You’re not alone… Tell us your unpermitted stories and how you dealt with your property issues.

Code enforcement, from condemning buildings to investigating poor plumbing, is adopted by communities to preserve the safety, cleanliness and property values of a municipality or other community. But when notices concerning your grass height become more of a nuisance than the grass itself, code enforcement is often looked at as a pain for homeowners. Fighting code enforcement can be difficult and costly. More often than not the code officials do a great deal of research before they actually cite your property. So be prepared to take the time to do your own.

Fighting local code enforcement

1. Pick your battles. Remember that some codes, such as building codes and grass height ordinances, are in place for a reason, and that reason is safety. Fighting a code violation can often be more costly and take more time than cutting the lawn. But if you feel you’re being harassed for minor aesthetic violations. You are in your right to ask which section of the code you are violating.
2. If you think you can talk your way out of a violation, think twice. Code Officials are like highway patrol giving speeding tickets, they have heard every excuse in the book. “I bought the property this way”, “I needed permits for that?”, “The contractor told me I didn’t need any”…etc. So this approach will only irritate them.
3. Look at the law. This means finding out which agency, usually your city or your homeowners’ association, is citing you as well as looking at the law to determine if you are actually in violation. This can be a frustrating task due to the time involved. Most agencies are only open during business hours so time off work may be required for research.
4. If you are not in violation of a law, contact your city or homeowners’ association code enforcement office. (Often homeowners’ associations contract with a property management company for this purpose.) Contact them multiple ways, once by phone as the problem may be cleared up easily with a conversation, and once by mail or email, so you have proof in writing. Request a second inspection of the violation and schedule it for a time you will be home so you can speak with the inspector.
5. Request a hearing. If a second inspection hasn’t cleared the violation, request a hearing with your city or homeowners’ association. There is often a time limit on hearing requests, usually between 10 and 60 days, so check local regulations and request a hearing as soon as possible.
6. Go to your hearing. Bring evidence of compliance with local codes, including photos and any inspector’s notes. The code enforcement board will make a decision; and if they find you still in violation, you will have to comply with the code to their satisfaction and/or pay the associated fine.
7. If you think you may be in violation of local codes but wish to fight them anyway, you should request and attend the hearing, where a board will likely find you in violation of codes. Your next option will be to sue the homeowners’ association or city. Consult a lawyer who specializes in code violations about your case.
8. Decision to be cautious of is obtaining a lawyer to battle code enforcement. Although a lawyer may know more aspects of the code. The lawyer may know more aspects of the code. The lawyer can’t actually do anything to resolve the issue. They will simply restate your argument to code enforcement which will again request proof. It is a very expensive way to be told and /or asked “we need more evidence”.

In the end, to fight Code Enforcement will require a great deal of time with an unpredictable outcome. The most important aspect of the process to focus on is proof or evidence of work being done to the compliance standards of your local jurisdiction. Without these documents it will be a great big waste of time for they will make you comply: as well as, subject you to any fees or penalties associated with the violation.

Tips & Warnings

Re: Seller responsibility for unpermitted construction/remodeling
You have inherited a bunch of problems that California law doesn’t expect you ought to inherit. I think your first step, if you haven’t done so already (looks like you have done a lot of background work) is to find your file on the sale and close of escrow. It will be full of disclosure papers of all kinds, or at least it should be! Look for anything not disclosed that should have been, or any false disclosures.
Did you use an agent yourself? That would put another light on the whole matter. Then, find someone (a friendly real estate agent, the agent you used, a title officer, or a lawyer) who can tell you if all the required disclosures were made. Look at your contract to see what dispute-resolution options were initialed by the parties, e.g., mediation, arbitration, and attorney fees for the prevailing party. The presence or absence of these provisions will influence the best tactics and the point of beginning. As to your insurance, if you have a local agent whom you trust and with whom you have a good working relationship, I’d suggest starting by making an appointment to go over your coverage with that agent at an off-hour when he or she can spend some time with you going over the policy rules regarding no-permit work. I can’t speak for any particular policy, but it is not an automatic voiding in all situations.
By:
Bryan Whipple
Bryan R. R. Whipple, Attorney at Law

