[2] Some parts of the public real estate are managed by other agencies, including railways, the military, and healthcare facilities.

Part of the government portfolio, which is subject to competition, is managed by the limited company Entra Eiendom, which was demerged from the Norwegian Directorate of Public Construction and Property in 2000.

The directorate is subordinate to the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development (Kommunal- og distriktsdepartementet).

[3] The agency dates back to 1816, when King Charles II appointed Christian Ancher Collett as a consultant to manage the royal buildings around Christiania.

In 1886 the agency was created by law as Statens bygnignsinspektorat (The state building inspectorate), later changing its name to Riksarkitekten.