My first flip: how much do permits cost for rehab work?

Question

This is my first flip and I am putting together my list of costs for rehabbing before submitting my offer. How much do I set aside for permit costs? How do I find out how much permits cost?

Thanks for the help.

Brad

David Robertson · Answer

Hey Brad,

You may not even need to pull permits if you are doing a light or cosmetic rehab.

First, check on your local building departments website to see what work requires a permit.

Once you determine if you need a permit or not, the Building Department should have a fee schedule that can be used to calculate your permit cost.

Here's a BP blog article I wrote on Why, When & How to Get Permits

Lynsey Dreis · Answer

@Brad Swearingen every municipality uses different formulas to calculate their building costs.  I have worked with some areas that require a percentage of total building cost and also I have worked with areas that do it times the number of inspections required.

Brad Swearingen · Answer

Thank you for all the great responses.  I really appreciate everyone's feedback on cost of permits.  I will look into it and see what I need.  @David Robertson, thanks for the blog link. I am sure it will be helpful.

Brian Pulaski · Answer

Permitting is very area specific. Some areas nearly none are needed, some require it for simple items.

Shawn Ward · Answer

@Brad Swearingen from my experience, the permit pricing is not very significant to the overall rehab budget, but what is troublesome is the time it takes for the inspector to do their job and the picky nature of certain individuals.

Structural & functional items usually need permitting (framing, roof, electrical, plumbing, etc), whereas flooring and landscaping do not.

All the best!

sjw

Michael Noto · Answer

@Brad Swearingen Some towns have this info right on their website and some others you will have to call the town offices directly to get this info.

Dan Weber · Answer

Call your local Building Department and ask. It varies by the town. The town I work is charges 2% for every $1000 of job cost. It may also be on the town's website.

Matthew Paul · Answer

That all depends on where you live . Could be as low as $10 to the sky is the limit .

My first flip: how much do permits cost for rehab work?

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