Code Attorney

Came across this article in a google search. I’m having similar issues with a municipality and am looking for case law relating to selective enforcement and prejudice issues. I own all the realestate around the town hall, and have been prevented from openning a business for 10 years, and near bankruptcy. I had permitted all work on the premises and all had been approved, yet they will not issue a change use nor occupancy permit. The entire community is flabbergasted by all this and I am at my witts end. can anyone help direct me to a resolution?

Thanks for the useful info. It’s so interesting

Thanks for this. Renovating our garage, trying to see if permit is required or not.

I built a functional sculpture, composed of pallets to cover my car and motorcycle and to act as a base to the rest of the sculpture which is not complete, There is no electricity or water services to the sculpture, there is no floor or permanent foundation. The tow code enforcer sent a summons to me for erecting a building without obtaining permits. Did I mention the entire sculpture is built out of pallets and other found materials, there could be no plans submitted, the sculpture is primitive but has stood through two heavy winters, I live on a dead end facing a lake with only one neighbor who is proud to have a creative person next door. There is no danger to another person or property besides my own. The building code is written so that anything with a roof is considered a building, and can not be created on any property with out plans and permits, apparently we live in a strict police state and even though we live with the ideal of pursuit of happiness, that includes nailing a few pieces of wood together, you are just out of luck. I go to the local court this Thursday to defend my art. Is there anything I can take with me aid in my cause to keep this sculpture?

sonoma county building permit have screwed me completely. doing it the legal way (obtaining a permit) is a joke and a depravation of property rights. permit department said i could build on my property, so i purchased a metal building 1500sqft for 20k engineering another 8k. i got started on the process of obtaining building a permit to errect this building. to my surprise i was signed off 4 departments before i got to the 5th department i was hulted. i was told i could NOT errect anything on my property after spending close to 30k i was told to throw away the building i purchased. i was furious !!!! i was told that sonoma county RR Rural Residential District Section 26-18-010 (f) prohibited me from errecting any building over 120sqft. now i have a building that cant be arrected and spent 30k down the drain! anyone please provide any help!!

The heart of the matter here is how much authority SHOULD the government have when a property owner wishes to build on his land. People who build without permits often do so out of a Libertarian conviction that what they do with the land they own, to the extent that it does not infringe on the welfare of their neighbors, is their own business and should not come under the review of a government agency. An example of such owner primacy would be building a residential structure to house one’s self and family, and the requisite structures to support family activities, such as a barn. Obviously any lender would have the option to decline to fund any such project should they feel their capital would be at risk. And it would be imprudent to extend this right to build to any endeavor where “public” safety would be an issue, such as a commercial structure or residences built for the express purpose of being resold.

thanks for providing valuable info about the topic. I am a fan within your website. Keep up the great job.

my ex husbnd built and addtion on to my home 9 years ago he did not pull any permits, now that I am divorced and paid him out to keep my home I found this out what can the building dept do to me. The addtion was added to my mobil home I cant remove it because we knocked down wall on the mobile home to make it one big home he built it well and I think to code. I live out in the county, should I inform the tax appairser and the building deptment, I don’t know what to do

@Rebecca
I’m sorry but I can’t provide legal advice on a specific topic.

Is there any state or county in any state where you don’t need a permit?

Is there any state or county in any state where you don’t need a permit? I wonder what the buildings would look like… Creativity gone wild without limits

@Dennis
Dennis, There is something close. The county and state have permits, but Michael Reynolds has fought hard to make some pretty big changes. Check out Earthships.com. Amazingly creative self sustainable buildings built with recycled materials. They are stronger than your typical home and way more efficient.

Their are many counties in many states that do not require a permit. Most being from lower populated states and counties. The county i live in has no codes or permits. But the city i live in does. But does not enforce it really hard unless your doing something crazy. Its common here to add an additon to a room or a deck , a barn or garage and never have to worry about inspection. Unless your builing a new house. There are many benifits of living in the so called country or the south. It is also common practic here to build your own new house and get contractors to sign off on it. That is acceptable in alot of places. Ass long as you do it right and it is inspected by a licensed contractor its fine. Save thousands on electrical and plumbing. Ill be damed if i will live in a place that tells me how big or how tall or what type of house i have to build. Whatever happend to poeple standing up to what they believe in? Its your government. You want to build something on your property and they say no. VOTE THEM OUT! And make it clear why you did . Rules limiting builind on your property should be reserved for private communities only. You know the ones with a gate. One way in one way out. Otherwise its my land leave me the hell alone. I do however think you should show coutesy to your neighbors. Talk to them and try to make sure you wont affect their quality of life by building. Its all about money for most places. Elect officials with your best interest. If they abuse their power replace them. Be heard. I read about the contracter that got mad he didnt get the job and turned the people in. LOL . In small towns that would never happen. Sure go tell on me. But your gonna get your ass whiped and nobody else in the town is gonna hire you after they hear what you did. If you and your community cant stand up together to stop unfair codes. Then maybe you should just move.lol.

My son who was only 25 years old at the time , was asked to tear down 2 , 12×12 decks and then the homeowner asked him if he could build he a small set of steps going to the front door and a similar set out back. She also noticed he messed up one of the steps and asked him to add a 6 x6 deck beside it. From my understanding these designs alone would fail inspection. He did not know to obtain a building permit and I am think he might have been intentionally set up . He says he did what the homeowner asked him to do and they paid him . Who’s is liable for this construction ?

@GA42DAY
While I can’t give legal advice for specific cases, most building codes hold both the builder and the homeowner liable for violations of the building code such a performing work without a permit. Even when there is a contract between the parties specifying who should get the permit, both remain responsible for making sure a permit is obtained.

@Linda Pieczynski
thanks , he has what look like a bill of reciept . It states the hours he worked and the duties he preformed. I would have him argue that he was her employer because she knew he did not have workmans comp , business liscense and other requirements needed . I just feel he might have been taken advantage of. I told him not to do it again. I also heard that in some states its illegal so sue for more than what a job is worth. He told her if the steps he built were in a new residental house on the market the inspector would not like it, but she said they would live with it .

If the worst is expected to happen. I may talk to a lawyer to see if he can file a law suit against the county under the new ” PLAIN WRITING ACT “signed by Obama administration this year . I went through the web page that stated requirement of what type of structures need a building permit. It does not state clearly in Plain writing that a deck needs to be inspected! To me all of the information was jeberish. It really makes you think and wonder what is being said. So if a dog house is considered a structure do I need to have the inspectors approval before I let me dog sleep in it at night ? What about a doll house ? Do I need to have the countys permission so barbie and ken can move in it ? Its a structure . Am I right or wrong .

my sons an idiot ! I can see a problem about not inspecting a 2 story deck or something like that with a roof over it . But damn I got to loose sleep at night over a 6×6 deck . It was not even the size of a kitchen table, and a couple of steps like 4ft off the ground …

Building permit requirements are very specific as to what kinds of structures require permits. There are a number of exclusions for structures based on size and use. Consult your local building code for the exceptions

Height variance.

I am an owner of the 120 years old Victorian house. Sometime ago (and I don’t have a record of it) hight pitch roof was burned down and was replaced with flat roof. We have purchased this property already in such condition. I have reserached the library records and found pictures of original roof, house is on Historic register. We wnat to restor the roof, but city makes me to go for a height variance since it is a view sensitive area. Of course there are peope who object.

do I have any grounds?

Thank you

My husband decided to add to our utility room and attached it to our home and also added a second floor to it. I know you all must get this a lot that he did not think to get a permit due to the fact that he was attaching it to our home it had light and a bathroom already. Unfortunately the city came and denied him a variance. We have invested around $18,000.00 and need to know if there is anything else legally that we can do to keep our addition. We are willing to pay a penalty for lack of permit if needed.Our neighbors were upset because the city stop us.our home is situated in a colonia and in reality I am not harming anyone at all. the zoning commmitte all agreed okay but then one over turn everyone decision and they all followed but even they felt that it was okay with the exception of one. Please advice although a little to late but anything that might help me salvage these expenses.

There is an article on LovelandPolitics.com about this happening in Loveland, Colorado. The developer decided togoahead without permits and was prosecuted.

What town?

@Diana Trevino
Unfortunately for you, the town has every right to demand the removal of the illegal structure. In my book, the Building Process Simplified, I write about the unforeseen consequences of violating the building code law by not submitting plans and getting permits. It can be an incredibly expensive mistake, costing a person not only the money he spent on building the illegal structure but also in legal fees and fines. It’s never wise to try and save money on permit fees when this is the natural consequence of such a decision.

