If you've done work on your home without obtaining the necessary permits, you may be wondering how to make it legal. Fortunately, it's possible to do so in many cases. The first step is to contact your local building department and find out if you can get the permits. An inspector may be sent to your home to determine if the work was done correctly and meets the rules.
If it does, you may be able to archive it (get a legal exemption that allows the work to remain in place).If not, you may have to demolish or redo the work. To find out if unauthorized work can be done in your home, go to the city's permit offices and check your records. See if your home matches the permit plans. If not, it's likely something has been done without approval. You may need to apply for a permit.
If the work not allowed is extensive, hire an architect or other professional to design the plans of the current work and propose any changes that need to be made to adapt it to the rules. The first consequence of this confession is that it could cause problems with an interested homebuyer. The good news is that this is a fixable situation. However, the solution may require you to confess to your building department. The department will then require you to pay the permit fee you should have paid at the beginning, which is generally based on the cost of the remodel. If you're looking for ways to legalize unpermitted work on your home, there are a few steps you can take.
First, contact your local building department and find out if you can get permits for any of the work that was done without them. An inspector may be sent to your home to determine if the work was done correctly and meets all regulations. If the work not allowed is extensive, hire an architect or other professional to design the plans of the current work and propose any changes that need to be made to adapt it to the rules. The good news is that this is a fixable situation. The department will then require you to pay the permit fee you should have paid at the beginning, which is generally based on the cost of the remodel. In conclusion, legalizing unpermitted work on your home can be done in many cases.
The first step is contacting your local building department and finding out if permits are available for any of the work that was done without them. An inspector may be sent out to determine if it meets all regulations and can be archived or if it needs to be demolished or redone. If extensive changes are needed, hire an architect or other professional who can design plans that meet all regulations.
