Portland, OR Building Permit Timelines & Delays
In Portland the first look at your plans usually comes on time; the whole trip does not. From January to September 2025 the City met its first-review goal for 93% of residential permits, up from 83% in 2021. But a new home took a median 105 to 144 business days from submittal to approval in July to September 2025, well past the City’s own goal of 65, and more than double it in July and September. Fewer homes are being permitted, about 1,400 housing units in 2025 against roughly 5,400 in 2021, and the City is now waiving system development charges on most new housing permits issued from August 15, 2025 through September 30, 2028.
Portland permitting, the figures
The key published figures for this jurisdiction — each cited to its official source.
What the data shows
Portland usually meets its first-review goals: from January to September 2025 the first review met its goal for 93% of residential permits and 95% of commercial permits, up from 83% and 88% in 2021 (City of Portland, Permit Improvement Quarterly Update, 2025).
Getting through every review takes far longer: a new home took a median 140, 105 and 144 business days from submittal to “approved to issue” in July, August and September 2025 against the City’s 65-day goal, and a new commercial building took 98 to 155 days against a goal of 71 (City of Portland, Permit Improvement Quarterly Update, 2025).
The gap is not new: in 2021 the City Auditor found the City had not met its timely plan review standard in the previous five years, and its follow-up at the end of 2022 said the City had been taking roughly twice as long as its stated goals (Portland City Auditor, 2021 and 2022).
Fewer homes are being permitted, about 1,400 housing units in 2025 against roughly 5,400 in 2021, and the City now waives system development charges on most new housing permits issued from August 15, 2025 through September 30, 2028, with 976 units exempted in the first year (OPB, 2026; City of Portland, 2026).
Most delay accumulates before technical review
The data points to the same lever everywhere: most delay accumulates before technical review, in completeness and resubmittal cycles. Permavia's Permit Review Diagnostic checks your plans against applicable codes and common reviewer issues before you submit — so your package is more likely to clear on the first pass.
Portland permitting: FAQ
How long does it take to get a building permit in Portland, Oregon?
The City aims to finish the first review of a residential permit within 7 business days for alterations and 15 for additions and new construction (10 and 20 for commercial work), and it met that goal for 93% of residential permits from January to September 2025. Its goal for the whole trip, from submittal to “approved to issue”, is a median of 65 business days for a new home, 42 for an addition and 27 for an alteration. In July to September 2025 new homes took a median 105 to 144 business days and additions 42 to 63 (City of Portland, Permit Improvement Quarterly Update, Q3 2025). After approval the permit is issued once you pay the final fees; the City’s Permit Review Dashboard, updated every Monday, has the latest times (City of Portland, Check Permit Timelines).
Who issues building permits in Portland, OR?
Portland Permitting & Development, the City bureau that since July 1, 2024 combines the former Bureau of Development Services with the permitting teams from Environmental Services, Transportation, Water and Urban Forestry (City of Portland, July 1, 2024). Apply through Development Hub PDX (DevHub); some permit types must be sent by email, and incomplete applications are rejected; general questions go to 503-823-7300 (City of Portland, Apply for Permits). The City also issues building permits for some areas outside its limits, such as properties west and north of Portland and on Jenne Lane, while the City of Gresham covers Pleasant Valley and areas east of Gresham (Multnomah County, Service Providers).
Does Portland waive system development charges for new housing?
Yes, for now. Permits for newly created housing units and congregate living issued from August 15, 2025 through September 30, 2028 are exempt from system development charges; accessory dwelling units, caretaker quarters and transient lodging do not qualify. Within 12 months of issuance the project must pass a foundation or concrete pour inspection (or an insulation and vapor barrier inspection for a conversion), unless a construction completion guarantee is filed before the permit is issued (City of Portland, Housing SDC Exemption). Through August 14, 2026, 976 units had been issued with the exemption (City of Portland, Oct 12, 2026).
Does Oregon’s 120-day rule apply to building permits in Portland?
The 120-day rule is about land-use approvals: it applies to applications for a permit, meaning a discretionary approval of a proposed development of land, a limited land use decision or a zone change, and requires the city to take final action within 120 days of the date the application is deemed complete, or 100 days for qualifying affordable housing (ORS 227.160 and 227.178). The building permit review times on this page are the City’s published goals (City of Portland, Permit Improvement Quarterly Update, Q3 2025).
Sources
All figures on this page are drawn from Permit Improvement Quarterly Update: Third Quarter 2025, City of Portland, Portland Permitting & Development. The City’s own quarterly report (November 2025) on its building permit goals: first-review goals in business days with the share met in 2021 and in 2025 to date, and median business days from submittal to “approved to issue” against a goal for each permit type, month by month; supplemented by the City’s FY 2025-26 Requested Budget performance measures, its Clear Impact performance page, the City Auditor’s 2021 building permit review audit and 2022 follow-up, the City’s housing system development charge exemption page and first-year report (October 2026), Multnomah County’s permit service map, U.S. Census QuickFacts, and OPB reporting (2026) on housing units permitted. Read the City’s Q3 2025 permit improvement update (City of Portland). Specific tables, reports, and pages are cited inline with each figure above.
Two kinds of numbers appear here. Goals: the first-review times (7, 15, 10 and 20 business days) and the median submittal-to-approval goals (65 business days for a new home, 71 for a new commercial building) are the City’s published goals. Measured: the share of first reviews meeting the goal (2021 and January to September 2025) and the monthly medians for July to September 2025 come from the City’s quarterly report of November 2025 (its “2025 (YTD)” column, read here as January to September); the median runs from submittal to “approved to issue”, includes all mandatory and final reviews, covers only applications submitted through DevHub (not paper submittals or the Facility Permit, Process Managed and Field Issuance Remodel programs), and the report does not say whether time spent waiting on the applicant is excluded; it notes that small monthly permit counts, especially for new construction, make the medians swing. The FY 2022-23 and FY 2023-24 figures are actuals from the City’s FY 2025-26 Requested Budget; later columns in that table are targets and are not used. The 2021 and 2025 housing unit counts are as reported by OPB, which does not name its dataset; no published City table was found. No newer quarterly report was found, so the measured times stop at September 2025; the City’s performance page reports that 90% of commercial and residential permits were reviewed on time across all review rounds in FY 2025-26, down from 92% in FY 2024-25, a different measure from the first-review share above; check the City’s dashboard for current figures.