# MCP: Building Permits & Contractor Intel (`seibs.co/mcp-building-permits-intel`) Actor MCP server for building-permits-intel. AI-agent tools: search\_permits, get\_permit, lookup\_contractor, trade\_signals across US city/county permit feeds + contractor licenses. x402 (USDC on Base) and Skyfire ready. For trades sales, suppliers, insurers, REI. - **URL**: https://apify.com/seibs.co/mcp-building-permits-intel.md - **Developed by:** [Seibs.co](https://apify.com/seibs.co) (community) - **Categories:** MCP servers, Business, Developer tools - **Stats:** 1 total users, 0 monthly users, 0.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks - **User rating**: No ratings yet ## Pricing $5.00 / 1,000 mcp tool calls 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/platform/actors/running/actors-in-store#pay-per-event ## What's an Apify Actor? Actors are a software tools running on the Apify platform, for all kinds of web data extraction and automation use cases. 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. Actors are written with capital "A". ## 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. The best way to integrate Actors is as follows. In JavaScript/TypeScript projects, use official [JavaScript/TypeScript client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js.md): ```bash npm install apify-client ``` In Python projects, use official [Python client library](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python.md): ```bash pip install apify-client ``` In shell scripts, use [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): ````bash # MacOS / Linux curl -fsSL https://apify.com/install-cli.sh | bash # Windows irm https://apify.com/install-cli.ps1 | iex ```bash In AI frameworks, you might use the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/platform/integrations/mcp.md). If your project is in a different language, use the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md). For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below. For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt). # README ## MCP: Building Permits & Contractor License Intel > **An MCP server that gives any AI agent live US building-permit + contractor-license intelligence.** Wraps [`seibs.co/building-permits-intel`](https://apify.com/seibs.co/building-permits-intel) as four Model Context Protocol tools an agent can call directly - `search_permits`, `get_permit`, `lookup_contractor`, and `trade_signals` - across the fragmented city/county permit portals (Chicago, Austin, NYC, SF, Seattle today; a national catalog phasing in). Built for trades sales teams, suppliers, insurers, and real-estate investors wiring permit intent signals into an agent or copilot. **x402 (USDC on Base) and Skyfire ready** for token-less agentic payments. ### The tools | Tool | What it does | |---|---| | `search_permits` | Fetch normalized permits per jurisdiction (filter by keyword, address, trade, date range, min valuation). | | `get_permit` | Look up one permit by `{jurisdiction, permit_number}`. | | `lookup_contractor` | Resolve a contractor's permit footprint across jurisdictions (count, trades, total valuation, license). | | `trade_signals` | Score recent permits into ranked, cross-sell-ready buying signals for the trades (solar/roofing/HVAC/pool), each with a 0-100 intent score. | ### Run modes - **`list_tools`** (free) - emit the MCP tool catalog (names, JSON schemas, payment descriptor). Start here for discovery. - **`call_tool`** - invoke one tool. Provide `tool` + `args`. - **`batch`** - invoke up to 10 `{tool, args}` calls in one run. ```jsonc // mode=call_tool { "mode": "call_tool", "tool": "trade_signals", "args": { "jurisdictions": ["CHICAGO", "AUSTIN", "SF"], "trades": ["solar", "roofing", "hvac"] } } ```` ### Pricing Flat **$0.005 per MCP tool call** (`mcp_tool_call`). The upstream `building-permits-intel` actor charges its own pay-per-event prices (`permit_record` $0.005, `valuation_signal` $0.008, `contractor_enrichment` $0.010) directly to the same run, so total cost = $0.005 per tool call + upstream pass-through. A call that returns nothing costs only the tool-call fee. ### Agentic payments (x402 + Skyfire) This server advertises an agentic-payment descriptor so an AI agent can pay per call with no pre-provisioned API token once the operator enables MCP monetization. Set `X402_ENABLED=1` + `X402_PAY_TO_ADDRESS` (USDC on Base) and/or `SKYFIRE_ENABLED=1` + `SKYFIRE_SELLER_ID` as actor env secrets. Off by default; calls