Seller's responsibility in getting permits for re-modelling done on a house (San Diego: insurance, buyer)

[br2691998]

Hello,
We are in the process of purchasing a home in San Diego & the one we are negotiating on has a sunroom - the seller disclosed that the sun room has been around since she purchased it from someone else and is not aware of whether a permit was acquired from the city.

I wanted to know if the seller in this case is required to obtain the permits from the city for this sunroom before they sell the house to anyone.

Also, if I purchase this house, will I be liable to any back taxes, penalties or expensive corrections?

Thanks in advance for your guidance.

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by br2691998

Hello,
We are in the process of purchasing a home in San Diego & the one we are negotiating on has a sunroom - the seller disclosed that the sun room has been around since she purchased it from someone else and is not aware of whether a permit was acquired from the city.

I wanted to know if the seller in this case is required to obtain the permits from the city for this sunroom before they sell the house to anyone.

Also, if I purchase this house, will I be liable to any back taxes, penalties or expensive corrections?

Thanks in advance for your guidance.

permit requirement can be nogotiable. If the sun room looks good and you have no reason to be concerned, have the seller check to see if there was a permit. The city should have a record, but don't let it become an issue. We have faced the same thing 3 times, as a seller. It can cause real heartbreak and added expenses that are not necessary.

As for back taxes, etc that is why title checks etc are done. Anything like that should show up and it will be the responsibility of the sellers to clear everything before passing the property to you.

Nita

[1AngryTaxPayer]

If the room is more than 10 years old I don't think it matters.

[cruitr]

"Also, if I purchase this house, will I be liable to any back taxes, penalties or expensive corrections?"

If you try to get it permitted after you buy it, you could run into the above problems. Just have a good inspector look at it before you buy.

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by cruitr

"Also, if I purchase this house, will I be liable to any back taxes, penalties or expensive corrections?"

If you try to get it permitted after you buy it, you could run into the above problems. Just have a good inspector look at it before you buy.

good advise.

Nita

[br2691998]

Is it normal for people to purchase property with extensions that are not permitted? From "cruitr"'s note above - looks like the advise is to make sure that its inspected for any issues and if it appears fine, not get in to the hassle of gettng it permitted. In short, if you are happy with the condition,buy the house, forget about getting it permitted? Just want to make sure - since we like the house and dont want to loose it if the common practice is not to get hassled up about retro permits.

[1AngryTaxPayer]

Originally Posted by br2691998

Is it normal for people to purchase property with extensions that are not permitted? From "cruitr"'s note above - looks like the advise is to make sure that its inspected for any issues and if it appears fine, not get in to the hassle of gettng it permitted. In short, if you are happy with the condition,buy the house, forget about getting it permitted? Just want to make sure - since we like the house and dont want to loose it if the common practice is not to get hassled up about retro permits.

If you are flipping the house and wanting to get those things permitted you need to see what the costs would be now, not later. This is where all those people hiring workers who aren't licensed get bit, when it's time to sale. That cheap labor doesn't look so cheap when you find out you may have to tear down what you had them slap up to get it up to code.

If it looks solid and you aren't planning on selling it ever then who cares.

[br2691998]

Great. We arent flipping. And to your earlier point, this thing looks solid. I think we will go for it. Thanks for the comments folks. Appreciate the inputs

[rsproule]

Non-permitted work is fairly common and should not be a deal stopper if you do your home work. The property can be sold with non-permitted work, but the seller has to disclose that it's non-permitted if they know that. As the owner you will normally be liable for any "back taxes, penalties or expensive corrections".

- As per above post have the building inspector determine if it was built to code. If the county/city discovers that it is not up to code you would probably have to bring it up to code or remove it.

- Find out if the county/city rules are for this type of addition (probably not an issue with a sunroom). If they don't allow it or it voilates some rule (e.g. it's to close to the lot line) you might have to remove it even if it was built to code. You can call the county or ask the inspector for an unofficial opinion.

- If the county/city does not know about the addition then the title search will not help you determine if you are inheriting a liability for back taxes. If the county discovers the addition and can some how prove that the addition is say ten years old, then you might be on the hook for 10 years of back taxes. Ask the county/city what the rules are about this.

The above sounds complicated, but it's a simple matter of talking to the building inspector and making one or two calls to the county/city. When you call the county/city pose it as a hypothetical question. As a buyer this is valuable education that will apply to this property and many others. Let us know what you find out.

[br2691998]

I havent managed to speak with the City/County regarding this yet, but I did read that home insurance will not cover any damages that originated from the areas that were not properly permitted by the local jurisdiction. For example if it was a kitchen remodel that was done without a permit and if some damage occurred starting from the kitchen (burst pipe or a small/big fire) - then insurance will not cover you for that. Wow - that is a biggie!