Failing to pull a permit can lead to big problems for your construction project
Building without a building permit means you face fines, forced demolition of non-compliant work, or legal action from future buyers who discover your unpermitted renovations.
Your homeowners insurance can cancel coverage when they find unpermitted work that violates building codes, leaving you unprotected if something goes wrong with your home.
Contact your local building authority after work is done to submit documentation, schedule an inspection, pay the required fine, and bring your project into compliance.
Hiring a local structural engineering professional provides expert evaluation of completed work and documentation that satisfies building inspectors when permits were never pulled.
If you’re planning a construction or renovation project, pulling permits is an important step in ensuring the job is completed legally and in compliance with local building codes. Who’s responsible for pulling permits can depend on the specifics of the project, but you’ll want to be sure you have the proper permits in place to avoid the expensive consequences of not having them.
Get all the necessary permits for your project as early as possible to avoid construction delays. Talk to your contractors about what permits are required and who needs to pull them.
Most reputable contractors include the price of permits in their bids. However, not all contractors pull permits. If your contractor didn’t get a building permit before starting construction on your home, you’re responsible for securing a permit after the fact.
The cost of pulling a permit gets significantly more expensive if you wait until after the work has started. For any permit pulled after the work is done, you may face a fine that doubles what would have been your initial cost had the contractor pulled it before construction started. Building permits last about six months on average, giving half a year for work to commence after the permit is pulled, so it’s worth it to pull one early rather than missing this vital step and trying to rectify it later.
The building and planning commission will schedule an inspection to see what work your contractor completed. The inspector will only approve modifications that they can visibly see. If the project is more complex, then a visual inspection may not be sufficient. In some cases, you may even need to undo parts of the construction if it does not meet building safety standards.
The inspector must also ensure that your home meets local building codes. The inspector may ask you to provide information about the company that did the work so they can check in and certify with the contractor what work was done. If your contractor is unresponsive, you might need to call in a reputable structural engineer near you who can evaluate the project and share any findings with the commission.
If there’s still ongoing work for your addition, you should pull those permits before the contractor completes any more work. You can have the permits checked off by the inspector for compliance as the contractor completes the project.
The first and most important step in pulling a permit after work is complete is to contact your local building authority and explain the situation. You’ll need to submit details and documentation of the work, including design schematics and any other documents supplied by the contractor.
Depending on the situation, the building authority will advise you of the next steps, which will likely involve an inspection, a fine, and potentially some alterations to the completed work to ensure it meets code requirements.
If you decide to ask forgiveness rather than permission when it comes to building permits, it can cost you. Penalties for building without a permit can range from hefty fines to needing to demolish the work if it isn’t up to code. Unpermitted work can also affect your ability to sell your home or lead to consequences once it’s sold—if you don’t have the proper documentation for completed work, the new owner can take legal action against you for misrepresenting the property.
Unpermitted work can also cause complications with your homeowners insurance. Insurance companies may cancel your coverage if they discover unpermitted work that’s not code-compliant. Work completed without a permit could also pose a safety risk, from structural instability to fire risks and more. Having work completed by a reputable general contractor near you who pulls the proper permits and follows local building codes will help you avoid these serious consequences.
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