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I bought my house in Baldwin at the peak of the market, at the time there was an open permit to renovate the attic and put in a bath, the seller knocked of a $1000 in lieu of closing it, I live in the attic but when I spoke to an expeditor he said the permit could not be closed because of the height of the unit, the fire engines only go to two storeys and this is now three storeys (I called the fire dept and they said they had 3-storey level ladders, so this was not true), the attic has its own toilet and bathroom and the permit was taken out more than 15 years ago so it has probably expired but I need to know, would it be opening a can of worms if I tried to close it, could the town make me demolish the attic if it does not have a certificate of occupancy. If I closed it would that increase my taxes, has anyone else had this problem, how was it resolved? pls help, I am scared that if I go down to the town just asking them for info could cause trouble.Roughly how much would it cost to close it ? Can anyone recommend an expeditor for Long Island, I have limited funds so I am tempted to leave it alone, but then I think what if I need to sell ?
I bought my house in Baldwin at the peak of the market, at the time there was an open permit to renovate the attic and put in a bath, the seller knocked of a $1000 in lieu of closing it, I live in the attic but when I spoke to an expeditor he said the permit could not be closed because of the height of the unit, the fire engines only go to two storeys and this is now three storeys (I called the fire dept and they said they had 3-storey level ladders, so this was not true), the attic has its own toilet and bathroom and the permit was taken out more than 15 years ago so it has probably expired but I need to know, would it be opening a can of worms if I tried to close it, could the town make me demolish the attic if it does not have a certificate of occupancy. If I closed it would that increase my taxes, has anyone else had this problem, how was it resolved? pls help, I am scared that if I go down to the town just asking them for info could cause trouble.Roughly how much would it cost to close it ? Can anyone recommend an expeditor for Long Island, I have limited funds so I am tempted to leave it alone, but then I think what if I need to sell ?
99.9% of the time... YES because its extra living space.
There is a reason the permit was open when you purchased it, anyway no point in crying over spilled milk.
You really have to also consider if there is a real danger involved here. I have seen many codes that to me sounds ridiculous, and they are not anywhere close to being life threatening at all, more of a cosmetic thing. But in this case you really need to find out. You are on the right track though.... get a good expeditor (more cha-ching) and the worst case scenario is that you will just end up with a attic, just come downstairs to relieve yourself !!
Don't open that can of worms! The town isn't watching, so don't worry about it.
If you want to legally do work start over with a freash permit. Be advised the height will be an issue and yes, you may be ordered to modify the structure to meet code and variances. If it's too tall, you will have to make it shorter.
What I find amazing is for every person who gets stalled trying to buy (or sell) a house because of some silly permit issue, or CO issue, someone like you is able to buy a house with an obvious code problem without the bank or town even batting an eye . Good for you.
Agree with Zulu400. To add to that when you go to sell the house, not only will you have to get this straightened out, but it could cost you the sale of your house, because it takes a long time to get these things done and that gives the buyer reason to get out of the deal. I say this from experience, because we were due to purchase a house in Brookhaven last summer. After we went to contract all these open c/o's on the house popped up. For unrelated personal reasons, we were desperate to get out of the contract and because the closing had been delayed for so long while the seller tried to get the inspector there, then fix what he failed, and then get him back, etc. we were able to get out of the contract on that loophole alone. Some buyers won't even go near a house with additions, decks, etc. until they know for sure that all the c/o's are clear, because it really holds things up before you can finally close. Towns are not letting these things slip by anymore like they used to do, because all the towns are desperate to make as much money as they can. The money you'll pay for the permit and such is all revenue for them. Better to do it now than for it to really mess you up whenever you go to sell the home is my advice.
Thank you guys, the comments about probable issues if I try to sell did the trick, I'll call the town next week and get things started, if anyone knows a good expeditor pls post info.
Thank you guys, the comments about probable issues if I try to sell did the trick, I'll call the town next week and get things started, if anyone knows a good expeditor pls post info.
You should work with an expediter familiar with your Town's code (I have no one to refer for your area, sorry ).
Most town building codes do not permit living space on the third floor unless there is a sprinkler system or an external fire escape.
It actually does have sprinklers, and I bought one of those ladder things that you can attach to the window. I guess what I really need is a former building inspector for the town to actually look at it,before I go to them officially, problem is LI doesn't seem to have any that are working as expediters, doesn't seem to have many expediters period. The only one I talked to was the one who said the permit could not be closed, but how can the town open a permit if they know that they won't close it. If any one knows a good one or if anyone has experience getting a variance your information would be really appreciated.
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