How do I install Permits?

Copy the stdio config for Cursor, Claude Desktop, Claude Code, or VS Code on this page. It uses the publisher's install, not a PlugMCP proxy.

Does Permits need an API key?

The publisher lists these environment variables: ADDRESSINTEL_API_KEY.

What transport does Permits use?

Permits runs locally over stdio.

When was Permits last checked?

Last checked 2026-11-07. SF Peninsula building permits and parcel buildability: SB 9, ADU and redevelopment leads.

Permits MCP server

Power your agent

Add this server

The publisher's own command. Not a PlugMCP endpoint.

Add to Cursor Add to VS Code Run on PlugMCP

Host a copy with our keys and logs.

Local command

npx -y [email protected]

Credentials from the publisher

ADDRESSINTEL_API_KEY — AddressIntel API key. Optional: without one the server uses the public demo tier (10 requests/minute, 5 rows per call). Free keys at https://addressintel.co/developers

Claude Code has no install link for a local command. Copy the command below and run it in a terminal.

shClaude Code

1ADDRESSINTEL_API_KEY=<secret> claude mcp add co.addressintel-permits -- npx -y addressintel-mcp@1.1.2

Run in a terminal.

jsonClaude Desktop

1{2  "mcpServers": {3    "co.addressintel-permits": {4      "command": "npx",5      "args": [6        "-y",7        "[email protected]"8      ],9      "env": {10        "ADDRESSINTEL_API_KEY": "<secret>"11      }12    }13  }14}

claude_desktop_config.json

Local · npmPublisher installStep-by-step: add this in Claude

Remote URL or a command on your machine? How the two installs differ

Run on PlugMCP

Host a copy with our keys and logs.

A new server you create. It is not this listing's official endpoint. Use the publisher install when you want their URL and their credentials.

Launch

Server facts

Local

Transport: stdio
Version: 1.1.2
API key

Tools

No tool list yet. Remote servers get one after the first health check.

FAQ

Questions

AddressIntel MCP server

A read-only Model Context Protocol server that puts SF Peninsula building-permit and parcel-buildability data inside Claude, ChatGPT, or any other MCP-capable agent.

It is a thin client over the public AddressIntel API, so it inherits that API's auth, rate limits and tier ceilings. Every tool is a GET. Nothing here can write.

Tools

Tool	What it answers
`search_permits`	What construction has actually been permitted at an address or in a city? Filters on city, keyword (address, project type, scope description, contractor, architect, permit number) and minimum valuation.
`list_sb9_inventory`	Which active listings can be split or duplexed under SB 9, and what blocks the ones that can't?
`list_adu_leads`	Which parcels have room for an ADU, and how many units / how much square footage?
`list_redevelopment_leads`	Which parcels are underbuilt against their allowable envelope (scrape-and-rebuild or expansion)?
`list_market_signals`	Which listings score highest for teardown or flip potential?
`get_property_intelligence`	Full scores and comparable sales for one property id.

The permit and parcel tools are the differentiated half: permit-level detail and parcel-level buildability for the Peninsula, rather than a nationwide owner list.

Install

No install step: npx fetches it on demand.

Claude Code

claude mcp add addressintel \
  -e ADDRESSINTEL_API_KEY=your_key \
  -- npx -y addressintel-mcp

Claude Desktop

Add to claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "addressintel": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "addressintel-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "ADDRESSINTEL_API_KEY": "your_key"
      }
    }
  }
}

From source

For working on the server itself:

git clone https://github.com/RantumBits/addressintel-mcp.git
cd addressintel-mcp
npm install
npm run build     # emits dist/index.js

Then point the client at node /absolute/path/to/addressintel-mcp/dist/index.js instead of the npx command above.

Restart the client, then ask it something like "what demolition permits were issued in Menlo Park this year?" or "which Palo Alto listings are SB 9 eligible?"

Configuration

Variable	Default	Notes
`ADDRESSINTEL_API_KEY`	`demo`	Without a key the server uses the public demo tier: 10 requests/minute, 5 rows per call. Grab a free key at https://addressintel.co/developers for 30/min and 25 rows; the key is emailed to the address you enter.
`ADDRESSINTEL_API_BASE`	`https://addressintel.co/api`	Point at a local dev server (`http://localhost:3000/api`) when working on the API.

Development

npm run dev       # run from source over stdio
node test_mcp.mjs # smoke test: connect, list tools, call one

Tools are declared in one table in src/index.ts. Each entry carries its zod schema and its advertised JSON Schema side by side, so adding a tool means adding one entry, and the two shapes cannot drift apart.

Add this server

Host a copy with our keys and logs.

Server facts

Tools

Questions

How do I install Permits?

Does Permits need an API key?

What transport does Permits use?

When was Permits last checked?

Documentation

AddressIntel MCP server

Tools

Install

Claude Code

Claude Desktop

From source

Configuration

Development