through Apify always bill via standard PPE. ### Connect from a client Point any MCP-compatible client (Claude Desktop, Cursor, OpenAI Assistants, LangChain, LlamaIndex) at this actor via Apify's actor-as-MCP-tool convention, or call it directly with the Apify API. Run `mode=list_tools` first to fetch the live JSON schemas. Data is public-record (government permits + contractor licenses), accessed logged-out and PII-minimized. See the upstream actor's README for coverage, the anti-bot escalation ladder, and the responsible-use note. # Actor input Schema ## `mode` (type: `string`): list\_tools = emit the MCP tool catalog (free). call\_tool = invoke one tool (requires 'tool' + 'args'). batch = invoke a list of {tool, args} calls. ## `tool` (type: `string`): Required when mode=call\_tool. One of: search\_permits, get\_permit, lookup\_contractor, trade\_signals. ## `args` (type: `object`): Arguments for the selected tool. Example for trade\_signals: {"jurisdictions": \["CHICAGO","AUSTIN","SF"], "trades": \["solar","roofing","hvac"]}. ## `calls` (type: `array`): Required when mode=batch. Each entry is an object with 'tool' and 'args'. Example: \[{"tool": "search\_permits", "args": {"query": "roof"}}, {"tool": "lookup\_contractor", "args": {"contractor": "KangaRoof"}}]. Max 10 calls per run. ## Actor input object example ```json { "mode": "list_tools", "tool": "trade_signals", "args": { "jurisdictions": [ "CHICAGO", "AUSTIN", "SF" ], "trades": [ "solar", "roofing", "hvac" ] }, "calls": [] } ``` # 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 '' with your token const client = new ApifyClient({ token: '', }); // Prepare Actor input const input = { "mode": "list_tools", "args": { "jurisdictions": [ "CHICAGO", "AUSTIN", "SF" ], "trades": [ "solar", "roofing", "hvac" ] } }; // Run the Actor and wait for it to finish const run = await client.actor("seibs.co/mcp-building-permits-intel").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 '' with your token. client = ApifyClient("") # Prepare the Actor input run_input = { "mode": "list_tools", "args": { "jurisdictions": [ "CHICAGO", "AUSTIN", "SF", ], "trades": [ "solar", "roofing", "hvac", ], }, } # Run the Actor and wait for it to finish run = client.actor("seibs.co/mcp-building-permits-intel").call(run_input=run_input) # Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any) print("💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/" + run["defaultDatasetId"]) for item in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items(): print(item) # 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start ``` ## CLI example ```bash echo '{ "mode": "list_tools", "args": { "jurisdictions": [ "CHICAGO", "AUSTIN", "SF" ], "trades": [ "solar", "roofing", "hvac" ] } }' | apify call seibs.co/mcp-building-permits-intel --silent --output-dataset ``` ## MCP server setup ```json { "mcpServers": { "apify": { "command": "npx", "args": [ "mcp-remote", "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=seibs.co/mcp-building-permits-intel", "--header", "Authorization: Bearer " ] } } } ``` ## OpenAPI specification ```json { "openapi": "3.0.1", "info": { "title": "MCP: Building Permits & Contractor Intel", "description": "MCP server for building-permits-intel. AI-agent tools: search_permits, get_permit, lookup_contractor, trade_signals across US city/county permit feeds + contractor licenses. x402 (USDC on Base) and Skyfire ready. For trades sales, suppliers, insurers, REI.", "version": "0.1", "x-build-id": "cFnhwnUpjZBGYusyC" }, "servers": [ { "url": "https://api.apify.com/v2" } ], "paths": { "/acts/seibs.co~mcp-building-permits-intel/run-sync-get-dataset-items": { "post": { "operationId": "run-sync-get-dataset-items-seibs.co-mcp-building-permits-intel", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor, waits for its completion, and returns Actor's dataset items in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK" } } } }, "/acts/seibs.co~mcp-building-permits-intel/runs": { "post": { "operationId": "runs-sync-seibs.co-mcp-building-permits-intel", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor and returns information about the initiated run in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK", "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/runsResponseSchema" } } } } } } }, "/acts/seibs.co~mcp-building-permits-intel/run-sync": { "post": { "operationId": "run-sync-seibs.co-mcp-building-permits-intel", "x-openai-isConsequential": false, "summary": "Executes an Actor, waits for