For an address served by Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Inspections, start at BuildIT and choose Guest Access. The City’s published BuildIT manual describes searches by permit number, location and contractor. If you cannot complete the guest verification step, contact Inspections with the address and any known permit number; an inaccessible search does not prove that no permit exists.
First confirm which inspection office serves the property
The joint City-County Inspections Division reviews and inspects building activity throughout Forsyth County except inside the limits of High Point, Kernersville and King. A mailing address alone doesn’t settle that boundary. For an edge-of-town property, ask the office to confirm responsibility before reading a blank history. The division is in the Bryce A. Stuart Municipal Building, 100 E. First Street, and lists 336-727-2624 and askinspect@cityofws.org. Its posted walk-in hours are Monday, Wednesday and Friday, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., and the permit office closes from 8 to 10 a.m. on the first Tuesday of each month.
Read the permit and inspection history as a guest
The official BuildIT guide says guests can search permits and view permit status, inspection comments and plan-review status without creating an account. Guest access does not authorize scheduling inspections or applying for trade permits. A buyer researching a property therefore does not need to create a contractor identity merely to follow the documented lookup route.
Keep the full permit number when you find a relevant entry. Match its address and work description to the project you are investigating, then read the inspection comments. Issuance, a passed inspection and completion answer different questions. A passed inspection for one trade does not, by itself, establish that the entire renovation is finished; use the final-inspection status guide to identify the remaining evidence.
What BuildIT will and won’t show for a past project
BuildIT is built around trade permits. The City’s BuildIT page says licensed contractors use it to apply for plumbing, electrical and mechanical/HVAC permits, and that it can’t be used to apply for a building (construction) permit. A general contractor must buy a building permit through the office, though contractors can schedule inspections in BuildIT. For a past renovation, that means:
- Expect several permits for one job. A remodel can have a building permit plus separate trade permits, each with its own number and inspections. Search by location and list every permit tied to the address before deciding what was inspected.
- Read inspection comments per permit. A passed electrical final says nothing about the plumbing or building permit on the same job.
- Check the code edition on electrical work. The City notes the 2020 National Electrical Code took effect November 1, 2021, while one- and two-family dwellings stay on the 2017 NEC. An electrical permit tied to a parent building permit secured before that date could use the 2017 NEC, which matters if someone compares old wiring to a newer code.
Zoning questions sit with the same division but under different rules. The Inspections Division page says it enforces the zoning ordinances (UDOs) of Winston-Salem, Forsyth County, Clemmons, Lewisville and Walkertown. A permit record doesn’t answer whether a use or setback complied with the zoning in force at the time.
Why GeoCivix is a different destination
The City’s GeoCivix instructions direct residential building applications and commercial plan submissions into that system. It has separate credentials from BuildIT and handles plan submission, review comments, review status and revisions. An applicant’s plan-review workspace should not be treated as a complete public archive for a previous owner’s property.
A recovery example when guest access stops
Suppose you have an invoice describing a renovation and a street address, but cannot get past guest verification. Build a short research note before contacting the office:
- Record what remains uncertain. If the property could be within High Point, Kernersville or King, ask which office holds its permit file before sending a broad request.
- Separate the missing historical evidence from a new application. For a past renovation, ask for the existing permit and inspection comments. Opening a GeoCivix application would not answer whether that earlier work was inspected.
- Give staff a reproducible description: “I am researching [address] and [approximate work period]. The BuildIT guest gate prevented retrieval. Please identify the permit number and provide the recorded inspection outcomes, including later corrections, if retained.”
This hypothetical wording defines the records sought without asking staff to certify the property’s overall compliance or promising that the file exists.
Recover an older or missing file
The City says the Inspections Division adopted BuildIT in February 2017, replacing an earlier online system called InspectNet (BuildIT page). The City doesn’t publish which older permits were carried into BuildIT, so treat a pre-2017 permit that doesn’t appear as a question for staff, not as missing. If you have only a parcel identifier, give it to staff with the address; the published BuildIT instructions don’t describe a parcel-number search field.
- Open the City’s public-records instructions and choose the general records route. Identify the existing permit, inspections, plans or occupancy document needed.
- Include the address, approximate work dates, exact permit numbers and online route already tried.
- Ask which files are retained and who holds records outside this office. Use the older-permit lookup guide to narrow an uncertain date.
City of Winston-Salem BuildIT and Inspections Division pages checked October 20, 2026. For a nearby North Carolina comparison, see our Greensboro permit history guide.