We watch Chicago's Department of Buildings — both pre-approval permits in plan review and active issued permits. Pre-approval is the only window where a contractor can still get on the bid list.
Unlike most permit feeds, we capture the pre-approval window — projects in plan review where the GC hasn't been picked yet. That's the only window where a contractor can still get on the bid list.
Where Chicago's permit data lives, what to look for in a filing, and how to reach the owner before the GC is picked.
Chicago has 77 Community Areas and 50 Wards, and they don't align. A practical guide to which one to use and when.
Cost benchmarks for typical jobs across all 77 Community Areas, built from the city's permit dataset. Use it to scope a bid.
Which review track a project lands on tells you how big it is and how long it'll take. Here's how to read it.
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