Pro General Contractor Explains Permitting: Who Pulls What and Every Inspection in Order

TLDR

A general contractor pulls the building permit. Specialty trades pull their own permits for electrical, plumbing, mechanical, and gas. Every rehab runs through a fixed sequence of inspections, from demo through framing through the gauntlet through drywall to final. Know who is responsible for what and the process becomes manageable instead of scary.

Table of Contents

• Should You Even Pull Permits?
• Cosmetic vs Middle vs Structural
• Who Can Pull Which Permit
• The Full Inspection Sequence
• Why the Consultative Meeting Saves You
• The Final Building Inspection
• FAQ
• Related

Should You Even Pull Permits?

I have been a GC for over a decade, pulled hundreds of permits, hired hundreds of contractors, flipped 300-plus houses. I am not a boy scout. Permits can be a good thing and a bad thing.

There are rules you are supposed to follow. There are also situations where people skip permits and get away with it, and situations where they skip permits and pay a much bigger price on the back end. You need to make that decision for yourself with eyes open.

I will tell you what the rules are, I will show you a story of a guy I mentor who made the wrong call, and you take it from there.

Cosmetic vs Middle vs Structural

There are three buckets of work when it comes to permits.

The cosmetic side is easy. Paint the inside of the house, install flooring, change out cabinets, nobody requires a permit. If you are painting the outside of a pre-1978 house, that can trigger EPA rules about lead paint, but that is an EPA issue, not a building permit.

The structural side is also clear. If you are adding square footage, pull the permit. Permits update the tax records. That lets you sell the house at the real finished size. That alone pays for the permit many times over.

The middle ground is where the calls get interesting.

The Mentor Story

A guy I mentor wanted to finish a basement. The square footage was already there, so it was not an addition. But he was running new plumbing under the concrete and new electrical in the walls. He skipped the permits. A neighbor called the city. Inspectors came out and saw work was happening. That gave them the right to look deeper. By then the project was nearly done. Drywall on, paint up, floor coverings down. He had to cut open walls and floors so they could inspect. Not fun. Not cheap.

I have also seen people run full projects without permits and never get caught. They tape off the windows, control who comes and goes, finish clean. Nobody ever knows. That is the risk. It is yours to take. I have never seen anyone end up in real legal trouble from skipping permits. I have seen the cost of getting caught run into the tens of thousands.

Who Can Pull Which Permit

This is where most people get confused. Even as a licensed general contractor, you cannot pull every permit yourself.

Investor (you)
    |
General Contractor (permits: building)
    |
Specialty trades, each with their own permit:
    - Electrical (licensed electrician only)
    - Plumbing (licensed plumber only)
    - Mechanical / HVAC (licensed HVAC contractor only)
    - Gas (in many areas, specially licensed gas fitter only)

The GC’s building permit covers demo, framing, insulation, drywall, roofing, siding, and structural work. Structural work almost always needs a structural engineer's stamp on top of the permit. The GC does not engineer the structure. They build it per the engineer’s letter.

Mechanical, electrical, and plumbing never come from the GC. Each trade has its own licensed permit holder. The electrician pulls the electrical permit. The plumber pulls the plumbing permit. The HVAC guy pulls the mechanical permit. Gas often needs a separate license on top of that.

Key Concept

The hierarchy exists for a reason. Each permit holder is licensed and liable for their own trade. A GC who tries to pull a plumbing permit will get turned away at the counter. A homeowner too. Match the trade to the licensed trade-holder. Every time.

The Full Inspection Sequence

Every rehab runs through a sequence. The exact names vary by city, but the pattern is close to universal.

Step 1: Demo Inspection

After demo. Confirms you have torn out what you said you would, nothing more, nothing less.

Step 2: Rough Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing, Gas

Each trade does the rough-in and calls their own inspection. These happen one at a time. You want them done before the framing inspection. A plumber might cut through a floor joist to run a drain line. If that happens, the framing inspector needs to see it.

Step 3: Insulation

Insulation gets inspected after the rough MEP passes. The inspector checks R-value, vapor barrier, and sealing around penetrations.

Step 4: Framing (Rough Building)

Framing inspection comes after insulation. Some cities call it “rough building.” Some combine insulation and framing. The inspector looks for framing damaged by the trades, code-compliant layout, and any structural items that need the engineer’s sign-off.

Step 5: Drywall

Not every city does this one. Where it exists, the inspector checks screw spacing. Drywall actually helps the house resist shear forces. Proper screw placement ties the structure together. Fail this and your drywallers come back to add more screws.

Step 6: Final Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing, Gas

After all the fixtures are installed. Much lighter than the rough inspection. If you passed rough, you usually pass final.

Step 7: Final Building

The last inspection before the certificate of occupancy, if your city issues one. Final covers safety and liability items. Railings, attic insulation, and anything nitpicky the building official finds.

Why the Consultative Meeting Saves You

There is a trap in the sequence above. The framing inspection happens after insulation. But you do not want to insulate until you know the framing will pass. If the framing fails, you have to pull the insulation back out to fix it. That is a double-spend.

The answer is a consultative meeting. Call the building inspector before you insulate. Ask them to come look at the framing. They are not officially inspecting, just consulting. If they see a problem, you fix it before the insulation goes in. Then you insulate, then you call the real inspection. Both pass on the first try.

Pro Tip

Consultative meetings with inspectors are free and common. Use them. An inspector who has seen the framing in a friendly visit is much more likely to pass it at the real inspection. They already know what you built.

Same trick works at other points. If you are unsure about a detail, call the right inspector and ask. They usually answer. A five-minute phone call beats a failed inspection every time.

The Final Building Inspection

The last inspection is the one that catches the small things. Safety railings missing from a deck. A smoke detector that should have been hardwired. Attic insulation missing where you said it would be.

The attic insulation catch is common. The early insulation inspection checks the walls and the batt insulation. But blown-in attic insulation goes in after drywall. It sits on top of the ceiling drywall. So the attic insulation inspection gets bundled into the final. Plan for it. Or the inspector fails you at the last step and pushes your CO another week.

Some cities issue a certificate of occupancy after final. Some just mark the permit closed. The effect is the same. The house is legally ready for a buyer or tenant.

The final inspection is where the nits show up. Budget a half-day for fixes before you call it.

FAQ

I am just starting out. Is it worth it to pull permits on my first flip?

Yes. A permit is cheap. Getting caught without one is not. You build a clean record with the city. You learn the inspection sequence. You avoid the nightmare of tearing out finished work to show hidden rough-ins. Start right. See Acting as Your Own General Contractor for the legal paths to pulling permits on a flip.

What happens if I pass all the rough inspections and then fail the final?

Minor stuff. Usually the final catches safety items: railings, smoke detectors, attic insulation. A few hours of punch-list work and you are back. Big failures at final are rare if the rough inspections passed.

How much does a permit actually cost?

Depends on the project and the city. For a typical $50,000 to $75,000 rehab, total permit cost usually runs $500 to $2,000. That covers building, electrical, plumbing, and mechanical. Cheap insurance against a 10x hit if you get caught.

Do I have to use licensed subs for the permits to be valid?

Yes. An electrical permit needs a licensed electrician. A plumbing permit needs a licensed plumber. Unlicensed subs cannot pull permits. Their work will not pass inspection either. Even if a friend offers to do the rough wiring cheap, the permit requires a license.

What if I do work, pass the rough inspection, and then decide to change the scope?

File a revision or updated permit. The city wants to know about changes. Some changes need a new inspection at the revision point. Walking into the final inspection with a different scope than the permit is how people get caught at the end.