San Diego permits
By Mario Bailey Last checked 2026-06-17 · 2 official sources
Verified against official sourcesCity of San Diego Development Services Department
- 7650 Mission Valley Rd, San Diego, CA 92108
- Phone: 619-446-5000
- Official permit page
- Permit portal
- Official fee schedule
Look up a permit in San Diego
San Diego lets you look up permit records and application status for a property online. San Diego Accela Citizen Access DSD record search.
Look up San Diego permit records
Or search the San Diego permit portal
Planning a project in San Diego?
Hire it out
Before you sign, ask the contractor:
- Who pulls the permit, you or me, and is the permit fee included in the bid?
- Which inspections will this job need, and who meets the inspector on site?
- Is your contractor license active in this locality, and under which business name?
Want a pro to handle this permit? Request free help
Tell us where your project stands. Free to ask; no obligation.
Where we have a vetted local pro who handles permits in San Diego, we connect you; otherwise we reply with the exact steps and office links for your situation. PermitNotebook is not a government agency and does not file permits. This is a free referral request; we may earn a fee if you hire a pro we introduce. Partners never influence our permit data. Privacy policy.
Planning several things at once? Check your whole project
Schedule an inspection in San Diego
Permitted work is not finished until it passes inspection. Development Services Department inspections page with scheduling information.
Schedule or request a San Diego inspection
Checked 2026-07-12. If the office has changed its process, report it.
Permitting activity in San Diego
In 2024, San Diego authorized permits for 6,615 new residential housing units (775 single-family, 5,840 in multi-family buildings), valued at $1.5B , up from5,765 the year before. That works out to about 4.7 permits per 1,000 residents. It is a useful gauge of how busy the local permit office is.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey, 2024 annual data · population 1,422,420.
About San Diego
San Diego has about 559,653 housing units. The median home is valued at $848,500, against a median household income of $104,321. About 48% of homes are owner-occupied, and the typical home was built around 1978. Older housing stock usually means more renovation, electrical, and plumbing permits.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2023 5-year.