Should you add square footage with your own hands, hire subcontractors to do it or pay a licensed contractor to oversee the project?
The upside to doing it yourself is that you get a bunch of new space for a lot less money. The downsides come when you don’t do it according to code and don’t get permits. Engineers do all that correctly, as engineers are apt to do, but other types of homeowners may forgo those details.
If you do an addition without a permit or not to code, or both, here are some dangers, according to a story today at CNN.com:
- The structure could be unsafe for your family and future families.
- Unpermitted space could stop or delay a sale.
- You might have to tear down or expensively retrofit out-of-code upgrades later on.
But here’s the most chilling danger, which is according Mark Brick, a past president of the National Assn. of the Remodeling Industry, as quoted in the article:
But if your new house burns down, and your insurer finds out it included unpermitted space, “they have a way to get out of any of their obligation as an insurance company,” Brick said.
What do you think? Is unpermitted space a good idea?
Would your insurance company use that as an excuse not to pay a fire claim?

DESCRIPTION OF VIOLATION   &   TYPE OF VIOLATION

Vehicles Concerns:  Zoning

• Vehicles parked on unpaved areas  
• Parking accessory recreational vehicles in the wrong area on a property
• Oversized trucks parked in residential zones
• Vehicles parked/stored without required screening, landscaping and setbacks (generally commercial properties)
• Auto repair/service in wrong zones (i.e. auto business in a residential zone)
• Auto repair in the right-of-way – If being done by an auto repair shop

Vehicles Concerns:  Right of Way

• Vehicle sales, repair or service business parking, storing, and/or repairing vehicles in the right of way
• Abandoned/disabled vehicles in the right-of-way
• Illegally parked vehicles in the right-of-way

Vehicles Concerns:  Private Property

• Visibly disabled vehicles on private property

Construction Without Permit Concerns:  Construction without permit

• Electrical, plumbing or mechanical work without permits

• Grading and/ or fill work without permits
• Residential structural work without permits (i.e. addition to a house, construction of a new garage, fences over six feet tall, demolition of a house, etc.)
• Commercial structural work without permits (i.e. change of occupancy without required permits, addition to structure, structural tenant improvements, etc.)
• Illegal duplexes or triplexes in single family zones.

Commercial & Residential Concerns:  Zoning

• Commercial businesses in a residential zone
• Over height (taller than 6 foot) accessory structures in building setbacks
• Pavement placed for parking purposes without the required zoning permit
• Over height fence in front setback (usually fences are required to be 3 ½ feet in the front setback).
• Home businesses with customers or an employee without the required home occupation permit
• Violations of a Land Use Review conditions of approval
• Overlay zone (E-zones, scenic resource zones, others) violations
• Plan Districts violations
• Temporary activities exceeding time or area limits, including garage sales
• Tree cutting or other vegetation removal in an environmental zone

Commercial & Residential Concerns:  Erosion

• Erosion issues on a property
• Landslides

Commercial & Residential Concerns:  Dangerous

• Safety issues such as collapsing buildings or retaining walls

Commercial & Residential Concerns:  Housing Code

• Conditions of a residential structure, i.e. leaking roof, peeling paint, people living in a garage, etc.
• Ext. Maintenance of non-residential structures, derelict buildings, i.e. boarded, vacant
• Illegal Occupancies

Commercial & Residential Concerns:  Nuisance

• Vacant structure open to entry
• Trash/debris on the exterior of a property
• Bushes/trees/vegetation encroaching into right of way

Commercial & Residential Concerns:  Right-of Way

• Broken/unsafe sidewalks
• Structures/fences built in right of way 
• Basketball hoops on parking strips
• Basketball hoops on telephone poles

Trees/Vegetation Concerns:  Nuisance

• Bushes/trees/vegetation encroaching into right-of-way
• Dead or dying trees on private property
• Low tree limbs over adjacent street/sidewalk from private property trees, from public property trees, urban forestry

