Do I Need Building Permits? - Home Remodeling
Most contractors don't like to hear the words building
permits or building department. I seem to get the jitters and break out
in hives, every time someone wants me to go down and deal with my local
building department. I'm kidding of course, but it's not too far from
the truth.
Do you need building permits? It all depends on which city or county
that you live in. If you're doing minor or major home remodeling,
there's a good chance that you will need to get a permit. A long time
ago, you didn't need permits for something like changing out a water
heater, today you do.
It's easy to find out, whether you need building permits or not. You
need to contact your local city or county offices. This can be done by
looking in your phone book or even on the Internet. The first thing that
you are going to be looking for is a city or county building department
or planning department.
If you can't find the building department, you might be able to find the
planning department and these people can usually help you or at least
direct you to the building department. Sometimes the planning department
is connected directly to the building department.
Here's something else you need to consider, if you live in a city and
have a building department, specifically for your city, you could
actually be under county jurisdictions. So in other words, if you call
your city building department, they can usually direct you to the county
building department, if you live within their specific jurisdictions.
Once you reach the building department, they can help you answer any of
your questions, and tell you, whether you need a building permit or not,
for your particular remodeling or home repair project.