Plain-English guides to building permits, business licences, zoning and municipal approvals across Ontario — written by the team behind Permits2Go.
Two consultants can submit the same project to the same municipality and get permits three months apart. Ten habits that separate applications which sail through from the ones that stall.
· 8 min read
How a plain-language conversation replaces the menu maze at the start of every Ontario permit application, and what the research-and-phone-calls workflow it replaces really costs.
· 8 min read
How Permits2Go builds the document list for a permit, tracks every drawing and its revisions, and batch-renames a whole set in one preview-first pass.
· 8 min read
Checklist review per drawing type plus a setback, height and coverage check against your lot’s zoning, so the first comment cycle is about design rather than missing basics.
· 9 min read
Every municipality wants the same package delivered a different way. How Permits2Go assembles it to each city’s conventions and files it while you approve each step.
· 9 min read
The owner’s signature is one line on one form and routinely costs a week. Pre-filled forms, signing links and signed copies that file themselves close that gap.
· 7 min read
Status calls, questions about a specific drawing and comment clarifications, placed for you with a transcript and proposed tracking updates you approve.
· 8 min read
Upload the city’s comments and get each one itemized with a drafted response, a status and an email to the reviewer, all tracked on the application.
· 8 min read
Use it on city portals and correspondence and every email, notification and attachment is logged on the file instead of in someone’s mailbox.
· 7 min read
A live dashboard for every application, a notes tab you can share with clients, and automatic emails for status changes and deadlines.
· 9 min read
A per-application notes tab with pinned notes, attachments, full edit history, notes written by the platform from calls and emails, and selected notes shared with your client.
· 7 min read
Log every city visit per application, keep the deficiency checklist current, file city inspection notices automatically, and get the visit onto your calendar.
· 8 min read
The official municipal forms filled from your project details before you open them, ready to review, edit and sign, so you correct a draft instead of typing the same address onto a dozen forms.
· 7 min read
Most delays blamed on the city are really tracking failures. What to track for every permit, the four ways losing track costs money, and how to run a weekly review.
· 7 min read
Restaurants, contractors, salons, taxis, shops — Toronto and Hamilton license hundreds of business categories between them. Who needs a licence, and where to find the guide for yours.
· 9 min read
Cutting a new entrance into your foundation is structural work — a permit is always required. Here's the zoning, engineering and cost picture for side entrances and walkouts.
· 7 min read
Do I need one? What will it cost? How long will it take? The five questions every owner asks about permits — answered in plain English.
· 6 min read
Owners ask “how do I get a permit?” Consultants ask “what will stop this permit from being issued?” The five questions professionals put to building departments.
· 7 min read
Small, low, detached decks can be exempt — but most attached or elevated decks need a permit. Here's how to tell which side of the line your project falls on.
· 7 min read
Toronto charges permit fees by floor area and work type, with a minimum fee for small projects. Here's what typical projects pay — and the costs beyond the permit.
· 7 min read
Ontario law gives municipalities 10 to 30 business days to review a complete application. Real projects often take longer — here's why, and how to keep yours on track.
· 6 min read
Before the Building Code ever applies, zoning decides what you can build, where, and how big. A plain-English tour of the rules and what to do when your project doesn't fit.
· 8 min read
Toronto allows detached backyard homes city-wide. What separates an approvable garden suite from a dead end usually comes down to a few feasibility checks — here they are.
· 8 min read
Describe your project in plain English and Permits2Go finds, fills and assembles the exact municipal forms you need.
Plain-language guides to every business licence and permit category Toronto and Hamilton issue.