Trees/Vegetation Concerns:  Zoning

• Tree cutting or other vegetation removal in an environmental zone

Noise Concerns:  Noise

• Construction activity outside permitted hours

Other Concerns:  Nuisance

• CROW (Containers on the right-of-way)
• Exterior display/storage by a commercial business in a zone that does not allow this activity
• Graffiti
• Illegal Dumping
• Liquid waste draining into street drain

The city of San Diego has nearly 3,000 open cases of code violations, but despite budget cuts, the city is re-prioritizing neighborhood code violations to address more cases faster. From 2008 to 2010, there were nearly 3,000 open cases of code violations, including structural problems, barking dogs, abandoned boarded up structures and plumbing problems. Bob Vacchi, who overseas neighborhood code enforcement, said the city budget cuts have impacted how they handle the list. “If he had more staff, obviously we could do more things on the list,” said Vacchi. Certain complaints, such as noisy neighbors, barking dogs, illegal structures and over height fences, have new thresholds before a case will be open and action taken. “We have to push things up to where it might be a public nuisance, definition would be a large number of people being affected,” said Vacchi. “So for a barking dog we consider that to be a three.” Health and safety threats and environmental hazards remain high priorities. Some open cases on the list showed owners making an effort at complying.

 By: San Diego News 10

1. The city can come through and demand the addition be demolished and the structure be returned to its permitted size – that’s at the property owner’s expense.

2. As an alternative, and solely at the city’s discretion, they can choose to issue permits in exchange for the appropriate fees and inspections and a penalty surcharge. In order for that to happen the structure would have had to been built to code and it would have to withstand whatever inspection process, including drilling holes to check for slab depth, framing spacing, electrical conduit, etc. Some cities will not do this, others will.

3. Most lenders will not lend on building area that is known to be unpermitted, because… Insurance companies will generally not insure unpermitted building area, and in some cases will not insure structures with unpermitted building area. Substandard construction can lead to damage to the permitted structure to which they are attached.

Bottom line is that in this region it’s not smart to mess around with properties that have unpermitted additions unless you have professional help. If a buyer suspects the permits may be lacking they absolutely should make the sale contingent on the seller providing them.

In some cases, the structures may have been built prior to the dates the city or county has permits on file. Those structures can generally be considered permissible. For instance, the City of San Diego generally does not keep their permits files prior to 1955 handy and they wouldn’t get excited about structures and additions built prior to that time. It’s always a wise thing to get your property or the one you are interested in researched for full compliance. It’s worth it!

A property with unpermitted work, could potentially cost the new owner money when they are not built to code and have to be torn down! Unpermitted building may not be covered by your homeowners insurance policy, which could result in a lawsuit should someone be injured there. Often, the unpermitted square footage cannot be added to the square footage of the home so it will not add to the value of your home..it will rather..detract from it.
Remember, permits insure the “minimum of building standards” have been developed to protect the consumer. Permits are well worth the few hundred dollars they cost.
Additions that have not been properly permitted have also, most likely, not been properly inspected to ensure the addition was built to local codes and requirements. Additionally the homes size (square footage) has been changed and not properly reported to local property tax authorities. If the mortgage company does not discover this through the appraisal process then the insurance company might. If neither catches the “illegal additions” and the mortgage does complete these are the possibilities at a later date:

