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Old 06-30-2015, 07:33 AM
 
703 posts, read 1,167,001 times
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" the real estate agent told me that they did not have a CO, but they had everything "done to code, so getting a CO wouldn't be a problem."

It certainly doesn't seem ethical to say that and I have to wonder if its legal. It seems like an affirmative material misrepresentation, albeit it's not in writing. Anyone with more knowledge care to offer an opinion?

Anyway, the short answer should be, well if its not a problem why not get the CO before you sell it?
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Old 06-30-2015, 07:36 AM
 
14,394 posts, read 11,084,599 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by daisyLI View Post
" the real estate agent told me that they did not have a CO, but they had everything "done to code, so getting a CO wouldn't be a problem."

It certainly doesn't seem ethical to say that and I have to wonder if its legal. It seems like an affirmative material misrepresentation, albeit it's not in writing. Anyone with more knowledge care to offer an opinion?

Anyway, the short answer should be, well if its not a problem why not get the CO before you sell it?
Because the house would get reassessed, and with higher taxes it would be harder to sell...or the work wasn't done to code despite the stipulation and it would have to be redone/ripped out.
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Old 06-30-2015, 08:03 AM
 
Location: Long Island
9,531 posts, read 15,791,104 times
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^ the new taxes wouldn't kick in until a year or two later. Not good for the new buyer regardless. Judging by a recent appraisal, ~1000sf finished basement is +$20k and each room is an additional $10k added onto assessed value. That's another ~$50k for the basement alone to pay taxes on (on paper) for the house in question. But honestly, a nice finished basement is worth good money.
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Old 06-30-2015, 11:18 AM
 
4,676 posts, read 9,931,456 times
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What's the difference between a finished basement in a high ranch and a recreation room in a high ranch?

In the first example, finished basement sqft is added to total of living area. In the second example, it is not.

Both have heat/ac, bath and f/p. And no open permits. Both in the same village.
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Old 02-23-2019, 12:11 PM
 
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We are in Southold and I have some questions. We carpetted our basement, put some insulation, sheet rocked, put some high hats ins. It’s mainly a playroom and we added some bunk beds for kids to read, lounge etc. It is not used a bedroom. Was a permit required? CO? We want to be in compliance and honestly didn’t think we were doing anything out of compliance...a realtor friend suggested this forum might be a helpful place to get some better understanding.
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Old 02-23-2019, 03:34 PM
 
14,394 posts, read 11,084,599 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Lfitzgerald View Post
We are in Southold and I have some questions. We carpetted our basement, put some insulation, sheet rocked, put some high hats ins. It’s mainly a playroom and we added some bunk beds for kids to read, lounge etc. It is not used a bedroom. Was a permit required? CO? We want to be in compliance and honestly didn’t think we were doing anything out of compliance...a realtor friend suggested this forum might be a helpful place to get some better understanding.
Doesn’t sound like a major renovation. If there is no bathroom added, and it’s clear it’s a playroom rather than a bedroom (bunk beds aside) it’s not a huge deal.

I wouldn’t bother getting a CO, and if you went to sell and it was an issue you could just rip it out.

The big issues are having a basement bathroom, and needing an egress window for a bedroom.
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Old 02-23-2019, 03:51 PM
 
2,759 posts, read 2,018,018 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Lfitzgerald View Post
We are in Southold and I have some questions. We carpetted our basement, put some insulation, sheet rocked, put some high hats ins. It’s mainly a playroom and we added some bunk beds for kids to read, lounge etc. It is not used a bedroom. Was a permit required? CO? We want to be in compliance and honestly didn’t think we were doing anything out of compliance...a realtor friend suggested this forum might be a helpful place to get some better understanding.
Is the basement heated? Because if it's heated AND has walls, flooring and lights, then it's considered "habitable space" and it requires an egress window to comply with building/fire code.

The type of room may not matter (bedroom or not.) My son has a partially finished basement (50% of it used as an exercise room and the other 50% is unfinished with the boiler/burner/washer/dryer/oil tank; no closet) and the Town of Islip required an egress window in that for the CO. Only the finished part has a run of heating baseboard but that's enough to make it 'habitable space' instead of 'storage space.'

If you're currently being taxed on the basis of an unfinished basement and it's now a finished/habitable basement (in whole or in part) then that will increase your taxes if/when the Town knows about it. So if you want that basement playroom to be legal, it's considered an alteration and requires a permit/CO. If you decide not to bother now, then you may need to get it done when you sell, in which case the fees etc. will be doubled. Or you can rip it all out at that point.

https://www.southoldtownny.gov/101/Fee-Schedule

Your call, basically.

Last edited by BBCjunkie; 02-23-2019 at 04:03 PM..
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Old 02-25-2019, 12:51 PM
 
Location: Former LI'er Now Rehoboth Beach, DE
13,034 posts, read 17,906,202 times
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Basically above advise is the same as mine, but, a realtor suggested this site? Hope you are not ever going to use that person. Any realtor worth their salt should know the answers to this question.
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Old 02-25-2019, 04:33 PM
 
2,759 posts, read 2,018,018 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Super Sized Kahuna View Post
The square footage most likely won't be calculated into the house stats and you won't get credit for a finished basement in your appraisal

Why wouldn't it figure in, and why wouldn't an appraisal factor in a whole or partly finished basement? It's habitable space regardless of whether or not it contains a bathroom or a kitchen. Neither are required in order to make a space habitable. Usually the yardstick is heat (in our climate anyway) and electricity (outlets.)

It would be treated the same as finished vs partially finished vs unfinished other spaces such as an attic... yes?
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Old 02-25-2019, 05:19 PM
 
2,759 posts, read 2,018,018 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Super Sized Kahuna View Post
egress

Habitable space without egress as per code is still taxable habitable space. Just not "legal"/conforming.

Try telling any real estate agent that a buyer shouldn't pay any more for a house with a finished basement (with or without egress window) than for the same house with an unfinished basement.
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