Pulling permit for addition in FL.

[ustmd]

I am not sure about Fl, but here if you don't pull a permit, they can (and often) make you pull it down or open it up completely for inspections...pictures, affidavits, a letter from the Pope won't help you.

You say you can get a guy to stamp your plans for cheap. If you already plan on doing everything to code, why not take the extra step and pull a permit?

Also, no permit (and one was required) will most like invalidate your homeowner's insurance as well.

 

[Panik]

I've seen things torn down because they couldn't prove that the footings or piers were correct.

I can second that experience. Back about 17 years ago I was working for a friend doing home repairs and renovations in Tampa. We had been hired to convert a two car garage into an apartment for one of my friend's wealthier clients. The clients decided to skip pulling permits and I was there by myself the day county inspection decided to show up. We were shut down for about two weeks and were forced to remove any structure (framing/drywall/plywood) obstructing the ability to see new wiring and plumbing. I believe it cost the homeowners a far bit in money and hassle to go back and obtain the proper permits.

Keep in mind though this was in a wealthy neighborhood, we weren't exactly discrete (its kinda hard to be when you're blocking up two garage door openings) and it was highly populated portion of Hillsborough county. Even if you were to get busted for not having permits I highly doubt your experience would as difficult as these folks, after all everyone involved, including me, were kinda buttheads about the whole thing.

 

[Lineman North Florida]

I live in Alachua county same as you, a number of years ago I built a 32'x 60' ag barn and poured a full concrete slab and pulled no permit, the barn had been built for about 4 years and one day when I came home from work there was a big sign nailed to my barn that said to cease construction, well construction had already long since been ceased as I was done with it, anyhow they summoned me down to the building department and tryed to rough talk me a little bit, after everything was said and done I had to pay double the permit fee and no one ever showed up to inspect it. I ran into the inspector a few months later and he told me that they were instructed to go anywhere that they knew that something was built without a permit and leave a cease construction letter so the county could make some money, found out later that they got two more people in my area for building barns.

 

[byronlj]

I am a contractor and all work I do is permitted. It isn't that much more to build to approved plans. Go to a blueprint/print shop and ask for a draftsman. Something that simple will cost you maybe $150. Stamped trusses would be about $400 and also a quick easy install. The draftsman and the inspector can help you with shear walls, hurricane ties, earthquake straps etc. You probably will not be allowed to attach directly next to a mobile home. You will have to build breezeways for doors between the two. Good luck!
Dave

 

[paulharvey]

You say you can get a guy to stamp your plans for cheap. If you already plan on doing everything to code, why not take the extra step and pull a permit?

Also, no permit (and one was required) will most like invalidate your homeowner's insurance as well.

I didn't say (or didn't mean to say) I know I can get them stamped for cheap. Some people are very funny about putting there seal on anything, others just want a ton of money. I'm also sure there are architects/engineers who stamp any and everything for a fee; but I doubt they advertise "will stamp anything for $150"... if I can maybe get them stamped for cheap, I might go that route.

This is a hard topic because the you cant ask the people who know (Putnam County building department). I guess i might call down and ask what happens if I build without a permit, without give my name of coarse. I'm assuming the lady who answers will tell me the worst case scenario, but I guess you never know till you ask.

As to insurance; I have "Citizens Insurance" so I don't know if I would really call it insurance, but I guess it's something too think about.

 

[paulharvey]

I am a contractor and all work I do is permitted. It isn't that much more to build to approved plans. Go to a blueprint/print shop and ask for a draftsman. Something that simple will cost you maybe $150. Stamped trusses would be about $400 and also a quick easy install. The draftsman and the inspector can help you with shear walls, hurricane ties, earthquake straps etc. You probably will not be allowed to attach directly next to a mobile home. You will have to build breezeways for doors between the two. Good luck!
Dave

If I can get them stamped for $150, I will probably go that route. Trusses are a necessary expense, I'm not sure you really save that much by doing site built trusses or conventional framed.

I had/have wondered about joining the two together. I can see reasons to not, and reasons to join them.

There used to be a rule that a residential/building/general contractor could draw/design his own single family homes; with certain restrictions; but that was 10+ years ago, don't know if that still applys. I do seem to remember they needed a stamp from architect/engineer; but maybe they just needed engineers stamp on truss design....

 

[phiferpharm]

I'm in the neighboring county to you and have pulled permits twice in the past year. The first was for a new run-in shed, then for a new modular home. In both cases, the dealers mentioned that Marion County (my county) was much more pro-active about permits than Putnam County, which is just a few miles from me.

I "forgot" to notify them on the shed that the company had completed the installation and they followed up with a warning, then a visit. Cost me a few bucks to re-activate the permit and they did inspect the finished shed. For the new Modular, I must have seen the inspector at 4 or five times during the process.

With that said, there are structures ranging from Horse shelters to home additions that can't possibly have passed any sort of inspection being used out here that have been here for at least the 7 years I've been here. Also, I was told by two contractors that you cannot attach an addition or deck to an existing structure Manufactured Home. This is at least the case in Marion County.

As with the structures I mentioned above, I see them attached throughout this area, so I guess they fall under some sort of "too late to nail me" clause.

 

[oosik]

The rule in this neck of the woods is a permit is required for any structure over, I think, 250 square feet. My question - why would you risk adding a non-permitted addition which may later come back to haunt you?? Why risk buggering up a future home sales??
Are the required permits that expensive in FL?

 

[paulharvey]

The rule in this neck of the woods is a permit is required for any structure over, I think, 250 square feet. My question - why would you risk adding a non-permitted addition which may later come back to haunt you?? Why risk buggering up a future home sales??
Are the required permits that expensive in FL?

It's more the added cost of stamped approved plans, and added trouble. I would rather avoid the government BS. I at the same time don't want to save $500 to cost my self $5000. I also worry about things escalating; i.e. I see you rewired this; you did pull a permit for that porch roof; ect

 

[paulharvey]

I'm in the neighboring county to you and have pulled permits twice in the past year. The first was for a new run-in shed, then for a new modular home. In both cases, the dealers mentioned that Marion County (my county) was much more pro-active about permits than Putnam County, which is just a few miles from me.

I "forgot" to notify them on the shed that the company had completed the installation and they followed up with a warning, then a visit. Cost me a few bucks to re-activate the permit and they did inspect the finished shed. For the new Modular, I must have seen the inspector at 4 or five times during the process.

With that said, there are structures ranging from Horse shelters to home additions that can't possibly have passed any sort of inspection being used out here that have been here for at least the 7 years I've been here. Also, I was told by two contractors that you cannot attach an addition or deck to an existing structure Manufactured Home. This is at least the case in Marion County.

As with the structures I mentioned above, I see them attached throughout this area, so I guess they fall under some sort of "too late to nail me" clause.

I worked for Marion County for 4.5 years as an Engineering Inspector. 95% roads but about 5% of the time I did driveway permits. If you didn't have a driveway back when they weren't required, you where grandfathered in; till you pulled any building permit. Once you pulled a permit of any sort you lost grandfather status. Once there was a residential home owner, putting up a $600 metal carport. He pulled a permit; and had to do $4500 worth of driveway work.


I have a paved to ROW drive with culvert and mitered ends, so that isn't an issue in my case. But it, I'm sure, discouraged permits getting pulled in Marion.