1. If you ever experience a claim on the home with your insurance carrier, especially if it deals with the illegal addition, then your insurance carrier may refuse to cover the claim as the home has had improperly permitted additions, changes, modifications to it.
2. If the local taxing authority discovers the changes and determines when they were made they might assess you retroactively for the amount of taxes, penalties and interest they could have collected.
3. If the local building department discovers the illegal additions (the taxing authority will advise them if they find it) then you may be subject to penalties, potentially have to remove it or at least parts of it for inspections, etc., etc.
4. If in the future your mortgage company discovers that you have illegal additions, and that you were aware of them, they might also have methods of redress to prevent any issues with the loan such as prematurely calling in yuor loan with an immediate payoff demand. The mortgage company is not going to want to expose themselves to potential future liabilities and have many avenues of redress to prevent them of which this is one.
5. If the illegal additions violate local zoning ordinances, setback requirements and/or extends onto your neighbors property then your title insurance company is most likely not going to cover this situation either. It can result in you bearing the full cost of rectifying the problem.
6. If your illegal addition causes your neighbors any problems, or your relationships with your neighbors sour, then they can “drop a dime” on you to the local building department and get the ball rolling for any/all of the above to occur.
7. If you are lucky to not experience any of the above and try to sell the home later it may then be discovered and cause you significant grief in the sales process. First off you know it is an illegal addition and will have to disclose that. Even if you don’t and the new buyer discovers it prior to closing and backs out you now can not avoid disclosure. Also when it is discovered any of the above actions can again be started.

If you know or suspect a home has illegal additions to it then you should perform additional due diligence before your option period expires. It is a simple thing to visit the local building department and check the history of the home for its original build size and ANY permits that may have been requested for additions, major upgrades, modifications, etc.

Sellers are required to disclose these things but Seller Agents are not required to research a home to make sure the seller tells them the truth when they sit down to fill out the papers when listing the home. If you read the MLS terms I believe it also states that what is listed is not guaranteed to be what is actually there. There is generally a statement that says:

“All information provided is deemed reliable but is not guaranteed and should be independently verified.”

Don’t expect your Agent or the Seller’s Agent to provide you reliable information in regards to this issue! They are protected by their contract with you, the above MLS statement, the disclosure notice improperly filled out by the seller and a whole host of other barriers to protect themselves. Agents are in the business of getting people to sell and buy homes and are unfortunately not REQUIRED to specifically perform these types of checks for their clients, whether a buyer or seller.

 Any structure erected, constructed, enlarged, altered, repaired, moved, improved, removed, converted, or demolished without first obtaining the proper permits is a violation.

 Examples of Improvements or changes that require a permit:

 Residential remodels, additions, conversions

 Patio covers in excess of 300 (three hundred) square feet

 Garage conversions

 Certain signs (on-premise and off-premise), such as projecting and/or lighted signs, require building permits. Issuance of an Administrative Permit does not preclude the requirement for obtaining a building permit pursuant to the Uniform Building Code.

 Commercial change of use, tenant improvements, office trailers; Change of occupancy changes the classification of a building. For example, if you change a residential building into an office, that is a change of occupancy. Or, if you change an office to a restaurant that seats more than 50 people, that also changes the occupancy classification of the tenant space.

 Occupied mobile homes

 Carports, decks, swimming pools, re-roofs, storage buildings

 Electrical, plumbing systems and mechanical systems

 Sea Cargo Containers

 If your property posses any of these items and no permit was obtained it’s a possibility you are in violation.

Unpermitted Garage Conversions

In the city of San Diego, unpermitted garage conversions are on just about every block. Some more obvious than others, all unpermitted additions/changes must have architectural plans and permits in order to be legal.

Many clients who work with Code B Inc did not do the work or even know unpermitted construction existed until they were cited by the City Building & Safety Department. Code B Inc suggests obtaining one of our property evaluation reports to cover you and/or your family of the liabilities which might cost you thousands of dollars to legalize. Legalizing a garage conversion could mean restoring the room back into a garage or creating other area on your property to park.

The problem for most current homeowners with unpermitted garage conversions is the possibility of losing space they consider part of their home or an income-producing supplement of their livelihood (renting). In order to find out what can be done to keep the existing unpermitted construction and use(s), due diligence must take place. All zoning, parking, setback, height and lot size requirements must be met. In addition, your property might be subject to special conditions that limit the amount of change that can be legally made.

Do You Have An Unpermitted Garage Conversion?

For your unpermitted garage conversion identification needs, call Code B Inc and ask to speak with a representative about our Property Evaluation Report services. Our company not only concentrates on correcting an issue, we look at what further can be expanded upon. Whether you can add a second-story, third-story or an addition, it is all included in the report.