Why you need a building permit
Why? Because the homeowner, not the contractor, is legally responsible for making sure a permit is in place. (Although the contractor's job typically includes obtaining it.)
You need a permit for all sorts of renos, including electrical; plumbing; heating and air-conditioning; and structural changes. Not sure if your job needs one? It costs nothing to call and ask.
I meet a lot of people — homeowners and contractors — who think they're smart guys. They've seen the do-it-yourself television shows, they've even taken a seminar at their local building-supply store, so when they're set to take down a wall or renovate their basement, they think they don't need a permit, or a building inspector to check what they're doing.
They may not even know what a “structural change” is, or what a load-bearing wall looks like. Or what happens when you take down a load-bearing wall without properly resupporting the load? I do. I've seen it, and I've fixed it, and it isn't pretty.
What can happen if you “just” take down that little bit of a wall to “open up” a room? Your floors can start to sag and slope. Your roof can fall in.
Renovation disasters happen when inexperienced people think they know what they are doing, and are unwilling to get advice from someone who really does know — like a building inspector. It's the fly-by-night contractor or the weekend renovation warrior who can cause the most damage. These are often the people who would never consider getting a building permit, and who never want their work to be inspected. But the formula for disaster is the combination of a contractor who avoids building-code inspections, and a homeowner who doesn't want or care to know what is really being done.
A building permit gives you formal permission to build your project. It says your plans comply with the building code, local zoning bylaws and any other laws or regulations that might apply. Why do you need one? To make sure things are done properly, built soundly. It's one of the few assurances you have that your home is safe.
A lot of people grumble that a building permit is just “taxation” by a municipal government. (That sounds like a line a shady contractor came up with.) You may save a few pennies now on permits, but it could cost you thousands in fines and repairs later.
If your contractor is doing it by the book, and has the right permits, at least you know that the work will be checked and approved by government building inspectors. From the perspective of a conscientious contractor, permit inspections are, quite frankly, a pain in the butt sometimes. They slow down a job, and sometimes force a work stoppage until an inspector can get out to the site.
Building codes are very complicated and are open to a degree of interpretation. Because of that, even some of my own work has needed changes after an inspection. We are all human and subject to making a judgment in error or missing a detail. For me, knowing that my work will be double-checked by someone with an approved level of skill and knowledge gives me peace of mind. In this line of work, it would be arrogant to say that your work doesn't need a second qualified opinion. It always does.
Taking this route gives you an opportunity to educate yourself about a renovation. At each stage, the work needs to be inspected and approved, and when that is done, you should be there with your contractor so you know what's right and what needs to be fixed. Never let the contractor alone take care of this.
A building permit is insurance. It's a safety net. And that's worth every penny of a permit.
How much do they cost? That amount is based on the square footage of a renovation, but you also need to factor in the expense of the plans and your contractor's time in getting the permit. This could range from a few hundred dollars to a few thousand, depending on the scale of the project.
If you don't get a proper permit and it's discovered — either by a random check or because a concerned neighbour turns you in — the city can stop work on your project until a permit is obtained. You could be prosecuted or fined. You might even be ordered to remove the work already done.
I'm working on a huge job right now, where the homeowner hired a contractor to build a bedroom in the attic — without a permit. Maybe the contractor told them they didn't need one, maybe they thought they'd save a few dollars. They are now paying for that decision: It cost them more than $20,000 for the contractor to do the job wrong, and now it's costing a fortune more to fix the mess.
The contractor cut out and removed roof trusses, provided inadequate support everywhere, didn't allow for enough head clearance on the stairs, and even built that bedroom without windows. (Can you imagine if there was a fire? Every bedroom must have a fire exit — that's the law.) There also are dangerous structural and electrical problems in the house.
It's distressing to see a family's safety so badly compromised. And the contractor is still out there building custom nightmares for other unsuspecting homeowners who don't insist on getting a permit and the benefit of a municipal inspector.
Mike Holmes is host of Holmes on Homes on HGTV. E-mail Mike at mikeholmes@holmesonhomes.com or go to www.holmesonhomes.com
The Schacter Team - Langley Real Estate