. Every run reads the City of Detroit's official open-data permit services (BSEED), which the city updates daily. No login, no proxies, no scraping of private sites.

Use it to find **Detroit contractor leads**, spot **new construction and roofing jobs**, and track **construction activity by ZIP code or neighborhood**.

### Who it is for

- **Roofers, concrete, HVAC, electrical and plumbing companies** who want to see where work is being permitted.
- **Building-material suppliers and rental yards** targeting active job sites.
- **Real estate investors and rehabbers** tracking renovation activity and estimated costs on a street or in a neighborhood.
- **Lead-generation agencies and analysts** who need a repeatable Detroit construction feed.
- **AI agents and automations** that need Detroit permit data through an API.

### Example inputs

Roofing and solar permits in the last 30 days:

```json
{ "datasets": ["building"], "daysBack": 30, "keyword": "roof" }
```

Electrical and plumbing permits with the contractor business (last 14 days):

```json
{ "datasets": ["trades"], "daysBack": 14, "permitTypes": ["Electrical Permit", "Plumbing Permit"] }
```

New builds and additions over $50,000 this quarter:

```json
{ "datasets": ["building"], "daysBack": 90, "permitTypes": ["New", "Addition"], "minEstimatedCost": 50000 }
```

Demolition permits with contractors:

```json
{ "datasets": ["demolition"], "daysBack": 60 }
```

### Real sample rows (October 2026)

| Permit | Type | Issued | Address | Estimated cost / detail |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BLD2026-01199 | Alteration | 2026-10-13 | 7200 Mack Ave | $44,772, solar array on roof |
| RES2026-03094 | Alteration | 2026-10-13 | 4457 Kensington Ave | $103,496, storm-damage alterations |
| RES2026-03788 | Alteration | 2026-10-13 | 19211 Woodston Rd | $40,457 |
| MEC2026-04642 | Mechanical Permit | 2026-10-13 | 15905 Glastonbury Ave | Contractor: Aladdin Heating & Cooling |

### Input fields

| Field | What it does |
|---|---|
| Permit datasets | `building`, `trades`, `demolition` (default: building and trades) |
| Days back / Start and end date | Which issue dates to return |
| Permit types | Exact names, e.g. `New`, `Addition`, `Alteration`, `Electrical Permit`, `Plumbing Permit` |
| Keyword | Word that must start a word in the work description (roof, foundation, basement, addition) |
| Minimum estimated cost | Building permits only |
| Max results | Hard cap on rows and on what you are charged |

### Output

```json
{
  "dataset": "building",
  "permitId": "RES2026-03094",
  "permitType": "Alteration",
  "issuedDate": "2026-10-13",
  "address": "4457 Kensington Ave",
  "zipCode": "48224",
  "neighborhood": "...",
  "estimatedContractorCost": 103496,
  "workDescription": "Interior/Exterior alterations (Due to Storm damage / tree Damage) ...",
  "latitude": 42.4,
  "longitude": -82.9
}
```

Trades and demolition rows add `contractorBusiness`, `contractorContact` and `contractorAddress`.

### Pricing

Pay per result: **$3.00 per 1,000 permits**. A 30-day pull of building and trades permits is a few thousand rows, so a typical run costs a few dollars. Use **Max results** to cap spending.

### Good to know

- Covers the City of Detroit only, not the surrounding suburbs.
- Building permits do not include a contractor name in the city's data; trades and demolition permits do. Some trades rows have only a contact name, or neither.
- Records reflect what the city publishes. Fields can be blank, and some permits are corrected later.
- The data is public government data. If you use contractor contact details for marketing, follow the rules that apply to you (for example CAN-SPAM for email and TCPA for calls and texts).
- Related Actor: **Detroit Distressed Property & Blight Leads** (blight tickets, vacant properties, property sales).

# Actor input Schema

## `datasets` (type: `array`):

building = new construction and alterations (with estimated cost); trades = electrical, plumbing, mechanical etc. (with contractor names); demolition = demolition permits (with contractor).

## `daysBack` (type: `integer`):

Permits issued in the last N days. Ignored if Start date is set.

## `startDate` (type: `string`):

Optional. Earliest issue date.

## `endDate` (type: `string`):

Optional. Latest issue date. Defaults to today.

## `permitTypes` (type: `array`):

Exact permit type names, e.g. New, Addition, Alteration, Electrical Permit, Plumbing Permit. Empty = all.

## `keyword` (type: `string`):

Case-insensitive, e.g. roof, foundation, basement.

## `minEstimatedCost` (type: `integer`):

Building permits only.

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

Stops after this many rows (you are charged per result).

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "datasets": [
    "building",
    "trades"
  ],
  "daysBack": 30,
  "minEstimatedCost": 0,
  "maxItems": 500
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `permits` (type: `string`):

All permits returned by this run, as a dataset.

# 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 = {};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("permitflow/detroit-building-permits-contractor-leads").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 = {}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("permitflow/detroit-building-permits-contractor-leads").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 '{}' |
apify call permitflow/detroit-building-permits-contractor-leads --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

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

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/NCFLTFKoeACA186pe/builds/7mRn8HLs3hVYEvscT/openapi.json