Hello,
I recently purchased a foreclosure – single family home – and of course there was a truth in housing report given to me prior to putting in an offer. There were multiple bidders and I was the…*lucky* winner. We closed on the home in July of this year and have been busy restoring it. The building inspector came in to look at the roughed in bathrooms and had a serious chip on her shoulder because, apparently, the previous owner pulled permits to do work on the home and never allowed them back to check on and approve his work (neighbors tell me he died in an accident, which is probably why). The building inspector didn’t just look at the work we were doing, but also every single room in the house, pointing out problems, angrily. She said that the back porch cannot be repaired at all because she *assumes* the previous owner built it without a permit (she has no proof, she is just assuming because the other additions were built in 2006 and this porch is not listed on there. I would never guess the porch is that new, it looks original to the home, which was built in 1912 and is in need of repairs). She said we have the option of A) tearing it down B) leaving it as-is (leaky roof and all!) or C) obtaining variances and drawing up plans, etc, hoping the city will give us the go-ahead. While I’m fine with and plan on making the structure more sound as well as aesthetically pleasing, I am flabbergasted that I’m being told I need a variance on an existing structure – merely because the inspector *assumes* that it was built without a permit. Any advice here is greatly appreciated, I have been nothing but compliant with the city inspectors with regards to obtaining permits and allowing them in to inspect and have done everything to the letter, but this is going into the 6 figures area due to government interference and I am so frustrated and overwhelmed. Thank you!

I also meant to add that the truth in housing report said absolutely NOTHING about the porch, it needing repairs, a variance, or anything. We did have an inspection and of course the inspector has no idea if something was built with a permit or if a structure requires a variance. I would think this would be on the truth in housing report?

Hello,
I bought my house two years ago and specifically asked if garage conversion and laundry room had permits. I was told yes and given a permit number. Now county has to approve solar plans and are telling me that garage and laundry room don’t have permits. The permit numbers given to me were pulled but not paid for. The county says they think this was done to sell me the house. Now my solar project has been put on hold and I have to expose all electrical, insulation and footing for laundry. They said I also have to hire an engineer. I looked on my paperwork that I got when I bought the house, called the county with permit number and now they’re saying that the number I have was a qualification permit. Can a realtor or bank sell a house that has work done with no permits and do I have any other options? Thank you so much for any information.

Thank you very much for your quick response. Waiting on a call from a lawyer this week. I hate to have to get a lawyer but it’s sad what people will do for a sale. Thanks again.

Hi Linda. I have a problem with two homes in Santa Barbara County, CA. I am an electrical engineer and a very experienced owner/builder. I get permits for everything I build. This is easy for me as I do the blueprints myself and hire a licenced structural engineer if civil engineering calculations are required. On the first property I added a 2000 sq ft addition to the residence and also built a combined 750 sq ft work shop and office. I got all sign-off in 2003. In 2006 the property was raided by inspectors and police alleging code violations. My zoning permit was for an addition of 5 bedrooms. Inspectors claimed only 2 were legal. For an appraisal to refinance construction loans, the loan broker and appraiser suggest I change the name of 3 legal bedrooms to den, library and study. The inspectors summarily evicted three tenants occupying these rooms and ordered me to pay restitution benefits.
The inspectors continued to pick up minor things left over from construction such as guard rail and hand rails. I was asked to do a multiple page blueprint submission on autocad and get a permit for the minor items and told to remove the closets in the bedrooms labelled den, library, and study. My cost was about $1500 to make the corrections (I did not remove the closets. My construction costs were about one half million. The permit fee requested for the minor changes was $11,000 which I refused to pay. The person at the building dept propagating this enforcement left Santa Barbara three years later and the fee was dropped to $1000 and everything signed off. However, in the intervening three years the county of santa barbara posted $120,000 in liens on each property. I have been unsuccessful in negotiating these down. I have been able to hang on to one of the two homes in question. May loose the second. These are very large valuable properties which I have worked on over the past thirty years. Any help from you and your readers would be appreciated. This is a political problem involving the zoning/building depts, County Counsel and the Board of Supervisors.

I have constructed a tree house height, play structure in my back yard. It is supported partially by the flat roof of my garage. A neighbor has called it a deck and has sicced the building inspector on me. I want to provide the playstructure to my children and did not realize a tree/club house would even be an issue for a municipality. In fact I can find no ordinances pertinent to the structures intent at all within the municiple code. How do I convince the construction board to properly interpret what i am building?

I just found out my house never was given a permit to build. The man owned both lots lived next door and woke up one day in 1972. and said I want to build a house next to me.(of which is right over a canal) We pay State,property tax etc. Since there was no permit issued where does that leave us? My neighbor will never be able to claim our property or will they?

I found this site while researching where the local government received it’s power to waltz onto your property and tell you that you can not build a shed or a small workshop without getting a permit first.

It was the ability of all homeowners in the state of Florida to submit plans drawn up by hand or computer and be approved by the municipality in order for you to proceed legally.
I find no problem with that.

Now, it is my attention that you can no longer do that and they have to be sealed plans drawn up by a licensed architect.

Simple wooden building now have an extra $2,000 price tag attached along with permit fees.
We have rights and when you look at the history even our own Presidents built their own homes and I doubt they needed permission to do so.

The city, most likely Insurance company mandated, has now put so much restriction on homeowners that legally you can’t even change your own water heater or bath tub.

So please forgive me if I build my shed without going through the proper channels.

My father couldn’t pay his house anymore so he let it go and has been living with me for 7months but he had built a shed in the back yard of his house and now got a citation telling him to file for permits for the shed can he just have it knocked down the shed and that’s it he doesn’t live there anymore the house has been foreclosed on

I am a contractor that completed a project for a customer earlier this year. this customer stated at the beginning of the project ” we don’t have to worry about the permit, I know people”. when she was later sited she for not having a permit she told the code enforcement officer that I had told her she didn’t need one. the code enforcement agent then call me and told me I was legally responsible and would be prosecuted if I did not come back on my dime and tear apart any walls needed for the inspection. Is this true? or is the homeowner ultimately responsible in this case?

working with out perment in Elderberry Subdivision in richmond count at address 4738 Billie J Drive Augusta ga 30909 it NEED TO LOOK IN to

I had a friend inform me that, someone reported him about an garage on the property that is being used for living space and ask me if I knew if he would have too convert back to a garage or can he find an attorney to see if it can be saved his home is in Santa Barbara California can you help in this area thank you

I purchased a 2nd house in Florida from the FEDERAL NATIONAL MORTGAGE ASSOCIATION in Nov 2012. According to the county tax records, the property includes a house built in 1996; an in ground pool installed in 1996; and a semi-permanent wooden storage shed (approx 64 sq/ft) built in 2004. Now it is Oct 2014 and I just received a notice of code violation for building a shed without a permit. My question is, if the storage structure shows up in the tax records, won’t there have had to been a permit to get it registered?
This county does have an electronic online search utility for permits, but 3 months of 2004 are missing. So it will require flying down to Florida to research this issue in person.

@Brenda Vermaas
I bought a home 38 years ago and tried to sell it this year and found out the house and sewer never was permitted when built in 1972. the builder is dead now. is there a statue of limitations? I have already replaced the sewer system and had the electrical permitted and the well permitted all have passed. now they want the house blue printed this is something I can not afford is there any thing we can do? state of washington

I had a deck built over an existing patio 12 years ago. I told the builder to get whatever permits I needed. That apparently was not done. Three years ago I sold the house. Recently I was contacted by the people who bought my house. They want me to provide them paperwork about when the deck was built so they can argue that the statute of limitations is met and that they shouldn’t need to get rid of the deck. Am I opening myself up to liability if I send them paperwork about when the deck was built?

Earlier this year I purchased a home. Within a week of purchasing the home I hired an tree service company to come remove several trees from the property. At the rear of the property there was a wooden privacy fence that a significant amount of brush growing over into the backyard in addition to several dead trees that had fallen on and through the fence. I asked the tree company if they could cut back the brush and remove the fallen trees. The company said they could not only cut the brush back but could remove the fence and clear the brush behind the fence to prevent a regrowth problem. Given that I owned about 40 feet beyond the fence I told them to clear about 20′ beyond the fence and they did. A neighbor called code enforcement and we were given a citation for clearing land without a permit. I have a hearing with a special magistrate next month. Though I have several questions (such as the tree company being responsible for pulling the permit etc…) my main question is whether or not hiring an attorney is necessary. I am sure that having an attorney would be optimal – but it is my impression from speaking with the county enforcement that this is a pretty standard procedure and isn’t that serious. Can you provide some insight on to exactly what happens in a special magistrate hearing? Thank you.

