Permitting is one of the most critical—and often most frustrating—parts of any architectural project. Yet, many architects still rely on outdated tools like spreadsheets, email threads, and sticky notes to track permit statuses, deadlines, and documents. In today’s fast-paced, collaborative environment, these old methods just don’t cut it.
The Problem with Traditional Permit Tracking
Most architecture firms manage permits using a patchwork of Excel files, shared drives, and endless email chains. While this might work for a single project, it quickly becomes unmanageable as your portfolio grows. Here’s why:
- Lack of Visibility: It’s hard to get a real-time overview of where every permit stands. Team members, clients, and consultants are often left in the dark, leading to confusion and missed deadlines.
- Manual Updates: Spreadsheets and emails require constant manual updates. One missed update can throw off your entire schedule.
- No Single Source of Truth: With information scattered across multiple tools, it’s easy for details to get lost or outdated. This leads to costly mistakes and rework.
- Poor Collaboration: Sharing updates with clients and consultants means forwarding emails or exporting spreadsheets—wasting time and increasing the risk of miscommunication.
Why Modern Projects Demand More
Today’s projects are more complex, involve more stakeholders, and move faster than ever. Clients expect transparency and real-time updates. Jurisdictions change requirements frequently. Your team needs to stay aligned and proactive—not reactive.
Why Permitful is Different
There are other permit tracking tools out there, but most try to do too much—offering a laundry list of features that sound impressive but end up being clunky, confusing, or just plain subpar. Permitful is intentionally focused. Our goal is simple: help architects organize approvals for all of their projects in one place, without unnecessary complexity or distractions.
Permitful isn’t trying to be an all-in-one construction management platform. Instead, it’s purpose-built for architects and permit expediters who want a clear, reliable, and easy way to track permits, milestones, and approvals—nothing more, nothing less. This focus means Permitful is faster to learn, easier to use, and actually helps you get your work done.
The Killer Feature: Public Project Dashboards
What truly sets Permitful apart is its public project dashboards. For every project, Permitful automatically creates a shareable dashboard that lists all permits, their progress, and the status of each one. Clients and consultants can check the dashboard at any time—no logins, no emails, no confusion. Everyone sees the latest updates in real time, so your team spends less time fielding status requests and more time moving projects forward.