Finish basement W/O permit (Nassau) (Hempstead, Oyster Bay: for sale, mortgage, how much)
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I live in Nassau. I would like to finish my basement but I do not want to get a permit (for obvious reasons). Now I have a few questions:
1. Will I get in trouble?
2. Approximately how much will my taxes rise?
3. Is it true it will be a hassle when selling?
P.S.: No bathroom will be constructed. I want it to look like a big room. Only two divisions will be for a laundry room and may be a second room for a gym.
Thanks all in advance for your input and support.
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Depends upon what you mean trouble. They will not cart you away in handcuffs, but they will require inspections to be sure things are up to code. The trick is, that means current code at the time of your putting you home up for sale. I bought my home almost 17 years ago when no one gave a rats #### about permits etc. I put my home up for sale and the work to get an a/c legalized last year cost me $1100.
I would seriously advise you to get the permit OR, put the 4 walls up, enjoy it until you sell and then return it to the shape it is in today.
Yes, if you think you will never do any other work, or come up against a bank appraiser when you sell the house (ie, you'll leave it for your heirs to deal with) then go for it. But as nuts said, when the time comes to pay the piper, you'll have to do it up to code for year 2020 or whatever it is. Now you're thinking "well if I bump out the house or add a dormer, that has nothing to do with the basement" - think again, building inspectors are on to this and will check every inch of your house for non-permitted work. It's a HUGE money maker for them. Also, don't discount the idea that a neighbor turns you in. It's been known to happen.
I advise doing it the right way, even if you don't plan on permits (ie, egress window, firewalls around the boiler area) or do it cheap and plan on ripping it out if needed later. I came THISCLOSE to ripping mine out when we went thru the same thing as nuts when we sold our house 2 years ago.
quote:building inspectors are on to this and will check every inch of your house for non-permitted work. It's a HUGE money maker for them.
This makes one wonder what country we are living in!!!
It really isn't a Nassau County issue but a town issue (Town of Hemsptead, No. Hempstead, Oyster Bay, etc). Right now they are SEARCHING for illegal construction. You can read mine and other 1000's of posts discussing the gestapo tactics of the building code enforcement department. It is a patronage and revenue mill and deeply entrenched. Now that no bank will give a mortgage without all CO's in place they have even more power to enforce un-permitted baths, basements, sheds, fences, pools, additions, burps, farts, sneezes, hangnails, etc.
My advice: add $1000 or more to your budget to pay off the Town mob and get everything done up front to code and with permits. It will take longer and cost more but having that stupid piece of paper (CO) will help you sleep better at night and make it much easier to sell, refi, do additional work or whatever you may do later.
Or: I am not opposed to just doing it correctly without letting them know and enjoying your life. If they do find out though, the fees double when permitting an "existing" structure. If you have other un-permitted items, may be better not to let them inspect at all as they will find them and you will be required to bring them to code, too.
I don't mean to highjack the thread, but this has me wondering if I needed a permit as well. When I bought my house, the basement was finished but very outdated. Brown paneling was nailed to beams but no insulation or actual walls existed. Behind the panels was the cinderblock wall. We pulled down the paneling, insulated, put sheetrock and painted. We also tore up the old tiles that were practically cemented down (they were linoleum tiles similar to the peel and stick tiles) and we put new ceramic tiles. We also had the outlets updated. No bathroom was added and there is no structural change. Would I have needed a permit too?
This Permit Mafia is absolutely ridiculous and insane. Half the finished basements in Long Island never got permits when they were done over the last 40 years. Now, all of a sudden they are danger zones that require inspections! Give me a break.
Here's my take on this. If you plan to be in the house for quite a while, screw the permits. The amount you will pay in increased taxes will usually FAR OUTWEIGH the cost of getting a CO down the line, if you even have to.
I don't mean to highjack the thread, but this has me wondering if I needed a permit as well. When I bought my house, the basement was finished but very outdated. Brown paneling was nailed to beams but no insulation or actual walls existed. Behind the panels was the cinderblock wall. We pulled down the paneling, insulated, put sheetrock and painted. We also tore up the old tiles that were practically cemented down (they were linoleum tiles similar to the peel and stick tiles) and we put new ceramic tiles. We also had the outlets updated. No bathroom was added and there is no structural change. Would I have needed a permit too?
Yes.
While I don't disagree with azzurony, when you want to sell your house it's not really something you want to rear its ugly head. We knew we were going to have to do it, so we had plenty of notice, and had people lined up to do the work but it can be a nasty surprise (and costly) to have to get it done. If time is of the essence when you want to sell, it's even more stressful.
My sister had an un-COed garage at a house she lived in years ago, after that experience, she said "never again" and I agree. I am making sure I get COs for everything even if it impacts my taxes. I've done it once since I moved!
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