Hello everyone, I have read your complaints, and like the attorney has stated, “Laws are different in every state.”
I am a State Certified Building Contractor. I write contacts all the time. Basically in the State of Florida, it all comes down to the owner—-he is to verify all procedures. If your contract with your contractor states the he will abide to all laws, the he is responsible, if it does not, and contract is for removal, adjustment, ect….without a permit—-then you mas owner are responsible—–MAKE SURE YOUR CONTRACTOR IN HIS CONTRACTS SPECIFY EVERYTHING DONE WILL BE ACCORDING TO THE LAWS OF YOUR STATE, COUNTY, AND OR LOCAL HOA., otherwise, you may be held responsible.
Yes –it’ a terrible world when we think we hire professionals at a moderate price to find out it will be more than expected.

Hi. So my parents remolded the house in 1989 my dad did the work and had the inspectors come and sign off. My husband and I took over ownership of the house in 2007 through a quick claim. now we are trying to put in solar and went to pull permit but were told that none of the final inspections back in 1989 happened. My parents swear that it was done because they remember a guy pulling tags of the walls. Who knows where the paper work from 20+ years ago went. what should our next steps be? Is there anything research that we could do that would indicate if the final inspection was done? We also found this out after we realized the county office had assigned the incorrect parcel code to us. we are in California.

I have been dealing with county code enforcement dealing with a developer who has gone in and widen a home owners association road this is on agriculture land and is leading to many homes. County said it looks OK to them but they have widen and even left horizontal walls which are falling into road now and when it rains it will cause erosion and sediment to run into creek system which is our drinking water. I have given code enforcement there own rules out of county code book and they say it looks good to them so keep my month shut. Where do I go cause it seams like county is being bought off by this developer and are ignoring there own codes and regs,

Hello, We built a room addition 24 years ago, it is permitted and has a final. The county assessors office notified me that they never recorded it and are now going to back tax me four years and that I should be lucky that is all. I live in San Bernardino Cali. Can you offer me any advise?

I had build a sunroom without permit in back of a single house in Philadelphia PA,because contracter said if neighbor not complain then don”t need one,now that I read in your Blog ,I want a permit for it,what should I do ?I want it be legally.Thank you for your help.Han

Several years ago I had a barn/Mother in law apt built on my property. it was buit where a mobile home used to be for my Step father who who had a life estate. He has since died and the mobile home is gone. The bulider talked me into not getting permits . He hooked the septic to the tank that was for the old mobile home, ran the electric from my house underground and connected the water from the exisiting well on the property. I want to get this resolved with the county and will do what I can to get this fixed. I know it was a big mistake. What can I do to get this resloved?? Where should I start?? Should I get with a real estate attorney??

is there a building permit called as built building permit? I have a house that was built40 years ago by someone else with out permits I have been trying to get it permitted but every thing I do for the building and planning seems to be wrong and they make us do something else. we had the house blue printed and they denied it because it was missing the size of the headers and the footings of a beam so it was denied and has to be totally redone they will not excepted just fixing the original one so I have to pay the acetic to do it again I have already paid 2600 for the first one. is there any help out there for us desperate!! Washington state

I bought a house knowing it had an illegal addition. The addition was built to code. I went to pull a permit from the City of Glendale, CA for a demolition refurb and was told the usual fee of $5000 was doubled to $10,000 because of the addition. I asked why and the clerk said it was in the California Statutes. Asking which one, they said they didn’t have to tell me and to look it up. Is this for real?

Please advise me immediately. I hired a licensed contractor to install a metal roof. We discussed r panel 26 gauge metal. Someone familiar with this roofing happened to come by yesterday in the midst of this project and told me that the metal Is not r panel and looks like very cheap metal. He also showed me many serious mistakes being made. The one of most concern is he cut all my sewer pipes and layed metal over them and I had numerous. Please advise me quickly as i don’t want my family in danger.

Where can I find information regarding permits and use of garage as a business in California?

my neighbor has a full bar that’s been there for many years just recently they’ve cut windows and I’m making it into an apartment no permit for ever pulled and no inspection was ever done is this is illegal because when I put new windows in my home I had to pull permits and have them inspected

How can I determine whether a roofer has a license or is building to code or not? I ask because these people are working on my mother’s roof and are destroying her yard, have made it impossible for her to exit from or use her backyard, etc….and I don’ think they are real roofers. My suspicion is that the maintenance guy for her cottage has hired some random guys to cut down on costs and pocket the money. I need advice! Thanks!

I hold an unrestricted Construction Supervisors license in Massachusetts and am employed by a residential roof top solar company licensing the office (building permits). This company uses an out of state engineer with a civil engineering stamp, who seems to pass 99% of structures. Recently I have to review every account structurally because it has come to my attention that some of the roofs are questionable structurally, and actually many of the accounts I send back for his re review end up needing some sort of structural upgrade. Bottom line; Am I liable as the permit signer if one of these structures fails?

We always felt our neighbors were sitting perched up on our driveway when they were out on their deck. When we went to get a permit to build a privacy fence, we ended up purchasing a township code book. After reviewing the book, we discovered that our neighbor’s deck is 6 feet too close to the property line. (He built it 9 feet from the property line, it needs to be 15 feet from the line) We found out that he did not obtain a permit to build.this deck (nor did he obtain a permit for any other structures he built.on the property). When we contacted the township we were told that we are “nitpicking” and that it has been 30 days and they are not going to pursue it. The deck was built.several years ago, he is a contractor and we figured he knew what he was doing and got the necessary permits (ignorance on our part). I assume he thought he was “safe” because he thought the code.was 10 feet, not 15 feet. Do we have a case to contact a lawyer to have him bring the deck up to code (since there was never a permit) or is it too late?

I applied for a perm to add an extra 17 feet to my deck,I was told it would also require a building permit. I don’t mind paying the $139 fee for that permit after the other one cost me $35 but the building permit requires a very in depth drawing of the deck that needs to be approved before the permit can be issued. It will cost me around $500 to buy the materials but it would cost around $1500 to get the drawing done.

Thank you

My friend bought a property 13-14 years ago, two flat with a porch in the back for the 1st floor, and stairs and porch for the second floor. City of Chicago code is I think boards need to be 4 x 4, and these are 4 x 6. When she purchased the property, she assumed no porch could be built without a permit, and that the person she bought from obtained a permit to build it. Today, because of all the porch collapses, they are making her replace the porch, not just repair, and bring it up to today’s code. Grandfathering doesn’t apply. And the fact it was the previous owner, the comment was “It’s your headache now.” Can she go after the previous owner to try and recoup some or all of her losses to replace the porch to code? Or has the statute of limitations run up?

I have a 1972 single wide mobile home that is falling apart. I was given a 1989 double wide mobile home. I just want to replace what is existing. What are the loop holes to get around the wind zone III requirements… can I just anchor the double wide to a wind zone III and get away with it. I own the land… I pay my taxes. Any legal ways of doing this PLEASE let me know….

also my only income is disability….

My brother just purchased a lot in San Bernardino county that had an existing shed type of building on it (10 x 12) and he has done some improvements such as installing a nice front door (residential style). Can he use this building to sleep in while he is working on improving the property and building a cabin?

Hi,

I just had a in ground pool built at my home and I am afraid that the contractor did not pull the required permit for the job. It is unincorporated Harris county Texas. I have looked up and there are no codes depicting where exactly you have to put it but the codes for the county require a permit. What do I need to do? I am worried that I will have to pay fines or have to do something to the pool. Can you let me know what I should do?

I just found out that the architecht that drew my permits might be losing his license in a few weeks. I am not sure why . I am not finished my job yet . Where does that leave me ? I live in NY. Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thx

We bought a house 4 years ago and the deck has seriously started deteriorating with all the rain the last two years. We wanted to have it repaired only to discover through an inspection it was not built to code, never issued a permit or inspected and needed to be torn off. We did have a home inspection, what recourse do we have if any against realtor, seller and inspector?

In Nj does a contractor need a license to build a new commercial structure? We reside across from a bar which knocked a structure down(was used as storage}, poured a new slab and from the ground up built a new bar with ventilation, taps etc. No site plan, zoning application, permits etc were issued for this new structure. This was all done by an owner claiming to be an unlicensed contractor. We have been fighting this since March 2014. Any comments suggestions.

