How the data works

The Data Sources

PermitBeam's live subscriber brief starts with approved DOB NOW permit filings. BIS expiration records and ECB violation context are being QA'd before release because they need stricter property matching and freshness checks.

The source data comes from official NYC Open Data endpoints, publicly available under the NYC Open Data Terms of Use. PermitBeam does not scrape private sources, estimate property values, or use third-party data brokers. Every released record in your digest should trace back to a public government source.

The Data Pipeline

Here's what happens every day, step by step:

1. Daily pull: Our live system checks DOB NOW permits for filings approved in the last 24 hours. BIS, ECB, and complaint signals are kept out of subscriber briefs until QA is complete.
2. ZIP code filtering: Each record is assigned to a ZIP code based on the property address in the permit filing. Records are matched to subscriber ZIP code lists.
3. Permit review tier: Every permit is tiered as High, Medium, or Low based on work type and estimated cost. This helps you decide which public records are worth reviewing first.
4. Deduplication: The same project can appear across multiple databases or be updated across multiple days. We deduplicate by BIN (Building Identification Number) and job number to prevent duplicate entries in your digest.
5. Digest compilation: On your delivery day, matching DOB permit records from the period are compiled into a formatted email. Larger projects appear first. Each entry includes the property address, owner name when present, work description, estimated cost, and source context.

Permit Review Tiers

Not all permits deserve the same amount of attention. A $500 plumbing repair has a different review priority than a $350,000 gut renovation. PermitBeam tiers every permit using two public fields: the type of work being performed and the estimated project cost.

Tier	Criteria	Potential Review Use
HIGH	Renovation, addition, extension, new building, general construction, alteration, conversion, enlargement, structural work, or any project with estimated cost above $50,000	Large public filing worth checking against your own book, renewal list, or client-review workflow
MEDIUM	Roofing, mechanical, HVAC, plumbing, electrical, fire suppression, sprinkler, or boiler work, or any project with estimated cost between $10,000 and $50,000	System or trade work that may be worth reviewing when it matches a client, renewal, or account note
LOW	Minor repairs, cosmetic work, signage, scaffolding permits, or projects under $10,000 that don't match high or medium work types	Useful for tracking overall activity in a ZIP code, usually lower priority for manual review

Data Freshness

How quickly does a filed permit appear in your PermitBeam digest?

• DOB NOW permits: 1-2 business days from the date the city approves the filing. Most permits approved on Monday appear in that week's digest.
• BIS expiring permits: Under QA before release because expiration records need source freshness checks and property matching.
• ECB violations: Under QA before release because violation records can lag, update, or require careful matching to the permit property.

The key takeaway: permit filings can appear before work begins or while project planning is still underway. The permit filing date and the construction start date are not always the same day, so public permit data can be useful context for timely review.

Known Limitations

We think transparency about what the data can and cannot tell you matters more than pretending it is perfect. Here are the known limitations:

• Incomplete cost data: Not all permit filings include an estimated project cost. When the cost field is empty or zero, PermitBeam scores based on work type alone. Roughly 15-20% of filings have no cost data.
• LLC owner names: Many NYC properties are held by LLCs. In these cases, the owner name on the permit is the LLC name (e.g., "123 Main St LLC"), not an individual. You may need to cross-reference with property records to find the actual owner.
• Self-certified permits: NYC allows licensed professionals to self-certify certain permit applications. These permits are approved immediately but may be audited later. They are included in the data like any other approved permit.
• Westchester data gaps: Westchester municipalities use the Municity5 permitting system, which has different data fields and update schedules than NYC. Coverage and data completeness vary by municipality.
• No phone numbers or email addresses: Permit data includes property addresses and owner names, but not contact information. You will need to look up contact details separately to reach out to a property owner.

How Agents Actually Use This

The most common workflow we hear from insurance agents using permit data:

1. Open your Monday digest. Scan for larger permits first. A $179,000 kitchen renovation at a residential address is worth checking against your own records.
2. Check your book. Is the property owner already your client? Decide whether the filing is worth a policy review. If not, decide whether any compliant follow-up is appropriate.
3. Review the source. Open the public DOB source record and confirm the address, owner field, work description, and estimated cost before taking action.
4. Use professional judgment. PermitBeam does not know current coverage. It helps surface public permit activity that may deserve your review.

The data is the starting point, not the finished product. PermitBeam gives you a weekly public-record brief; your review process determines what to do next.

Questions About the Data

If something in a digest looks wrong or you have questions about how a specific permit was scored, reach out to hello@permitbeam.com. I read every email and can trace any record back to its source API response.