Back in the 1980s , Amblin Entertainment released a hilarious movie called " The Money Pit . " While house hunting , a youthful matrimonial couple ( play by Tom Hanks and Shelly Long ) stumbles upon an amazing wad on a beautiful old mansion that needs just the teensiest spot of fixing – or so they ’re distinguish . Before long , the staircase collapse , the bathtub hang through the flooring and Tom Hanks ' character ends up sinking up to his shoulder , trapped for hours , after stepping on a rug that hid a gaping hole in the second story flooring .
The permitting cognitive operation did n’t make it into the playscript or onto the screen , but you may bet that if a real property owner found himself ( as Tom Hanks ' character did ) caked in dust after watching his chimney spontaneously implode , one of the first questions he ’d ask is , " Do I really need a Trachinotus falcatus to fix this ? "
Most property owners can wrap their head around the idea of abuilding permitfor some things : new expression , or maybe even a complicated accession . But what about smaller remodeling projects ? Do you need a license toswap your laminate countertops for granite ? What about if you need to build a secrecy fence or a restrained - sized deck ? Or what if you ’d like to do the workplace yourself ?
The short answer is , almost always , yes . TheI - Codes , includingthe International Building Codeandthe International Residential Code , are the service line from which most state , city and municipal building codes are developed . Regarding permit , I - Code rules are pretty clear . They state that a license must be obtained whenever a social organization is to be construct , enlarged , altered , repair , strike or demolish [ reference : Woodson ] .
hold back just a minute , you might declare ! That makes it fathom like attribute owners require a permit to tighten a washing machine on a blabbermouthed faucet . We asked Jeff Lupton , a accredited cosmopolitan contractor for Lupton Design + Build in Atlanta , Ga. , to clear up the confusion . So when exactly do you really ask a license ? Find out on the next page .
The Importance of Pulling Permits
In 1994 , a 46 - year - sure-enough Isle of Man lost his footing on a staircase while shopping at his local hardware memory board . The store owner had constructed the staircase without obtain the required permits , and the stairs did not conform to the city’sbuilding codes . In the lead causa , the injured military personnel was awarded a settlement for his combat injury .
Building codification exist to protect us fromunscrupulous contractor who cut cornersby using sub - standard cloth and unlicensed tradesmen . They also attempt to shield us from well - intentioned do - it - yourselfers like Tom Hanks ' part in " The Money Pit , " who may call back they ’re capable of doing certain jobs , only to chance themselves in a mess – literally . beget a permit means that someone knowledgeable will brush up your remodel plans and billet mistakes before work begins . Once work is underway , inspectors ensure that anylife - endanger errors are correctedbefore a job is completed .
So , permits are required by law and are mean to assure your rubber , but do you really need one ? Contractor Jeff Lupton of Lupton Design + Build in Atlanta , Ga. , gives an unequivocal yes . " Every property owner should pull a license and charter a licensed contractor whenever the law demands it , " he say .
This is not to say that there ’s no gray area . For one thing , building code motley from position to place . In Atlanta , Ga. , you are absolutely required to pull a licence if you want to build a fence around your railway yard . In Clark County , Washington , however , fences less than 6 groundwork ( 1.8 meters ) high do n’t need a license [ root : Clark County ] . Furthermore , municipalities in rural areas may offer more squirm room than those in big city .
you could always take a luck and not take out a permit . Unless an inspector catches you in the midsection of a major remodel on a random drive - by , you may even get away with it . Once in a while , however , as in the case of the hardware shop owner and his unpermitted staircase , the decision to forego a permit can have unforeseen upshot .
You may not like it much , but , yes , you probably do need a permit for your remodel .
When I ’m not writing articles for Discovery , I work in merchandising for a dimension management and development mathematical group . Over the twelvemonth , I ’ve witnessed lots of construction project , from full - blown renovations to modest stamping ground jobs . I ca n’t say that we ’ve set out licence for every single job we ’ve ever done , but I can say that the phone number and case of jobs we countenance has increase proportionately over the class . The more experienced our project managers get , the more clear-cut it becomes that it ’s right to do a job the right way from the start than to have to deal with the consequences of inexperienced tradesmen and low - grade materials afterward .
These days , we always hire licensed professionals . They know when it ’s necessary to prevail permits , and they also have sex how to aid us abbreviate through the red tape to get them quickly . Part of me desire to be able to write , " Eh … it ’s your house ! Do what you need ! " But experience has taught me that " better good than good-for-naught " is more than just a silly cliché , especially when it comes to the business of construction and remodeling .