The township has closed them last year and this year. They refused to close and are still operating. At the planning board hearing they finally admitted to having no permits for the work done and continuing to be done. A long list of waivers and variances including use were listed by the town’s engineer and planner. we have used an attorney but have blown through a lot of money. Quite frankly our feeling this is something the township should be handling not our personal pockets. We were told an injunction is in order but will be quite costly. Thank you for your response.

my dad bought a house in highland, ca that went through a special inspection recently, one issue that was brought up was a porch that was converted into a room, the inspector said to submit copy of permit or to change it back into porch. Tax assessors building record show that porch was converted into room and added as room in 60’s. We showed this to city code enforcement and they said it was not enough, that we needed to show permit or change it back to porch. We requested any permits with county in San Bernardino and they gave us two from 1980’s that were not relevant, and said they were only able to provide us with permits from 1977 onward, and to supply them with names of previous owners ( I do not know why this is) in order to get any permits from year house was built to 1977. What are our options?

My husband built a Porch on the back of our mobile around 1990. It was a roof and a deck and he did not use treated lumber. I have found that the porch was not permitted nor the deck. I have to rebuild the deck and I want a permit. The contractors tell me that the porch will also be in jeopardy if I get a permit. I want this legal but I cannot afford to rebuild everything. The Porch and deck was built free standing and he had a carpenter help him and only shingles hold it on to the house. How can I go about this? I will try to bring Porch up to code in order not to have it torn down and get it all permitted so that it is all legal.

I forgot to say my Husband has passed away so I am unable to ask him questions.

I recently hired a company called Automatic Rain, owned by Gary Reed in Memphis TN to do the irrigation work for my newly installed landscape.
He is very difficult to deal with and he is not particularly knowledgeable about his business. Also, he did not get a permit to do the work and he did not follow code . It is a requirement to install a backflow preventer as part of the irrigation process and he did not ……I found this out quite by accident over two months after the work was completed. Not having a backflow preventer on your irrigation system can cause serious health issues and even death. Your water can be contaminated with fertilizers, pesticides, fungicides, animal waste and who knows what else ! I had my water tested and it is positive for contaminants !
I think Gary Reed should have his license revoked and not be allowed to do irrigation work anywhere for anyone, ever again.
What advice do you have? Who do I turn to for help?

Hi. What are the consequences of not removing a non-permitted garage modification? Fees, penalties, how far can the City push the homeowner???????????????

We live in NJ and a few years ago the neighbor built a deck right up to our fence. There is a rule that it needs to be set back 3 or 5 feet. Since it was already built I didn’t say anything. Now they are putting a roof on it and trying to place drain pipes on my side of the fence. They have a permit to “build a roof on an existing structure” but the original existing structure (the deck) never had a permit or variance. I plan to file a complaint but would like to know your take on this. Thanks

before my neighbor built his fence I told him it was on my property but due to medication the situation dragged on over a year . a portion of his fence is on my property I’m trying not to get ugly , what can I do ?

Hi. I recently got into a discussion with a survivalist who claims to have built over 80 structures without ever pulling a permit. He is currently finishing up a very large home for his son on his property. He claims that there are no LAWS saying he has to comply with building codes, that codes are just suggestions and if one doesn’t pull a permit, which he considers a contract, then the city, county, state have no right to enforce any of the codes. I have been looking for some evidence that this is not the case but can’t put my finger on anything definitive. This man also claims that he threatens anyone who does try to enforce any building codes with retaliatory action against the inspector’s family as they are attempting to harm his family. He claims that the law is on his side. Can you point me to the law, both federal and local (Washington state, in this example but I’m also interested in Illinois law). Thanks for any assistance you might give.

How can you be forced to follow building codes that have absolutely nothing to do with safety? Things like what type of windows, slope of roof, setback requirements. Also on a legal perspective here in Michigan it states right on the permit that the inspection or inspector are not liable for defective work, and they assume no responsibility to insure safety. They cannot have it both ways, they ( inspections) either have authority to perform inspections and require permits and accept responsibility, or they have no authority.if they are not liable for the work then what is the point of the whole system.

Hello, such an informative site, thanks! We recently received a penalty order for a heater, air conditioner and kitchen in our detached garage, that was already there when we purchased our home in 2008! What are our rights as new owners? The penalty is for not getting permits. We bought the property from in-laws and nothing ever brought up during settlement. $2000 penalty seems hefty for work done before we bought property!

Hello, I live in Naples Florida and the land I live on was once owned by my grandparents. It has since been decvided amongst my mother and her siblings. All of the homes here were built in the early to mid 60’s Apparently when the properties were decided a property line runs right through the middle of the house we live in today. According to the county it is a violation for our home to be on two different properties and the property(whom is owned by my cousins) can not sale or put it up for sale. It has to be removed.
The county also says that the house I live in is the only structure in this area that does not have a building remit on file and for that reason we must obtain a demolition permit and demolish or tear down the entire house or completely remodel to bring everything up to today’s code.
My questions are: Would our home be grandfathered in being that it was built in the 60’s and is still being lived in today?
If so, Do we have to remove the part of the house that is on the other property being that it was built there before the property was ever decided?

I live in a very small town ,1500 people, in Texas. Our little town has went on a hunt for substandard properties. We really had no code until Texas passed the ICC code statewide. This house was built in 1930s, added on several times.Yes it needed work This was a style were they used 1×12 as walls. It is called a sanity home. I was bring the wall and floor above standard. We have a city inspector, then we have a private IBC code inspector. The IBC inspector came in said the roof trusses was not up to code, the single wall construction he had never seen,it was out of code. Yes I took out a building permit. Spent three weeks working on it , a grand on wood. Then I read code, the section on existing structures. Code say that I can rebuild it with like construction. He basically told me he was the code.He would send the city code officer his report that afternoon. That has been a week now. I was told to do a permit search on it to find out when the additions was added.% working days and still no action by the city. Was told the code officer would talk to me. When I ask about the permit search, all the employees were like deer in headlights. One even said she did not know if they kept permit records, or where they be.
There allowing the property owner beside change his house into a storage unit, no water or electricity. required or inspection slap a coat off paint on it and he good. This is also a town where the previous inspectors would tell just do work and don’t worry about a permit. And yes they selectively enforce the code. There a old brick hotel down town that has floor caving in on it. The city has owned it twice and sold it twice. the roof finally got repaired after 15 years, It has not been open since the 1970s. I ask him about it, he said, in his words” We just got the roof repaired”, it belong to a development company here. The company is private and next to impossible to find out who the share holder are. I did find one of the owners, a bank president.
To anyone out there thinking of doing any kind of building, get a lawyer every plan you submit signed of by a structural engineer. Make the city sign a contract with you that allows you build.

Bought a home in Florida city 5 months ago, which sold as having a detached garage apartment. Found out this week that although the original garage was permitted, the dwelling unit conversion was not, and additionally, the dwelling unit in in violation of the building zoning.

As the survey attached to the title insurance clearly states “garage apartment”, can they be held liable for the zoning violation? Neighbors upset with our renting of the apartment have started calling enforcement on us. We would lose $800 – $1,000 per month.

I know I can file for a zoning deviation, and get a permit for the existing structure, but that takes $$ I currently don’t have.

Also, most real estate attorneys I have called have refused to hear my case. Is a “real estate” attorney not the correct place to go? I have need of both potential litigation over the matter, and the process of rezoning.

Dear Linda, someone who I thought was suppose to be really religious deceived me when we went in on a Joint Family Real Estate Venture. The halfway legal Granny House was built by the leader of our former church, he felt “Satan’s laws don’t apply to me because God is my Master!” This super religious couple who spend more time judging everyone else’s sins want me to buy their illegal granny unit.

If I was to go to the County Code enforcers this couple built a house close to 2,000 sq-ft versus a legal 1200 maximum size would can they make them tear out all the excess size? The extra size is hurting me, I pay the correct property taxes and follow the law even if it’s “Satan’s Laws” as they claim. It make’s me mad I found out they did this after the appraiser said their house was not a granny-house but a regular home. There is no way the County will allow them to split this lot because its been split too many times. They know there are back taxes and have tried to put drywall over some of their illegal space. What would you do if someone offered you to buy out a granny house that was “overbuilt”, owed building fees, “evaded property taxes by lying about the true cost and value”? Someone is going to catch this once we put it up for sale, I don’t want anyone to think I was involved in their corruption.

We acquired a condo that we had been renting from my mother in February 2014. During our rental time there was much talk about basement bedrooms and we observed and had a tour of a unit adding habitable space to their basement in the fall of 2013. When we went to add habitable space to our basement, 40% of available area, we were refused the legally required egress window by the condo association. The city building inspectors told us we did need one. Not being scofflaws, we sold the condo but did report the illegal construction to the city. The city refused to take any action on the existing illegal construction in the condo basements and told me partially finished basements do not require egress windows. Do I have any grounds to sue the city or condo association? I had to pay capital gains taxes on the condo and other selling costs so I am out money and both my husband and I have had extreme emotional distress over the apparent cronyism.