completion, and returns the OUTPUT from Key-value store in response.", "tags": [ "Run Actor" ], "requestBody": { "required": true, "content": { "application/json": { "schema": { "$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema" } } } }, "parameters": [ { "name": "token", "in": "query", "required": true, "schema": { "type": "string" }, "description": "Enter your Apify token here" } ], "responses": { "200": { "description": "OK" } } } } }, "components": { "schemas": { "inputSchema": { "type": "object", "required": [ "mode" ], "properties": { "mode": { "title": "Mode", "enum": [ "list_tools", "call_tool", "batch" ], "type": "string", "description": "list_tools = emit the MCP tool catalog (free). call_tool = invoke one tool (requires 'tool' + 'args'). batch = invoke a list of {tool, args} calls.", "default": "list_tools" }, "tool": { "title": "Tool name", "enum": [ "search_permits", "get_permit", "lookup_contractor", "trade_signals" ], "type": "string", "description": "Required when mode=call_tool. One of: search_permits, get_permit, lookup_contractor, trade_signals.", "default": "trade_signals" }, "args": { "title": "Tool arguments (JSON object)", "type": "object", "description": "Arguments for the selected tool. Example for trade_signals: {\"jurisdictions\": [\"CHICAGO\",\"AUSTIN\",\"SF\"], \"trades\": [\"solar\",\"roofing\",\"hvac\"]}." }, "calls": { "title": "Batch calls", "maxItems": 10, "type": "array", "description": "Required when mode=batch. Each entry is an object with 'tool' and 'args'. Example: [{\"tool\": \"search_permits\", \"args\": {\"query\": \"roof\"}}, {\"tool\": \"lookup_contractor\", \"args\": {\"contractor\": \"KangaRoof\"}}]. Max 10 calls per run.", "default": [] } } }, "runsResponseSchema": { "type": "object", "properties": { "data": { "type": "object", "properties": { "id": { "type": "string" }, "actId": { "type": "string" }, "userId": { "type": "string" }, "startedAt": { "type": "string", "format": "date-time", "example": "2025-01-08T00:00:00.000Z" }, "finishedAt": { "type": "string", "format": "date-time", "example": "2025-01-08T00:00:00.000Z" }, "status": { "type": "string", "example": "READY" }, "meta": { "type": "object", "properties": { "origin": { "type": "string", "example": "API" }, "userAgent": { "type": "string" } } }, "stats": { "type": "object", "properties": { "inputBodyLen": { "type": "integer", "example": 2000 }, "rebootCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "restartCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "resurrectCount": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "computeUnits": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } }, "options": { "type": "object", "properties": { "build": { "type": "string", "example": "latest" }, "timeoutSecs": { "type": "integer", "example": 300 }, "memoryMbytes": { "type": "integer", "example": 1024 }, "diskMbytes": { "type": "integer", "example": 2048 } } }, "buildId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultKeyValueStoreId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultDatasetId": { "type": "string" }, "defaultRequestQueueId": { "type": "string" }, "buildNumber": { "type": "string", "example": "1.0.0" }, "containerUrl": { "type": "string" }, "usage": { "type": "object", "properties": { "ACTOR_COMPUTE_UNITS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 1 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_LISTS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_INTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_EXTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_RESIDENTIAL_TRANSFER_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_SERPS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } }, "usageTotalUsd": { "type": "number", "example": 0.00005 }, "usageUsd": { "type": "object", "properties": { "ACTOR_COMPUTE_UNITS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATASET_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_WRITES": { "type": "number", "example": 0.00005 }, "KEY_VALUE_STORE_LISTS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_READS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "REQUEST_QUEUE_WRITES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_INTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "DATA_TRANSFER_EXTERNAL_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_RESIDENTIAL_TRANSFER_GBYTES": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 }, "PROXY_SERPS": { "type": "integer", "example": 0 } } } } } } } } } } ```