Methodology
How we calculate closure rates and which permits we count for Austin.
What is a closure rate?
When a contractor pulls a building permit in Austin, an inspector needs to verify the work was completed correctly before the permit can be closed. A closure rate measures the percentage of an applicant's permits that have been properly closed:
The 365-day eligibility rule
A contractor who pulled a permit last month hasn't had time to complete the work yet. To avoid penalizing recent activity, we only count permits issued more than 365 days ago when calculating closure rates.
Permits issued within the last year still appear in the data but are dimmed in the table and not factored into the rate.
Which permits are included?
Austin's Issued Construction Permits dataset includes a mix of core construction permits and non-building permit classes. We include permit types that represent inspectable construction work, and we only rate permits issued on or after January 1, 2010:
| Permit Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Building Permit | Building construction, additions, renovations, and demolitions |
| Electrical Permit | Electrical wiring, panel, and service work |
| Mechanical Permit | HVAC and other mechanical system installations |
| Plumbing Permit | Plumbing installations and modifications |
Applicant identification
Austin provides both contractor and applicant fields, but contractor fields are much more complete. We attribute permits to the best available party in this order: Contractor Company Name, then Contractor Full Name, then Applicant Organization, then Applicant Full Name.
This prioritizes the business actually responsible for completing and closing the permit.
What is excluded?
We exclude permit types and statuses where closure is not a meaningful contractor signal:
| Excluded | Reason |
|---|---|
| Driveway / Sidewalks | Public realm / site access permits, not core building construction |
| Permits issued before 2010 | Historical legacy records are out of scope for Austin reporting |
| VOID / Withdrawn / Cancelled statuses | Administrative outcomes, not active construction permits |
| Pending / On Hold / Re Review statuses | Pre-issuance or administrative workflow states |
Deduplication
Austin permits are deduplicated on permit number during nightly refreshes, using the shared cross-city dedup logic and status reconciliation safeguard.
Status classification
Austin uses many status values. We classify the following for closure calculations:
| Status | Classification |
|---|---|
| Final / Closed | Counted as closed — work completed and finalized |
| Active | Counted as open — permit is active |
| Expired / Expired - License | Counted as open — permit expired before final closure |
| Void / Withdrawn / Cancelled | Excluded — not an active construction completion path |
Leaderboard criteria
The leaderboard applies two additional filters:
- Minimum 20 rated permits — avoids surfacing statistically insignificant data.
- Active in the last 3 years — prevents the list from being populated by defunct companies.
The leaderboard can be filtered by permit type (e.g., Building, Electrical, Mechanical, Plumbing). When filtered, both thresholds apply only to permits of the selected type.
Median comparison
On applicant detail pages, each closure rate is compared to the median closure rate across all leaderboard-eligible applicants in the same category. This gives context — a 50% closure rate means something different in a category where the median is 40% versus one where it's 80%.
Medians are calculated from the same pool of applicants who meet the 20-permit minimum threshold.
Data source
Data comes from the Issued Construction Permits dataset on City of Austin Open Data. The dataset is refreshed nightly.
Limitations
This site shows permit closure data. It does not evaluate the quality of anyone's work. There are legitimate reasons a permit may remain open:
- Client non-cooperation — the property owner may fail to schedule the final inspection or grant access.
- Administrative backlog — work may be inspected and approved but not yet updated in the system.
- Project delays — financing, design changes, supply chain issues, or other factors outside the applicant's control.
- Multi-phase projects — large commercial projects may legitimately take years to complete.
- Permit holder vs. contractor — the applicant may be a GC, architect, or owner — not necessarily the person scheduling the inspection.
If you believe there are inaccuracies in the underlying permit data, contact the Austin Development Services Department at [email protected].