TL;DR (generated, confidence: high)

Portland's fee-paid residential inspection program offers eight types of code enforcement inspections, including attic, basement, ADU, and specialty trades evaluations. Property owners must bring unpermitted work up to code, fix issues within 30 days, and may face fines for non-compliance.

Key points:

Property must be brought up to code before inspection request if unpermitted work exists in attic or basement (Residential Fee-Paid Inspection Requests ↗)
Issues found must be corrected within 30 days of City notice or fines apply until property passes re-inspection (Residential Fee-Paid Inspection Requests ↗)
Deficiencies must be fixed before occupancy and remain binding even if property is sold (Residential Fee-Paid Inspection Requests ↗)
Eight inspection types available: ADU, Attic, Basement, Building Code, Electrical, Mechanical, Plumbing, and Type B ASTR (Residential Fee-Paid Inspection Requests ↗)
ADU inspection is voluntary and occurs before permit application to identify required changes (Residential Fee-Paid Inspection Requests ↗)
Historical permit records available online via Portland's public property records webpage (Residential Fee-Paid Inspection Requests ↗)

Entities: inspection_type: Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) · Attic Inspection · Basement Inspection · Building Code Evaluation · Electrical Code Evaluation · Mechanical Code Evaluation | time_period: 30 days

Residential Fee-Paid Inspection Requests

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Source: Residential Fee-Paid Inspection Requests ↗ Last modified: Sun, 19 Apr 2026 20:11:28 GMT

Learn more about the types of fee-paid inspections we offer. Then, request an inspection by email or mail.

Before you request a fee-paid inspection

You may need to bring your property up to code before you request an inspection. If the City finds that unpermitted work was done in your attic or basement you must get permits and bring the work up to current code standards.

If we find that you need to fix some items:

You must fix them before anyone moves into the property.
You must correct the items even if the property is sold. Or, set up a plan with the buyer or mortgage company to bring the property up to code.
You must fix any issues within 30 days of getting a letter from us. Or, you may have to pay fines until the property is up to code and inspected again.

Check the permit history for a house

Depending on the age of your house, we may have inspection cards or microfilmed plans that show the permit history for your house. If a finished attic or basement was not permitted, it will need to be legalized through the new permit as if the work was not already done.

Some records are available online. Please visit our How to Request Public Property Records webpage ↗.

Learn more about standards for livable space in attics and basements

Our guide for attic and basement livable space standards explains City requirements:

Types of code enforcement inspections you can request

Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) ↗
Attic Inspection
Basement Inspection
Building Code Evaluation
Electrical ↗ Code Evaluation
Mechanical ↗ Code Evaluation
Plumbing ↗ Code Evaluation
Type B Accessory Short-Term Rental ↗ Inspection

Once we receive payment, an inspector will contact you to set up the inspection.

The voluntary ADU inspection happens before you apply

If you plan to build an Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) ↗ you may decide to have an ADU inspection before you apply for permits. You can choose to have an inspection when converting a garage or inside living space to an ADU.

This inspection explains the changes needed for the project to meet code requirements. After the inspection, we'll give you an inspection report. The report will list any changes you need to make before building the ADU. For questions about ADU inspections, contact Residential Inspections.