A friend of mine owns some commercial real estate in Portland, OR. They hired a contractor to do several tenant improvement projects. It has just come to light that the contractor may have not obtained permits for the work over the last couple years on several of the units. There was nothing structural done, just adding some non-structural partition walls and plumbing, electrical, mechanical modifications. Does anyone have experience with getting commercial retroactive permits? Are there heavy fines involved? We are trying to figure out what they are up against and the best way to proceed.

A little over two years ago I called the city (Reno, Nevada) and asked them what the rules were for building a treehouse/playhouse. They informed me that as long as it was under 120 square feet and didn’t have plumbing and electricity that I did not need a permit at all. I told them I don’t have any large trees and wanted to build the playhouse on a large fake tree stump. They said again that all that matters is that it’s less than 120sf. Well, I built the most amazing and beautiful treehouse, it’s about 110sf and it resides on an awesome “tree stump” with a door in it that leads to a staircase up to the house. The other day I got a “Notice of violation” that my “accessory structure” violates code because it is more than 12 feet tall. (It’s about 15 feet tall). While the city has not called me back for three days the notice says that I have to “remove/redesign/remodel” it. None of those are options at this point! What do I do?!? I’m absolutely terrified that they will somehow force me to tear it down. Is there any way to get a variance or exemption for such things since it’s not a safety concern? Would having my neighbors sign something saying they are okay with it help me? In a couple years the trees all around it are going to be taller than it is!

I built a playhouse for my son that is 66 sqft, and code enforcement saw me bldg. It and opened a case on me. The HOA approved the playhouse and gave us there permit, but once code enforcement got involved the bldg. Dept is telling me I have to have 2 drawings stamped by an engineer and I will have to pull a permit. I looked in the codes for polk county florida and it does not mention a playhouse anywhwre. Its not exempt and nor does it mention that it needs a permit. It doesnt mention a playhouse at all. So what will happen to me if I don’t pull a permit ? Will they drop the case ? Bevause theres no laws or codes that I am breaking ?

My garage roof was falling down. I contacted a license contractor to fix my garage. He got $1700 in advance. He stated that I do not need a building permit as he is only replacing the roof and the permit I had to replace my house will cover it. i asked him to double-check with city to be sure. He told me that I should not worry about anything and he will take care of everything. His name is David Murphee and he is licensed in California. DO NOT HIRE HIM FOR ANYTHING. After he broke the contact I checked him out. He has 19+ judgments against him. I have a court date for damage he caused me.

The contractor also removed the sidings of the house. He left the project after he removed the roof and the sidings.

After 8 months I ordered new material to put the sidings and the roof myself. I assumed that the permit I have for the main house. I had no money left to hire a new contractor to do the work.

I almost finished the job on my own and a few homeless people looking for work. Two days ago my neighbor, an African American lady living with his son and granddaughter called the city building code enforcement agency. In the city a guy named Darius told me that I need a complete building permit for the new garage from scratch, because the building is not safe,

I told him I was doubled all the studs and use 2×6 Joist and rafters to make the garage as safe as possible. I was on the roof to put the singles and the garage is safer even that the main house that is build 110 years ago. I told him send somebody to check if the the garage is not safe and I am ready to retrofit it even for earthquake. He said he wants paperwork for a new building permit otherwise he will send me bigger and bigger fines until I comply. To comply to the new codes I have to make a new foundation and destroy a garage that so far has cost me $10,000+. I guess a similar structure with architect, engineering etc will cost me 20,000.

I refuse to apply for new building permit. Everybody I talk to tell me that the city cannot do much and I win the case if I go to court. I told city I can apply for earthquake retrofit, siding permit, roofing permit, electrical permit for the garage, but they refuse to give me those permits.

The garage is almost done. it needs a garage door and electrical to function. I can even skip the electrical if it give me hassle when they come to inspect electrical system inside the house.

My question is how often they can fine me? What else can they do?

I am living in downtown with all the homes around me are falling apart. My house is in pretty good shape, as I changed the roof and made Stucco outside all with permits. I am going to upgrade electrical system with a new main panel and two sub-panels in basement, also with permit. I changed all the windows as well and the city told me that I do not need permit as long as I use the same size windows. The water system was upgraded before and it seems to be good quality copper maximum 3-4 years old.

I was going to work on landscaping and make the house nice from the curb when the nosy neighbor called the city. What a pity, she is renting, have no backyard. My house is at least 3 times bigger. I guess she could not see so much is done with the neighbor’s house. What a pity that people are jealous even when they live in downtown in worse possible neighborhood.

what is the penalty for construction w/o a permit?

Hi- I received a notice from my town inviting me to a public hearing before the Zoning board due to my neighbor’s desire to construct a shed on her property that will require a variance. This neighbor and I have had a very contentious relationship and she has already constructed a huge 8 foot vinyl fence on her section of our property line (I have 3 acres while her property is roughly 1/2 acre)- there are no guidelines for fence construction and in my belief much of the fence either encroached on my property or was directly on the line- in either case she has to trespass in order to maintain it.

I’m wondering if I can simply object to her constructing it without the required setback simply because I don’t want it there, further solidifying the encroachment on my land. I don’t want to pay thousands for a new survey and don’t have the money for an attorney. I’m worried that in the small town where I live the “good old boys” on the Planning commission can simply override my rights/desires because she is friends with them. Their property is very small and already contains a large home, a garage, a big deck, etc but I feel that there is still space where they could construct it without needing a variance. I know that they’ll argue that their yard is so small that it would have to be almost in the middle of it. I’m sorry, they’ve been so miserable to me- I don’t care. I just don’t want them to build that shed on my property line.

Please give me any advice that may help me as I argue that this variance should not be granted and that they should have to follow the laws like everyone else.

We have lived all over Canada, and the United States, though originally from Belfast Northern Ireland. And we have lived in 4 different states in the United States. The best state for building anything is in Arizona you don’t have to get permits for most anything because it’s your property. Obviously building an add-on to your house or or even a porch you must get a permit. An outside deck, shed, above-the-ground pool all up to you. Here in Florida is it is the exact opposite also California. In Florida you can’t put a above the ground pool, deck, shed, or even put a fence up nothing without getting a permit and paying the government it can get expensive paying for the government’s kids to go to college. We were even more surprised that there’s an easement on almost every property here in Palm Bay. Though it is your property the government gets 5 feet on both sides that is theirs, you can’t build on it in 7 feet from the property line in the back. Though you paid for it it belongs to them and you get to maintain it. Not a fan of Florida or California, The gov sure seems to squeeze a bit more out of you in those states.

Some people just want to go away with the hassle in filing building permits for minor additional structures in their homes. While subcontractors think they could save a lot of work with applying for a building permit while doing their job. We just follow rules so that everything will be safe. It is that simple. For other info on steel building construction, do visit us: http://www.steelcobuildings.com/

My girlfriend owns a home in Lake county Ohio, her ex built a pavilion & a barn in the back yard. Both are built without permits. Both have electric but no water. Can she sell this house…? Thanks John

We just purchased a home 6 months ago and are doing renovations. An inspector came by to inspect a new roof there were getting put on and found the electrical in the house had been recently rewired. this rewiring was done by the previous owners.The inspector is accusing us and wants us to get a permit and deception do we comply or what options do we have?

What can an inspector do if you suspect you’ve done something without a permit? An inspector suspects that we rewired our house without a permit but cannot prove it without getting into the house. Can they get a search warrant or can they Levy fines just on the suspicion?

MLS advertisement states: “30 x 50 concrete pad ready for your shop”. I buy the house. Go to have a steel building manufacturer put a shop on the above referenced pad, no permit for it with municipality. Should my realtor have caught this, or should thelisting realtor have not stated “ready for shop” when in fact it was illegally constructed.

I bought my condo in Boynton Beach, FL in 2002 and had a new a/c system installed. The a/c company told me they no longer make that type of air handler that would fit into the ceiling like my old one did. So I got what they recommended and it was installed in the ceiling over my kitchen via an outside access hatch. The project was permitted and approved in 2002 by the City of Boynton. Fast forward 14 years later and it was time to install a new a/c which I did. Again, I had it permitted and the system was installed in the same location as approved in 2002. However, now the city is issuing violations due to the location of the air handler claiming I am in violation of building codes and that I must remove the air handler, buy a new one, and install it in its original location when the condo was built. How can they approve it one year (2002) and claim building code violations another year (2016)?? Do I have any recourse?

Hi Linda, after county passed our house plan，we got the permit and built the house, they figured out our house is too close to the property line. They stopped the inspection process. Now what can we do? is that county’s mistake or ours?should county give us varience? Thank you!

