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We pull permits from two places.

City of Bakersfield permits come from the city's monthly permit report. These are issued permits, so the job is approved and usually about to start.

Kern County permits cover addresses outside city limits (unincorporated Bakersfield areas like Rosedale, Oildale and parts of the Southwest). The county posts records weekly, and some show up before the permit is issued. Those carry a Pending permit label: the homeowner has applied, but the county hasn't issued it yet. Pending leads are early — a good time to make first contact — and the label changes to confirmed when the permit is issued. If the county cancels a record, the lead drops out of your feed.

Kern County leads come in weekly.

City of Bakersfield leads arrive once a month. The city publishes its report for a month usually 2–4 weeks after that month ends, and sometimes later. We load it as soon as it's out.

That still works because most permitted jobs take weeks or months to finish. A pool permit means fencing, landscaping, a patio and pool service come later. A new home needs window coverings, landscaping and pest control after move-in. Every lead shows a contact window — the best time to reach out for your trade — so you're early for the work that follows, not late for the permit itself.

The calculator takes the average number of matching permits per month in your area (using complete months only), then multiplies by:

• your close rate (the share of leads you expect to turn into jobs), and
• your average job value (or, for recurring trades like pool service, your monthly price and how many years a customer stays).

The defaults come from typical Bakersfield numbers for your trade. Change them to match your business. It's an estimate, not a promise — real results depend on how quickly and well you follow up.

Pro — $99/mo. New-permit leads for your trade in the ZIPs you choose, shared with other Pro members in your trade.

Exclusive — from $299/mo (Standard) or $499/mo (Premium) per territory. You're the only business in your trade getting leads in that territory.

Builder Leads — $149/mo, or a $99/mo add-on to Pro. New home builders and tracts for trades that sell to builders.

Paying yearly gets you 2 months free. Founding pricing is a lower rate for the first members (for example Pro $90/mo). You keep your founding price as long as you stay subscribed.

Homeowner leads are single permits at an address — a new pool, a solar install, a re-roof — for selling to the homeowner. You see the address, the work and a contact window.

Builder Leads are about the companies building new homes: which builders are pulling permits, in which tracts, and how many. They're for trades that sell to builders (landscaping, window coverings, garage floors and similar). Builder views show the street and tract, never house numbers.

Exclusive territories come in two tiers based on how many permits they usually get.

Premium territories are the busiest areas, at $499/mo.

Standard territories get fewer permits, at $299/mo.

Both work the same way: you're the only business in your trade receiving leads there. Each territory page and the calculator show which tier it is.

We never take away what someone already pays for.

• Shared: if Pro members in your trade already get leads in a territory when you go Exclusive, they keep getting them. You pay $100/mo less for each business already sharing it.
• Grandfathered: those existing members are grandfathered — they keep their ZIPs for as long as they stay subscribed.
• 7-day first right: when a territory is about to be taken Exclusive, existing members in that trade get 7 days to claim it first.

Every lead comes from public building permit records — the City of Bakersfield's monthly permit report and Kern County's permit portal. We sort permits by type, map the address to a ZIP and area, and match them to the trades that do the follow-on work.

Public records can have errors or delays, so we can't guarantee accuracy, completeness or results.

Each lead has a contact window: the date range when your outreach is most likely to land. It's based on the permit date and the kind of job. For example, a pool fence company wants to reach out while the pool is being built, and a landscaper after the new home is finished.

Leads inside their window are the ones to call first.

Exclusive means you're the only business in your trade getting leads in that territory. Another trade can still hold the same area — a pool service company and a pool fence company can both be Exclusive in Northwest, because they don't compete with each other.

Pro and Builder Leads come with a 14-day free trial; Exclusive has a 7-day trial. You're not charged until the trial ends, and we email you before it does.

You can cancel anytime in Settings. You keep access until the end of the period you've paid for. We don't refund partial months.

We never show owner names — not in the app, exports, emails or postcards. Postcards are addressed to "Current Resident."

Permit addresses are public records. If you're a homeowner and want your address removed from Toolbox Local, email privacy@toolboxlocal.com with the address and we'll hide it from every contractor view.

Postcards are coming soon. When they launch, you'll be able to mail a postcard to a lead's address (addressed to "Current Resident") using postcard credits. Some plans include credits you can see in Settings now; they'll be usable once postcards launch.

You can pick more than one trade — for example Pest control and Solar bird-proofing — and as many ZIPs as you serve. Your lead feed, the calculator and Results combine every trade you picked. Change your trades and ZIPs anytime in Settings.

Questions, problems or ideas? Email support@toolboxlocal.com — a real person (DJ) reads every message. You can also use the help chat in the app.