Your permitting musts

[Mondo]

Although it's best to pull all necessary permits before beginning work, we all know a weekend warrior or a fly-by-night contractor who chose to save money by cutting them out. If you were advising those people, which projects would you say are absolutely foolish to do without a permit? I would never consider taking on electrical or gas work without having the permits in place. To me, this type of work could create a health and safety issue with extreme consequences should something go wrong.

 

[chasnr]

Although it's best to pull all necessary permits before beginning work, we all know a weekend warrior or a fly-by-night contractor who chose to save money by cutting them out. If you were advising those people, which projects would you say are absolutely foolish to do without a permit? I would never consider taking on electrical or gas work without having the permits in place. To me, this type of work could create a health and safety issue with extreme consequences should something go wrong.

Even though there may be some scopes of work that even a permit expediter like myself seems unnecessary, I always like to advise that if you get caught doing non-permitting work, you could be subject to fines and stop work orders. Fines vary obviously by jurisdiction, but, in Washington, DC, they start at $4500. Ouch. And, they are in full attack mode looking for non-permitting work.

 

[Davenport]

I believe permit avoidance is more often driven by a lack of understanding, a desire to avoid the hassle, or a time crunch, rather than just trying to save a few bucks. Therefore, I'd be sure to emphasize that it's necessary to get a permit for an extension. They're highly noticeable, so the city is likely to catch on. There's evidence to show the addition wasn't there when you bought the home, so fault lies with you. If anything is structurally wrong with the addition, it could affect the rest of your home. If you think permitting applications are tedious, just wait until you're taking down the addition piece by piece to get it up to code.

 

[Noctis]

Building projects in California require permits for energy and heat efficiency. It's good to know the city considers such specific environmental aspects early, so contractors should be aware of the impact of their projects too.

Even though there may be some scopes of work that even a permit expediter like myself seems unnecessary, I always like to advise that if you get caught doing non-permitting work, you could be subject to fines and stop work orders. Fines vary obviously by jurisdiction, but, in Washington, DC, they start at $4500. Ouch. And, they are in full attack mode looking for non-permitting work.

It's sad that people still think about working without proper permits, even though the offices do their best to streamline and approve applications quickly. Is there a lot of such cases in your jurisdiction?

 

[BobaChewie]

100% agree with your take on electrical or mechanical work without a permit due to safety hazards. I would include building projects such as new ADU's as well because the permitting process for those could take months to several years and once you are caught doing work without a permit, those fees rack up overtime.