It amazes me, the things that I find being constructed and/or installed without obtaining a building permit.
The grand-daddy of them all, was finding a two-story home that had been constructed, in a very rural area, without a permit.
The owner ended up paying double the permit fee, plan review fees, impact fees, making corrections and modifications to the home in the areas that did not meet the Florida Building Code, paying for a Florida State licensed engineer to certify and seal that the home met the Florida Building Code once the corrections were made, and I believe they had to pay back the several years of property taxes that would have been assessed for the improvements made to the parcel of property.

Neighbor early 30’s white single crazy she periodically runs over kittens which hardly turn up here. I heard her half brother a younger one with strange animal abuse too arguiing she was worse.. I heard from that talk and others she baits cats for pit bull fighting.. Now come on she got a permit for a cat door from narrow cages to a bathroom window? Lots of corruption in pet control or police she got cozy with a few officers. Where do I look up her permit case? Thank you.

I have a property in Seal Beach, CA. I went through the city design process, paid fee and and pulled a permit to build an addition to my house. I did most of the work myself and when we were ready to call for inspection I did so with the building department. I did not call the public works department for a grading inspection. Sub-sequentially, I poured the concrete and did not obtain an inspection by public works in which they require a compaction report prior to concrete. Can they make me chip out the concrete and repour the slab? I was told by the building inspector that I was able to proceed with concrete. In addition, we have extremely good soils and compaction was performed but not documented by a licensed engineer. What can I do?

@travelinoncoffee
You need Linda Kennedy. This lady practiced law for many years and took on the entire legal system for unfair practices just such as this. She reports on “arbitrary and capricious” behavior by government.

Hi Linda, my husband works as a framer. So this Guy asked to build him a small house. My husband told him that he needs to get some permits, he said they aren’t necessary because is a small house in a private property. Do they ant on with the plan. The thing is that now this guy left to mexico only payed my husband about $400 and his wife has taken over the project. Neither of them have gotten in contact with my husband to settle the situation is there anything we can do? Also everything was a verbally agreement.

Hi, I’m looking at building a covered patio. My designs were turned down because my corner lot has a 15 ft no build line of the side of my house, I’m a corner lot home built in 1972 HOA long gone.

That 15 ft line on my survey reduces my patio cover down to just under 9 ft. I’m trying to set posts at 10′ w/ coverage of 12′, thus making my over the line amount 3’…

Is this a horrible idea?

@Dorothy
Call PETA (look up People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals). They will go after your neighbors who abuse animals and the govt. employees who are complicit with using permits to assist. Provide pictures, if possible. They will take care of business!

@Christopher V
Too bad you didn’t build in rural Hunt County, Texas. I commute to work in the suburbs east of Dallas, but I own 20 acres in an unincorporated area that only cares about two things: 1. How are you dealing with human waste – you need an approved septic system installed by a licensed contractor, and 2. Are you building in a flood zone – if not then no problem.

I can do pretty much anything else I want. I have a neighbor that is living in a shipping container while she slowly is building her own house of our stacks of used tires filled with compressed soil and covered in stucco. I had another neighbor building a structure out of sandbags – only he was doing it in a flood plain so he was told to stop. But otherwise I couldn’t imagine anything better than what we have here. No permits, no inspections, no building codes, no restrictions. Given that our economy has separated us into haves and have-nots, it is nice to know that there is still a place like this where if you can just get enough money to buy the land you can build what you need however you need it. There are great, innovative ways to build things for very little cost and with many materials basically free for the taking, like discarded lumber, used bricks, old pallets, or tires. There are a lot of resources online to help figure o how to build things.

i thought home owners were to pull permits? im building everything to code except im not sure about permit. im over killing it for sure its only a 20 inch ground level deck attached to house with 8, 6 inch length and 1/2 inch width lag bolts with washers along with deck flashing. 6x6x16 foot, beam on 12 inch x 16 inch cement blocks no longer making ground contact like old deck joists hangers on both sides of joists
it was tear out replace

I obtained a permit to build a garage. I called for the first inspection for the foundation and the inspector wrote a Notice to Comply stating I needed to provide copies of permits and inspections for all previous work done on the property. I did this and all seemed in order, but he then wrote another notice stating that certain aspects of the previous additions were not to code. Specifically, rafter sizes and the lack of rafter ties in an open breezeway. The city has no record of drawings or detailed inspections; only that a final inspection passed and an occupancy permit was issued. He wants me to hire an engineer to examine and sign-off on an already permitted and inspected portion of my house. I checked the IRC span tables and the rafters are the correct size and there are likely to be rafter straps over the tops of the rafters in lieu of the rafter ties, but they would be covered by the sheathing. I have argued with the building department without success. He will not let the garage building proceed until I comply by hiring an engineer. What can I do?

I live in FL and the contractor installing impact windows told me I didn’t need to bother with a permit. They are all installed now. I think they need to be permitted and inspected for insurance purposes. I want to apply for a permit….do I tell them they are already in? Will they know? The contractor wants the final payment but I want to hold it until inspections pass.

I am writing on behalf of friend who is dealing with a complicated construction defect situation that involves a contractor, an insurance company, the property HOA and the town building department. My friends have paid for three independent licensed structural engineers to inspect their condo and the renovated condo that sits directly on top of their home. All three engineers have concluded that the condo above them should not have ever been issued a CO and that the unit should be red tagged and all occupants removed. The unit was not built to the approved plans and the foundation can’t support the weight of the newly renovated / expanded condo. All of the Engineering reports have been given to the building department and yet they are refusing to take action saying that they gave the CO and they will not reinspect. Peoples’ lives are at stake and we don’t know how to get them to respond. Any advice you can offer would be greatly appreciated.

what is the penality for not getting a permit in lake county florida

@David shearer

What came first, Libertarians or people not wanting to spend the time to do things right or to deal with inspectors? There is a reason why earthquakes do much less damage in American cities than places without codes and inspections. It’s nice to think the house I bought doesn’t have time bombs hidden in the walls.
I think the issue isn’t codes, but bureaucracies. How much the county relies on permit fees to pay their bills and not just fund the permit department. What codes are designed to create work for “specialist” and prevent perfectly capable homeowners from doping the work themselves.

I understand the advice to get permits and hire an attorney if needed. Does your book offer any help to deal with 20 year old, none-permuted jobs, when we were younger and dumber (now we are older and smarter…) No issues yet so looking for proactive actions and what things to avoid.
5 years ago we permitted to have the original large, 15’ft, off the ground deck replaced. Plans were submitted and nothing was said about the none permitted improvements.

I think the answer with permitting is dependent on if you own your land that your property is within. Land has the same meaning as area. Property, what is within the land, is subject to the political jurisdiction of the land. If you own property in a city, you share the land with all those within the city limits and subsequently the political jurisdiction. The political jurisdiction may dictate that you need to have permission to build, add on, outdoor burning issues blah blah blah. Its tight quarters and you may not want your neighbor to allow his kids to target practice or sight in their new hunting riffle on a cardboard box in their back yard.

On the opposite hand, unless you need insurance on a bank loan that dictates a requirement for up to code construction, what you do on your property that is within your private land which would be outside a city or outside a development should be your business and not subject to county permitting. You are the ultimate authority. These County code officers are not trained to know the difference between a housing development in the county and your fee simple land and they will trespass to see what they can ticket you for and if you were educated here within the last 75 years you will not know that they are committing the crime.

Hi, I have legal issue. Can anyone help me? At first a friends ask me to help him fix little things in his illegal extended part of the house. after I started the work he ask me to help him break down that part of the extension to rebuild a how new extension with permit. I refused to do it because it became to big. I begged and bagged because it cost to much for them to hire a contractor. So I agree to help him but do it myself, I help them find contract to do most of the work. I had to take time off work to help him. I will do the finished work. Now that its down, he decided he doesn’t want to back me up to continue his project. He had decided to stop the work. Now he wants to sue me for full refund for the money he pays for the material and the hrs I work for him cause I took time off from work to help him. Can I win this case? What can I do?

I have a question if the city allowed the association to do work on my rook for than 6 years. Is it illegal?
Also, the association hired a company to work on my unit without permit and it is out of code. i repeatedly told them to get a permit even with codeenforcer requirement. The failed more than once to correct repairs with permit. Is this illegal?

How do I report them?
Do I have case for loss of use?
How do I find an attorney on a contigency basis.

the city allowed the association to do work on my roof without permits
Is it illegal.

When doing a bathroom remodel, is it possible to have the client sign some kind of waiver saying that they agree to not get a building permit and agree to assume all responsibility if they get caught?

I’m in a bit of a bind and I need some help. I’ll try to be as short and concise as possible. But this is complex and might end up to be a long post anyways.

