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I don't think it was nitpicking. And I didn't see it as an AHA! moment. It was a question where the answer HUGELY affects the way people will respond.
My very first thought, when you said you did the work yourself, was "did they pull permits"? Someone asked, and you said no. That answer set off all the rest of this discussion.
I would never buy a house that had had non-permitted work done, as that has to be disclosed when I resell the house, as it is on the state disclosure form.
You did have permits, so that is irrelevant, but it was a very important, very relevant question, and you gave an answer that sent up huge red flags.
Fill out the property disclosure your agent gives you, fill it out honestly, and leave it at that.
I don't think it was nitpicking. And I didn't see it as an AHA! moment. It was a question where the answer HUGELY affects the way people will respond.
My very first thought, when you said you did the work yourself, was "did they pull permits"? Someone asked, and you said no. That answer set off all the rest of this discussion.
I would never buy a house that had had non-permitted work done, as that has to be disclosed when I resell the house, as it is on the state disclosure form.
You did have permits, so that is irrelevant, but it was a very important, very relevant question, and you gave an answer that sent up huge red flags.
Fill out the property disclosure your agent gives you, fill it out honestly, and leave it at that.
He did this in a weekend, there were no permits pulled. Hell he is talking about moving an outlet again and that requires permits and bringing the line up to current code. I'm not a troll but this dude is a loon so that was expected after the way he attacked the person who asked about permits in the first place.
Based on the pictures I listed everything a home inspector would call out. If you did have permits done yes you have to disclose the work but you may not need to say it was a DIY job. The permits will say that for you anyway.
Here's the thing...I do not remember any disclosure which asks this. You must disclose known flaws and repairs. That's it.
I watch a lot of HGTV Shows. It seems like every show features a house in which additions were not permitted, yet the buyers pay mucho bucks for dumps, and then they have to tear down additions that aren't permitted.
We do a lot of DIY in our houses, and we do not disclose, or apologize for it.
Perhaps I missed your response, but did you apply for a building permit, get the work inspected and close out the permit when you were done? "Everything was up to spec" is not the answer to my questions.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MetroWord
Yes, yes, and yes.
Right here, he said he did get permits and inspections. That's what my response was based on.
While I think a lot of the permit requirements are absurd, this is a perfect example when one is needed.
If this was done by hiring a contractor, a permit would have ensured that the electrical is not left as it is.
If a DIYer wants to tackle this, make sure you do what is expected from inspection. When you do DIY, don't short cut. You are just cheating yourself.
BTW.. I hate to see the amount of grease that will get on the side of the microwave hood.
Disclose what? It's a longer gas line. He did not change the location of the wall connection which means he did not touch the gas pipes. If he did move the actual valve location he would be required to pressure test the system.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ninotchka P
Also, I'm not an electrician or an inspector so what do I know, but that outlet over the stove screams "bad idea" and doesn't seem like it would be code. Also there don't seem to be enough outlets, which also seems not to reflect newer code. Whether that's actually the case or not, as a buyer I would walk away.
Screams bad idea why? Because you haven't seen it? (You do know that gas stoves NEED a electrical outlet to run the electronics like the timer and display. And the cord on a stove isn't that long. Thats why there is a outlet near a stove. You do know that right. (In newer houses it's lower and hidden behind the stove. Older houses have instances where the stove/cooktop with upper microwave are one huge unit. And you needed a outlet high do both the micro and stove could reach it
There are enough outlets. Because that's ALL that was required at the time. Basically you use what's called the 6/12 foot rule (dictated by the size of the room.) you are not required to have a ton of outlets everywhere. You can if you want to when you're building the house. You can add more outlets but that WILL require a permit.
If he was UPGRADING his electrical he would have to bring his electrical to code. Which would require him to get DEDICATED circuits for the all the appliances. Maybe need to upgrade the wiring.
People throw scope of work and permits around like it's everything. It's a SCOPE OF WORK for a reason. If you're cosmetically upgrading a kitchen because the original cabinets are falling apart ad that's your scope of work you are not required to upgrade the plumbing or electrical. Because that's outside the scope of work.
Permits are great. but I wouldn't pull a permit unless I'm moving walls ,electrical, plumbing, HVAC.
I WOULD NEVER DISCLOSE anything unless asked! With that said, if they ask you have to tell them! We finished our basement 10 years ago. We did some of the work and hired contractors for some. We did not pull permits as our taxes would have skyrocketed. We listed our home this past February and sold in a week. It was never an issue and passed with flying colors during inspection. The buyers never asked if permits were pulled or if it was professional done. Had they asked though, by law we would have had to tell them the truth and take it from there.
Some people may care if its was not professionally done and others could careless. I think it depends how good it looks. if it looks great I don't think anyone would ask, if it looks shoddy, people are going to ask!
I WOULD NEVER DISCLOSE anything unless asked! With that said, if they ask you have to tell them! We finished our basement 10 years ago. We did some of the work and hired contractors for some. We did not pull permits as our taxes would have skyrocketed. We listed our home this past February and sold in a week. It was never an issue and passed with flying colors during inspection. The buyers never asked if permits were pulled or if it was professional done. Had they asked though, by law we would have had to tell them the truth and take it from there.
Some people may care if its was not professionally done and others could careless. I think it depends how good it looks. if it looks great I don't think anyone would ask, if it looks shoddy, people are going to ask!
Thank you for your answer. Makes sense.
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