Updated almost 14 years ago on . Most recent reply
Many open permits on house
Has anyone bought one of these houses? One of the houses I'm looking at has at least five open or expired permits from the '90s for jobs like replacing a chain link fence, reroof, pouring a concrete pad in the backyard, etc.
Did you have any trouble getting the permits straightened out with the county? Did it cause issues when you eventually sold the property? If you had a minor roof (etc) repair that needed to be done while the tenant was living there, and you tried to pull permit, did the county give you trouble because there was an old open roof permit?
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Sticky mess. You will want to call and speak to the county or city, etc on each one. They will tell you if there are fines for them being open and give you some idea of what the cost to resolve them will be as far as the county paperwork goes.
Typically, you will have to get the permits re-opened and get the work inspected to close the permit properly. Any work not done correctly will be your responsibility.
I have seen some instances where these fines and fee start to exceed the value of the home. Some counties are not so nice when it comes to compromise on reducing the fees, which is pretty silly. They may restrict new permits from being issued until the old ones are resolved.
Not all that uncommon in today's market. Call on them and usually you will get pointed in the right direction. Ensure you get information on current fees/fines and the path to cure the issue. You can also ask how to dispute the fines. The office will usually tell you all of that information.