Facts:
*My mother inherited this house from my Grandmother 10 years ago.
*My Grandmother lived here for about 30 years before her passing.
*There have been multiple changes made to the house and side building built by her many years before her death (the last was in 1995/6).
*I remember her getting permits for at least some of the work but I can’t find any records of ANY permits ever being granted for ANY work after the initial build.
*One of the changes is three extensions to a standalone garage that was part of the initial build plans (one extension to the back, one to one side, and the same to the other side. Those two side extensions include the added length the first (rear) extension).
*The one side of the “side extensions” is close to a property line that is being contested by a new owner to the house next door.
*A entirely new building (another garage) was built in the back of the property a distance behind the first garage.
*She has no intention of changing anything else out, building anything new, or moving for the rest of her life (she’s 71). And when the time comes, I am to inherit this property.
*She also can not financially afford to destroy anything, pay for attorneys, or pay for all the potentially missing permits and possible fines.
*Non-HOA in Phoenix, AZ. Built in 1969.

My concerns/issues:
*Property Line: That contested property line has already been partially surveyed by the new owner. Though I’m not sure as to the validity of that survey since I caught his surveyor in a bold faced lie (he stated that we refused him access to the back of our property so he couldn’t complete his job… though he never asked us or even came to our door to ask. On top of that, pieces of rebar, that never existed a week before the surveyor’s visit, were staked out and, though they are off a bit from the surveyor’s stake, the neighbor is using those as references to run a string to show where “his” property line is. Unfortunately, IF that string were to be believed, then a corner of that side extension’s overhang to the garage would be hanging over the property line by about a foot or so… which I don’t agree with in the least. He is well known as being a manipulator already (hell, he even brags about how he throws money at people to get them to do things for him… legal or not) so I don’t trust that surveyor’s stake. Not to mention that I remember my Grandmother getting a survey done for that extension and it was approx 15-17 ft from the property line (which would mean that his driveway belongs to this property. And I think he knows that and is manipulating the situation so he doesn’t lose it. He’s admitted to feeling like he’s been swindled enough because he keeps running into problem after problem in that house, so if he can swindle her out of that land, then its a win for him).

*Permits: Do cities (Phoenix in this case) ever destroy or remove old permits from record? The last thing done to this property, that required a permit, was back in 1995/6 and I can’t seem to find any (though I remember her getting some for some of the work). And even if there were no permits given, does my mother have to get them for work she didn’t have done? Is there a chance that the city will fine her for my Grandmother’s work? And will they require the work to be demolished?

*Attorneys or advocate: IF it comes to it, does anyone know of an attorney that gives at least a free consultation? Money is a big issue and she can’t spend much without it severely impacting her to the point of losing the house. Are there any building/code advocacy groups out there that could at least give us some directions in how to handle this matter?

*Who would I contact to try and get records on this house (ALL of them – Copies of the original plat maps, blueprints, permits, surveys, etc etc) at least semi-anonymously? I don’t want to alert inspectors before we have all the information and knowledge we need to defend ourselves. It seems like a fairly complicated process with a lot of different departments that aren’t clearly defined (besides the permitting dept in Phoenix). I even tried calling a couple days ago, and no one knows who to transfer me to.

Thanks in advance for any help you guys might be able to give. If there is anything you think I should know that I haven’t already covered, please do tell. I’m a complete noob in this area and I’ve never had to deal with stuff like this before. And sorry again for the long, long, long post. It is a much bigger story than this though. -sigh

There are quite a lot of question about adding or fixing without permit here, but I have one that’s totally wild. What would the city do to house that had been built for more than 20 yrs without permit. The structure is safe one stable flat land (though on the hill) in residential lot. The owner of the lot built the structure up to date on building code, but he/she never register or obtain permit to build and use. There’s a neighborhood near by in the same zone and they don’t care. Any previous case of such thing?

My issue is simply this … I am replacing my central air conditioning unit. This has been with the house since I had purchased it 16 years ago. For the replacement the contractor asked me about filing a permit, which is required for this work, and I indicated yes as I want no headaches later on. My Village (Garden City, NY) is telling me that there was never a permit filed for the existing central, and that they need to charge a fee for legalizing and replacing – which is 3 times the standard fee.

The AC is and has always been on the tax rolls (at least as long as I have owned the house), is on my survey from when I closed, and the house was inspected as a matter of course for the closing.

I am being told from the building department that although all of the above is correct, that does not mean an inspection was filed for it.

Does this actually make any sense? Do I have any legal recourse?

I think I just screwed up. I hired a well-respected licensed contractor with good reviews to replace two decks. I told him that I wanted to get permits. He agreed, and said it would take about a month. After two months, the contractor called me the night before they were suppose to get started and said the architect had failed to follow-through on the permits. He also told me that because we are in a ecologically protected area, it could take much longer. After waiting so long, I was very disappointed, but the contractor convinced me to let him build the decks without permits. His crew is now working on the project, and I’m reasonably sure the work is being done to code (or better). I’m really nervous though, and I regret my decision. Does it make sense to go to the city and ask for permits after the fact?

Hi Linda!

Thank you for this Blog! It’s a great help.

My issue is this. I obtained a building permit for a chain link fence through my Village hall. On the plat of survey, it says chain link. The woman who approved it wrote chainlink. We built the fence over Labor Day weekend. Didn’t call for inspection or anything yet. The next business day, we get a call from the Inspector manager saying that chain link is illegal in our town and our permit was issued mistakenly.

We have been going back and forth. This fence was erected due to the neighbor on that side verbally harassing, physically threatening, and using his vehicle to drive onto our property. A police report was filed as well as a letter from my lawyer stating that he has to stay within his property line/ harassment issues.

We’ve also seen other chainlink fences in the same area of the property in our town. Some of those are newer. We haven’t been shown that we are in violation of any ordinance. The village did refer to a handout that says approved materials are wood, wrought iron, aluminum faux wrought iron or faux wood.

After many emails from the inspector, I called the Woman that approved the permit. She said since our fence is in the front yard and it’s chainlink, it’s illegal.

What are our options here? Is this something we can pursue because we have the correct permit in hand?

I am in Glenview, IL

I was working with a guy who I thought I could trust. We decided on $10 an hour for labor and if we worked a full day, $100 for 8 hrs. He has owed me over $600 for over a year now, we built a deck on a house in NJ. In NJ when you dig holes for footings, they have to be 36 inches deep to my knowledge. Needless to say, he did not dig the holes even close to 36 inches. Since he won’t pay me, I want him to pay for the labor 1 way or another. If I call the inspectors, and let them know that the holes aren’t deep enough, will the deck have to be torn down and built again? This guy has gotten on my last nerve and I REALLY REALLY want to stick it to him good.

So I was working with a guy who refuses to pay me for labor that I did. He owes me upwards near $650. It has been over a year now and he will not even answer my calls or my texts. We built a deck last summer (2017) and it has been over a year since I’ve seen him now. In NJ when you dig holes for footings, they have to be 36 inches or more. He did not even come close to 36 inches, in fact I would be surprised if he hit 24 inches because I measured and he told me to mind my own business. I really want to stick it to him now. If I inform the inspectors, will he have to tare the deck down and rebuild it? If he won’t pay me, I want him to pay 1 way or another.
Thanks

hello i bought a home that had been vandalized so i made every attempt to get proper permits with no luck the chief city inspector utterly refused to give me permits stating as the owner who is and plans on living there so after a llot of wasted time get outragous bids i decided either i sleep on streets or fix my home so i began the jurney i installed all new plumbing pvc for drains and pex for supplys (no Leaks) then i began electrical following code gfis in bathroom and kitchen ive installed all low watt leds for light fixtures so now im at a point of sheetrock i understand i can get some sort of fine but my question is if the inspector refused me the right to get permits and put in a spot where either i do the work or put my family on the street 2 kids and spouse also i do own home outrite no bank loan what could or will happen

Came across this post and I’m looking for advice… my husband recently built a deck for his brother with a handicap ramp. His brother obtained a permit to build it, and it came with with detailed instructions from the county. My husband followed all the details and it still failed the inspection because it was missing certain building details that were not on the instruction paperwork (ex: double boarding the frame). Is it legal to fail him if those specific Instructions/details were not specified on the paperwork??

I built a deck. There are 6 steps leading up to the deck from the ground. Apparently my hand rail for the steps is a couple of inches lower than code. What can happen to me if I don’t change my rail height?

@Rebecca
Rebecca, what ever happened to your home?

I have a neighbor/realtor who thinks zoning ordnances do not apply to him. I have had to retain an attorney and am going to court to have a illegally place fence removed and hopefully a Judges order to abide by township ordinances. The building inspector seems unable to help.

