Revere’s Building Department, in the basement of the American Legion Building at 249R Broadway, permits and inspects construction for the small, dense city on the Atlantic north of Boston, behind about three miles of Atlantic beach. The department enforces the same state building code as everywhere in the Commonwealth and administers the city's zoning ordinance alongside it, with conversions between single- and multi-family use a recurring part of its work in a city built largely of two- and three-family houses.
Its records sit in two systems. Permits applied for since March 2018 can be viewed in the city’s CitizenServe portal, where all new building, plumbing, gas, electrical, mechanical and sheet metal permits and certificates of occupancy are also applied for online only; older records are held by the department, whose staff help with anything the portal does not show. For a buyer or a lender checking a Revere property’s permit history, both routes are needed — the portal alone will show a building whose work predates 2018 as though nothing had ever been permitted on it.
This guide covers the City of Revere. Chelsea, Everett, Malden, Saugus, Lynn and Winthrop run their own building departments under the same state code.
Two record systems, one property. Revere’s CitizenServe portal carries the permits applied for since March 2018, while older records are held by the department. Diligence that stops at the portal will read an older building as unpermitted — in a city of century-old two- and three-families, that is most of the housing stock.
What requires a building permit in Revere?
What is local in Revere is the building department, the fee schedule, zoning, and the zoning ordinance and the coastal floodplain along the beach.
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- Any construction, reconstruction, alteration, repair, removal or demolition, and any change of use or occupancy
- Conversion between single-family and multi-family use, which is a change of occupancy under the state code
- Work in the coastal floodplain or near a resource area, which needs the conservation commission's order of conditions first
- New buildings, additions and any structural work on an existing building
- Alterations, repairs and reconstruction under the existing building provisions, and any change of use or occupancy
- Decks (except small, low, freestanding ones), sheds over 200 square feet at a one- or two-family home or 120 square feet elsewhere, swimming pools 24 inches deep or more, and solar installations
Often exempt
- Ordinary repairs that do not alter structure, egress or systems
- Ordinary repairs that do not alter structure, egress or systems
- Painting, wallpapering, flooring, cabinets and similar finish work
- Small items on the code’s exempt list, such as fences up to 7 feet and retaining walls up to 4 feet
- Work on a building owned by the Commonwealth, which the State Building Inspector enforces rather than the town
What is actually local, and what is not
The code is the Commonwealth's and cannot be amended locally. Revere's layer is the building department itself, its fee schedule and filing route, the zoning bylaw or ordinance and the zoning enforcement that precedes the permit, the conservation commission's wetlands jurisdiction under the Wetlands Protection Act, and the coastal floodplain along Revere Beach and the two record systems, either side of March 2018, that the department’s permit history spans.
Massachusetts has one State Building Code, 780 CMR, for every city and town; towns cannot rewrite it, though many opt into a stricter energy code. The trades run under their own state codes. Massachusetts rules
Who handles permitting in Revere?
The Building Department is the enforcing office, with the building commissioner or inspector of buildings as building official under the state code and the city's wiring and plumbing inspectors covering their own trades. The zoning board of appeals hears relief under the state Zoning Act, the planning board handles site plan review, and the conservation commission administers the Wetlands Protection Act along the beach, Rumney Marsh and the Pines River.
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Department | City of Revere Building Department |
| Office | American Legion Building, Basement, 249R Broadway, Revere, MA 02151 |
| Phone | (781) 286-8196; building commissioner (781) 286-8197 |
| Hours | Monday to Thursday 8:15 am to 5:00 pm; Friday 8:15 am to 12:15 pm. Inspectors in the office Monday to Thursday 8:15–9:30 am and 4:00–5:00 pm, Friday 8:00–9:00 am and 11:00 am to noon |
| Records | All applications online only through the CitizenServe portal, which shows permits since March 2018; older records through department staff |
| Energy | Stretch energy code, effective January 1, 2012; not a Specialized code adopter |
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Residential permits
A Revere house project files with the Building Department against the state code and the city's zoning ordinance, with the supervising individual's Construction Supervisor Licence and, on residential work for an owner-occupant, the contractor's Home Improvement Contractor registration. Converting a single-family to a two-family — common in the city's housing stock — is a change of occupancy that brings the existing building provisions and their fire protection requirements into the analysis, and the department's staff walk applicants through it.
Commercial permits
Commercial work in Revere — the Broadway corridor, the Wonderland and Suffolk Downs redevelopment areas — clears zoning and site plan review, then the building permit, with the conservation commission's order of conditions and coastal floodplain requirements in hand where the site sits near the beach or the marsh. The larger redevelopment parcels carry their own approval histories the department checks against the application.
Zoning, conservation and the 30-day clock
The approvals that run ahead of the building permit are the local ones: zoning sign-off under Revere's bylaw or ordinance, and, where the work is within 100 feet of a wetland or within the riverfront or floodplain areas, an order of conditions from the conservation commission under the Wetlands Protection Act, which is a hearing rather than a counter transaction. In Revere the Atlantic beach, Rumney Marsh and the Pines River bring the conservation commission's Wetlands Protection Act jurisdiction and coastal floodplain review into the file, and the state's tidelands licensing reaches the shorefront parcels. Appeals from the building official go to the local zoning board of appeals on zoning matters and to the State Building Code Appeals Board on code matters.
