Long Beach Building Permits Guide for Homeowners and Sellers

Last updated November 13, 2026. Reviewed by the Cash Home Buyers CA team. Information comes from the City of Long Beach Community Development Department; sources are listed at the end.

Building permits for homes inside the City of Long Beach come from the Building & Safety Bureau of the Long Beach Community Development Department, through its Permit Center. The same office keeps permit status and history records, which is the quickest way to find out whether past work on a house was permitted before you sell it.

Long Beach building permits at a glance

Who issues building permits in Long Beach?

Inside Long Beach city limits, the Permit Center handles building permits. Homes in neighboring cities or unincorporated Los Angeles County areas are permitted by those jurisdictions instead, and a Long Beach mailing address does not always mean the home is inside the city, so confirm the jurisdiction before you apply or search records.

How do I get a building permit in Long Beach?

The city describes the permit process as the way it makes sure a project complies with local zoning and building regulations and protects current and future occupants. The Permit Center offers online permits, counter service, and a virtual meeting service where Building and Safety staff answer building code questions about a proposed design. Inspections are scheduled through the city’s inspection page.

1. Confirm the jurisdiction and check whether the property is in a historic district or the Coastal Zone.
2. Apply through the Permit Center online or at the counter.
3. Schedule inspections as work proceeds.
4. Make sure the permit is finaled after the last inspection.

How do I look up the permit history on a Long Beach house?

Use the Permit Status Inquiry / Permit History tool on the Long Beach website and enter the address number and street name, or a project number. It shows the status of projects in plan check, new applications and issued permit history, along with construction document records.

Read the history for permits opened and never finalized, work you know was done that has no permit, and permits with a completed final inspection. A permit without a final is an open permit, and it is the one buyers and their lenders ask about.

What happens to permit problems when you sell a Long Beach house?

In California, sellers generally have to disclose known problems on the transfer disclosure statement, including work known to have been done without a permit.

On a traditional listing the usual choices are to finish the open permit, apply for a permit after the fact, cut the price, or let the buyer take on the problem. Each costs time and money, and lenders and appraisers can be cautious about unpermitted living space.

How to sell a house in Long Beach with unpermitted work or open permits

1. Pull the permit history first so you know what the city shows.
2. Write down what you know: who did the work, when, and whether you have receipts or plans.
3. Compare your options: fix it, sell with a price credit, or sell as-is to a cash buyer who prices the risk in.
4. Disclose honestly. A cash offer does not change what you must disclose, but it removes the repair and inspection steps that cause delays.

We buy Long Beach houses as they are, with no permit clean-up, repairs or showings. See how we buy houses in Long Beach, or our Long Beach cash home buyer page. If the house has been cited, read our Long Beach code enforcement guide. For taxes, see the Los Angeles County property tax guide.

Not sure what your permit history means for a sale? Call (424) 435-2326 or request a cash offer. There is no cost and no obligation.

Using the Permit Center and the Resource Center

The Permit Center at 411 West Ocean Blvd. issues permits and plans for building, electrical, plumbing and mechanical construction on private property, and the building services line is 562.570.PMIT (7648). The city says architectural plans are not available online but can be viewed at the Permit Center’s Resource Center.

For a seller, that is a practical detail: if you suspect an addition was built without plans on file, the Resource Center is where you can confirm what the city actually has, rather than relying on a prior owner’s account.

Checking permit history by address

Long Beach offers a Permit Status Inquiry and Permit History search by address number and street name or by project number. Search before you list and note every permit that appears, then compare it to the house.

Look for permits with no final inspection, permits for work that does not appear to match what is there, and visible additions with no permit at all. Print or save the results; if something looks off, ask the Permit Center what would be needed to resolve it.

Historic districts and the Coastal Zone

The city notes that extra requirements may apply in historic districts and coastal zones. If your home is in either, a past project that needed an additional approval may be missing one even if a building permit exists. Ask the Planning Bureau at 562.570.6194 whether an overlay applied to your lot when the work was done.

Selling a Long Beach house with open permits

An open permit means work started but was never signed off. To a buyer’s lender it looks like an unfinished project, and many will not fund until it is closed.

Your options are to finish and final the permit, to sell with a price credit, or to sell as-is to a cash buyer.

If the issue came to light through a complaint, see our Long Beach code enforcement guide, and for the sale-time disclosure rules see our California guide to selling as-is with unpermitted work.

Long Beach building permits FAQ

Can I sell a house in Long Beach with an open permit?

Yes. An open permit does not legally stop a sale, but it can slow a traditional one because buyers and lenders ask for it to be finalized. A cash buyer can purchase the house with the permit still open.

Where can I look up permits for a Long Beach address?

The city’s Permit Status Inquiry / Permit History tool searches by address number and street name or project number. Architecturally drawn plans are not online and can be viewed at the Permit Center’s Resource Center.

Do historic districts or the coastal zone change permit requirements in Long Beach?

The city says additional requirements may apply in historic districts and coastal zones under its zoning regulations, so check before you start work.

How do I sell a house in Long Beach with unpermitted additions?

Disclose the work, then choose between permitting it, discounting the price, or selling as-is to a cash buyer who accounts for the risk in the offer.

Can I view plans for my Long Beach house online?

The city says architectural plans are not available online and can be viewed at the Permit Center’s Resource Center.

Do historic districts or coastal zones add permit requirements?

The city says extra requirements may apply in historic districts and coastal zones. Ask Planning at 562.570.6194.

Sources

• City of Long Beach: Permit Center
• City of Long Beach: Building Permits
• City of Long Beach: Permit Status / Records
• City of Long Beach: Permit Status Inquiry

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Permit rules and hours change; confirm requirements with the City of Long Beach Community Development Department.