I am a Home owner who has done it legal.What is disturbing to me is no one buys permits are very few. I see no permit I code it.Why? Because I have invested in my homes and want to protect the value. Ive seen people run septic lines to god knows where. 20 people in a 1 room 1 bathroom house. Its epidemic. I believe Polk code has done a great job cleaning up the neighborhood.

We had someone walk off the job, leaving us with thousands of dollars of issues that we had to take care of before getting our CO. Since we paid for labor and the hours for each job wasn’t spelled out, his attorney had a good case against us in Small Claims Court. Since then we have kept up with the doings of that individual. He is in the process of flipping a house and when he applied for a building permit he used the deceased previous owners name. We reported him and the name was changed. We then noticed that the total job went from $29,000 to $35,000. The building department failed to document the change in permit for the additional $6,000. His building permit is now on hold. What is the penalty for falsifying a building permit?

NY 2 decks built w/o permit by other family member in the past. Received violations, Hired architect he drew up plans, had top deck shortened to 10′ after taking out permit. He gave the instructions not to me but to the deck co he told me I had to hire. Plans show ground deck for lower one and I didn’t know how to read his plans originally. My lower deck is 24″ off the ground. The violations came off when looking at DOB sight and the Architect wouldn’t answer my calls or letters. So I thought I have finished with violations. 6 years later DOB showed up to inspect. I received new violations on same deck and other things. Re: decks I now found the architect should of had the deck co cut the top deck back to 8′ not 10 feet, but nothing said regarding this on the new violation. The same architect did the plans again and again only addressing the lower deck. He also had a meeting with the SEP unit due to DOB wanting to revoke all his previous plans, he never told them the truth when they wanted to revoke all his previous plans. He again said I have a ground level deck and filed the new plans, and it is 18″ and 24″ off the ground still. His plans were never correct in other areas of the deck also. The inspector that was here told me I do not need railings unless the deck is 30″ off the ground. The architect said add railing where it is more than 18″ off the ground but not in area that the deck is 24″ off the deck where he draw-ed the plans incorrectly and I have a deck there. I think I now have the code for not having to add a railing unless it is 30″ off the ground as the inspector told me. When I asked the architect questions in a email he doesn’t respond. even though I paid him 5-6 years ago to draw up plans and get rid of the violations. and again paid him now to draw up plans. his plans show a ground level deck with railings in some places and not others and his new plans removed the steps on a 24″ deck due to plans show a ground level deck. He also didn’t say to shorten the upper deck to 8′. Just left me hanging again. wrote me a few emails with questions and no response. Hired another Architect and so far only paid him $3500. part of the bill and he said to get permit and remove 2′ from upper deck which would not mean drilling into deck below even though violations doesn’t state anything regarding upper deck. Regarding lower deck he has not answered my questions regarding this also. I just do not know what to do. I really would like to get fully rid of the violations but not sure what to do. It has cost me a fortune now and still at the same place and removed the mid deck and the above ground pool also. Do I need to remove the total back yard would it be cheaper? Do I need a lawyer re the first architect due to leaving me hang. I just do not know if I leave the top deck due to not getting a violation? Do not know to add some railing in areas or not to? Even if I add some railing his plans is not what I have and he said not to add railings where his plans show I do not have a deck and do and that area is 24″ off the ground and he didn’t say to remove the deck there. Doesn’t make sense how this would pass inspection. Where his plans show to add steps is not due able based on incorrect plans.

If a garden retaining wall is built without a permit, and this wall gets destroyed in unrelated construction contracted by the HOA, is either the construction company or HOA liable for repairs/reimbursement?

what are the negative factors about building a sun room without a permit?

I was wondering what responsibility falls on municipalities regrading unpermitted building? We bought a home from an LLC that flipped the home. He did major renovations over the course of 6+ months, on a main road, and the County never caught him. There was permitted work taking place in the same block, so they county was certainly in the area at times.

Now all of the unpermitted work has been discovered, and as the current owners we are being held responsible by the county, even though we demonstrate with before/after pictures of his listing the condition of the house which shows how much work he performed. We asked to County to file a complaint with the DBPR for unlicensed building against the LLC, but they claim they have no authority to do that.

@Sydney
Hey. Read your post your situation sounds like my property in Fontana bldg built in 1975 County can not find any permit for it. So, what happen to your property by the way? Let me know. jonathanbo51@gmail.com

I purchased a lot in a gated community in Texas over 9 years ago. The community has an HOA. The city and HOA have restrictions and regulations pertaining to building any structures on the properties. I am now planning to build my retirement home on my lot and found out the neighbor moved the fence over by almost 1 ft and built a pool cabana butting up to the fence. the lots are narrow and I had plans drawn for a home with 5 ft seperation from lot line on each side. The building restrictions state that there must be at least 10 ft clearance between any structures.

My home would only be 5 feet from the neighbors un permitted cabana and not meet this restriction. What is my recourse?

If you build without a permit and get caught after the fact and the municipality mandates tear down, aren’t there “equity waste” laws that you can reference to prevent the tear down assuming the building is to code?

Hi. If a lean-to was added over 40 years ago in the state of Florida can code enforcement make you remove it now? Was there even a permit required then? Nothing is enclosed. It was built for my uncle to park his small boat under. The ground is dirt with no concrete.

Thank you,

Dawn Smith

Building without a permit will be considered an illegal construction

I bought a home with detached garage 3 years ago, 2 years ago I had a permit pulled to replace the roof on both structures, this year I contracted a company to install solar and when they went to pull permit Riverside county, CA refused to issue the permit stating that there was no permit for the garage to be built. since before 2009 it has been listed and sold with 2 car garage 3 times.
Is there a grandfather clause or anything to help me get this permit issue resolved?
James

I live in central Austin texas. I am dealing with the code enforcement for a permit that didn’t close. This permit is from1996 and my ex- husband was the one that dealt with this. I am getting hassled by the city saying that i need for them to come into my home and inspect the old permit and then they can mark it close. Isn’t there a way where this permit is grandfather in and I don’t have to let someone into my home.

We had a pole barn built and had all permits paid for and approved. The building permits/plans/prints were all submitted to township and APPROVED. It cost over $50,000. The township now says it’s is 5 feet over their height requirements. We are new to this area – do not know their height requirements and were never informed of them. The township says we now must apply for a variance. I feel as though this should have been flagged the many times the building inspector was out there on site, when the plans/prints were submitted, when the zoning office had the plans, etc. just hired a lawyer to the tune of up to $10,000. Any advice as we are just absolutely sick over this and truly do not have means for this extra expense.

With ALL the discussion and this enormous list of responses, I think it is clear that counties are involved too much when it comes to permit for homeowners. I just found out that I cannot pull a permit on a home that I own to complete a re-roof project since I have tenants in this house. ONLY a contractor can pull the permit. I pay the taxes, I pay the mortgage, bought into the FL Homestead Act as an Active Duty Service member. But I am not allow to pull the permit to complete the work on the home. Sounds like a collaboration with contractors.

What happens when someone knowingly pulls a permit for a workshop and turns around and lives in it? Building a house wasn’t allowed re legal but non conforming (too many home in too small an area).

My brother-in-law went to the town building department to obtain a permit for a Quonset hut on a concrete pad. The person he spoke with said none was required, this is a very small rural New Hampshire town, so he went ahead.

Now it has been two years and some new players are in office, one of whom says a permit was definitely required. The person my BIL spoke with confirmed she told him it was not. Nonetheless, this person’s boss says the structure must be removed because it had no permit.

I know my BIL can request a hearing and a variance and such.

But my specific question is – does the fact that he was told by an official of the town that no permit was required give him any rights for the structure to be, so to speak, grandfathered in or for the town to compensate him for his costs?

Thank you.

J

I Recently purchased a home that had a half bath added on the main floor and a full basement remodel including Full bath – all done without permits 18 years ago… The city now decided since The hosue changed hands that permits must be pulled and inspections passed … the rub is that the previous owner ran an accredited adult care facility out of the home for haf a dozen years AFTER the renovations were complete, and the home was inspected every year and was found to have complied wih “all zoning and building codes” at each of the 6 annual inspections. The city previously relied on these inspections in order to issue the previous owner the business/operating license. Can the city now say they don’t rely on those inspections anymore and everything needs redundant inspections? That doesn’t seem legal, and is certainly not reasonable or fair. If the violations stay with the house regardless of ownership, would not the previously passed inspections ALSO stay with the house? Happy to pull and pay for all missing permits, but I feel any further inspections of the work are not legally warranted. I have a review of my case scheduled with the city next week. Thoughts?