First Steps to Rehabbing a Rowhouse (Baltimore: new home, transfer, neighborhood)

[Suzannah]

So I bought a rowhouse, and it needs to be completely redone. The three contractors I had come out either overbid, underbid, or have difficulty getting a bid to me. I have built a house before (a tiny house), and I am reluctantly considering becoming my own general contractor for this job.

But I have ZERO idea where to even begin.

Any advice on steps to take? Where to start? It's not a gut but it's a lot of demo, so I would assume that is the place to start, but what about dumpsters and permits for that, etc?

Any advice would be great. TIA.

[dogpark]

Hi Susannah,

Congrats on your home purchase!

How far are you going on the rehab? Moving some walls, new kitchen and bath?

There is a funny wrinkle in building code that affects Baltimore. UBC is minimum 16' for a dwelling. There are thousands of lots in Baltimore City that are under 16' wide (you can check the state's data on your lot by searching by address here: SDAT: Real Property Search) will require a variance to get a permit; you can apply for a BMZA hearing for the variance.

Building permit information here: Welcome to Baltimore Housing

Permits for dumpsters and scaffolding: http://archive.baltimorecity.gov/Por...Way_130807.pdf

When I did my rowhome, I was able to act as general contractor because it was my only property, thus my primary residence. I did have to get licensed contractors for the gas fitting, mechanical (HVAC), plumbing and electrical as well as engineer stamps for the plans and deck plans. Luckily I had a lot of friends in the trades. There are separate inspections for each of the trades.

Work hours are 7AM-7PM, so watch the demo noise, compressor for nail gun etc outside of those times, makes the neighbors mad (complaints bring inspectors).

I don't recall what the limit is as far as what needs to be permitted and what does not. I had heard that replacement in kind is a repair adn thus usually no permit, but I did have a neighbor replace his windows and front door w/o a permit and get cited and fined for that (was a neighbor complaint that triggered it, not sure why, must have been personal)

Some folks do not pull permits if everything is interior and not in view of neighbors. Since mine was a full gut rehab, I pulled permits as I wanted it to all be legal. But I have known folks that have redone a kitchen or bathroom with no permits.

A little known fact - when you apply for the building permit, if the work cost is over $50K, it triggers a tax reassessment upon completion (obtaining U&O Use and Occupancy permit); so you work will cost under $50K, right?

Building permits are good for 6 months, but you can get extensions.

Its been 10 years since I did my rehab, so unfortunately I cannot recommend any contractors. A lot has changed since the crash of '07/'08. It does seem that construction is picking up though.

Some folks want to dig out rowhome basements - you have to have stamped drawings and approval for this as it can be very dangerous. There have been collapsed houses. I opted not to dig out mine as I felt the cost and risk was not worth the reward.

Lastly, when I started my rehab, I went and introduced myself to my neighbors, wanted to get off on a good foot in case there were any inconveniences to them later on. This paid off because there was a problem and my neighbor was cordial about it and I took care of it right away.

Also, while exposed interior brick is all the rage, I did not want hear (or smell) my neighbors, so I framed and even insulated. I insulated my house well to conserve energy; it worked.

Good luck!

[dogpark]

If you demo yourself, the construction debris has to go to the landfill down south of the harbor at Quarantine Rd; the local transfer stations will not accept it (unless it is concealed in trash bags).

[Suzannah]

I will respond to both of these in a couple hours. Thank you for the info!!!

[rudy_d]

Originally Posted by dogpark

Hi Susannah,

There is a funny wrinkle in building code that affects Baltimore. UBC is minimum 16' for a dwelling. There are thousands of lots in Baltimore City that are under 16' wide (you can check the state's data on your lot by searching by address here: SDAT: Real Property Search) will require a variance to get a permit; you can apply for a BMZA hearing for the variance.

That's hilarious that you need to apply for a variance. Many rowhouses in Baltimore are less than 15` wide.

I had a contractor laugh at me when I asked if I needed a permit for work I hired him to do. He said something along the lines of "not if you want to get it done this year."

The city's illustrious government needs to really rethink all the headaches it creates for people renovating houses if it really wants to increase population and eliminate blight.

I guess the only upside is that the city's inspectors are pretty nonexistent unless a neighbor complains about noise, debris, etc.

[davecj]

Which neighborhood? I did one that was 20' inside a historic boundary. I will never make that mistake again.

[Infinite_heights77]

Congratulations on your new home!

Originally Posted by Suzannah

So I bought a rowhouse, and it needs to be completely redone. The three contractors I had come out either overbid, underbid, or have difficulty getting a bid to me. I have built a house before (a tiny house), and I am reluctantly considering becoming my own general contractor for this job.

But I have ZERO idea where to even begin.

Any advice on steps to take? Where to start? It's not a gut but it's a lot of demo, so I would assume that is the place to start, but what about dumpsters and permits for that, etc?

Any advice would be great. TIA.

[dogpark]

Originally Posted by rudy_d

That's hilarious that you need to apply for a variance. Many rowhouses in Baltimore are less than 15` wide.

I had a contractor laugh at me when I asked if I needed a permit for work I hired him to do. He said something along the lines of "not if you want to get it done this year."

The city's illustrious government needs to really rethink all the headaches it creates for people renovating houses if it really wants to increase population and eliminate blight.

I guess the only upside is that the city's inspectors are pretty nonexistent unless a neighbor complains about noise, debris, etc.

I hear ya and agree. The city used that a a way to slow down the rampant crappy rehabs going on before the '07 bust. They are supposedto be coming out with theg first comprehensive zoning code rewrite since 1971, this was started back when Otis Rolley was around (remember him? I like Otis, wish he was mayor) and there was supposed to be language about a streamlined process for permits for under 16' wide properties. I went to a couple meetings about that, ones that weren't very publicized, seems like only community leaders were there, not the general public.

[Suzannah]

Out of town for the weekend, so here are some responses.

First of all, thank you, dogpark, for the response. The house is in Hampden and definitely less than 16' wide. Funny, none of the contractors who have been through have mentioned the variance.

We are doing a pretty extensive rehab. It has been vacant for four years. Moving the staircase and relocating a couple bathrooms, exposing brick, new electric, plumbing, etc. Deck is falling off the back of the house, so new deck. Drainage in the basement. Lots of stuff. I don't think we will be able to avoid a reassessment, because we will need an occupancy permit.

Have met the neighbors and apologized in advance. Hopefully that will head off any issues. I am also going to give them gift baskets for the holidays with my phone number so they can call if there are issues.

We will see what happens. Today I am not feeling particularly optimistic that we will be able to complete the rehab and still keep the lights on and feed ourselves. Probably just the rain.

[Suzannah]

And today's quick fun fact: the address of our house is not on file with the city. So there's a puzzler.