The City of Saskatoon distinguishes between a permit that is open but incomplete, meaning the work exists but final inspection never happened, and work that was never permitted at all. An open file is often the easier of the two to resolve, since the city mainly needs to sign off on work that is already done.
A lender may decline to count square footage or rental income tied to unpermitted work, which is a financing problem for the buyer rather than a legal block on the sale itself. Disclosing the open permit and addressing it before or as part of the deal is usually better for price than letting a buyer's lawyer find it during their review.
Joel Dyck checks permit status on every listing before it goes to market, so there are no surprises at closing. Get your hand-reviewed valuation from Joel Dyck.