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Call 1-855-478-4290 →Massachusetts has no general contractor licence: the supervising individual holds a Construction Supervisor Licence, and contractors working on existing owner-occupied homes register as Home Improvement Contractors. Massachusetts rules
Revere permit costs and fees
Fees follow the city's schedule, with the trades charged separately under the state codes and land use applications charged by their own boards.
| Item | Fee or rule |
|---|---|
| Building permit | City schedule by project type and construction value |
| Wiring permits | Filed with and inspected by the city's wiring inspector under the state electrical code |
| Plumbing and gas permits | Filed with and inspected by the city's plumbing inspector under the state code |
| Records requests | Permits since March 2018 through the portal; older records through department staff |
| Conservation | Wetlands Protection Act filing fees where the work is in a resource area |
| Zoning relief | Zoning board of appeals application under the state Zoning Act |
A conversion is a change of occupancy. Turning a single-family into a two-family in Revere is a change of occupancy under the state code, not merely an alteration — which brings the existing building provisions, the fire separation requirements and the egress analysis into play alongside the zoning question. It is the most common Revere project and the one most often underestimated.
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Permit required
- Coastal floodplain and resource area work — the conservation commission's order of conditions before the permit
- Electrical — state-licensed electrician; separate wiring permit under 527 CMR 12
- Plumbing and gas — state-licensed plumber or gas fitter; separate permits under 248 CMR
- Sheet metal work — state sheet metal licence where the work falls under it
- Fire protection and alarms — fire department plan review through the building permit, plus any fire department permit under 527 CMR; alarms by a state-licensed systems contractor
Typically exempt
- Fixing a leaking faucet or valve, clearing a blocked drain, or adjusting gas appliance controls, which need no plumbing or gas permit
Trade work is permitted separately and inspected by the municipality’s own wiring and plumbing inspectors under the state codes. Massachusetts rules
How to apply for a Revere building permit
Zoning sign-off under the local bylaw or ordinance, and any variance or special permit the project needs, must come before the building permit.
Work in or near wetlands, rivers or land that floods needs conservation commission approval under the Wetlands Protection Act, usually an order of conditions, before work starts.
The Construction Supervisor Licence of the supervising individual, and the Home Improvement Contractor registration where the work is on an existing owner-occupied home of one to four units.
The building official reviews the documents against 780 CMR and the energy code the town has adopted.
Fees are the town's own and are due before issuance; trade permits are filed separately.
Footing to final, with the wiring and plumbing inspectors on their own trades, then a certificate of occupancy for a new building or change of use, or a certificate of completion for other work.
Review, corrections and what actually causes delay
Revere's building official acts on a complete application within 30 days under the state code, with the office closing at 5:00 pm Monday to Thursday and at 12:15 pm on Fridays. What delays a file here is a conversion filed as an alteration rather than a change of occupancy, and a coastal parcel whose conservation filing started after design.
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Inspections follow the code's sequence — footing and foundation, frame, insulation and final — with the wiring and plumbing inspectors covering their own trades, and are requested from the building department by permit number. Work that passes final receives a certificate of occupancy for new buildings and changes of use, or a certificate of inspection where the code requires one. Buildings in the use groups listed in 780 CMR Section 110 also carry periodic inspections, with proof of maintenance filed with the building official. Revere inspects in the code's sequence through the Building Department, with the city's wiring and plumbing inspectors carrying their own trades and the certificate of occupancy following the finals.
Revere permit search and official resources
- Revere Building Department — the department, its permits and its records
- Massachusetts State Building Code, 780 CMR — the 10th edition and the existing building provisions
- Massachusetts energy code adoption by municipality — the city's current energy code position
- Massachusetts State Building Code, 780 CMR — the 10th edition and its Massachusetts amendments from the Board of Building Regulations and Standards
- Home Improvement Contractor registration — the consumer-protection registration and Guaranty Fund
- Construction Supervisor Licence — the examined licence held by the individual supervising the work
Inspections are where schedules slip.
Get a free quote →Frequently asked questions
Where do I find an older Revere permit?
Permits applied for since March 2018 can be viewed in the city’s CitizenServe portal; for older records, ask the Building Department, whose staff help with anything the portal does not show.
Is a single-to-two-family conversion just an alteration?
No. It is a change of occupancy under the state code, bringing the existing building provisions, fire separation and egress requirements into the analysis alongside zoning.
When is the counter open?
Monday to Thursday from 8:15 am to 5:00 pm, and Friday from 8:15 am to 12:15 pm. Inspectors are in the office Monday to Thursday 8:15–9:30 am and 4:00–5:00 pm, and Friday 8:00–9:00 am and 11:00 am to noon.
Do I need the conservation commission?
Where the work is in the coastal floodplain or near the beach, Rumney Marsh or the Pines River, the commission's order of conditions comes before the building permit.
Which energy code applies?
The stretch energy code, which Revere adopted effective January 1, 2012. The city has not adopted the Municipal Opt-in Specialized code.
Which building code edition applies?
The 10th edition of the Massachusetts State Building Code, 780 CMR, in effect since October 11, 2024 and the only code in force since July 1, 2025.
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Revere’s online records start in March 2018 and its commonest project is a change of occupancy rather than a renovation. We search both record systems at diligence, file the conversion for what it legally is, and settle the coastal question before design.
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Send us the scope and the parcel. We confirm the review path with the Revere Building Department, assemble the submittal, file it, and track it through issuance — corrections included.
More Massachusetts permitting guides
More Massachusetts permitting guides
This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Revere permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.