Promising Practices for Timely Completion of Building Inspections in North Carolina

Local government jurisdictions in North Carolina, whether county or municipal, are expected to perform building inspections for clients within two business days of a submitted request. The N.C. Office of State Fire Marshal, Office of Strategic Partnerships, and Office of State Budget and Management partnered with the School of Government in a research projectto determine how to assist local governments in improving building inspection timeliness. The N.C. Benchmarking Project identified Currituck County, the City of Fayetteville, and Mecklenburg County as high-performing jurisdictions, each reporting 100 percent compliance with the two-day requirement. In spring 2025, leaders from the three jurisdictions convened for a series of interview and focus-group sessions to discuss how they meet this goal. These sessions explored the significance of personnel practices, technology adoption, and process design, highlighting common challenges and innovative solutions used to meet timeliness expectations. This report summarizes those findings and discussions.