Selling a Home with Unpermitted Work
Most people’s experience with unpermitted work is a nightmare waiting to happen. Thinking a deck thrown up over the weekend or a half-baked garage-to-bedroom flip is no big deal? That’s exactly how these messes start.. The reality is, this stuff creates headaches at sale time. Buyers get cold feet. Lenders ditch the deal. Suddenly, what should’ve been simple becomes a circus. What Counts as Unpermitted Work Here’s what drives experts nuts: people think only big stuff needs permits. Wrong. Any construction or renovation, finished without city sign-off, is fair game. The obvious stuff is there: room additions, a spaghetti mess of electrical rewiring, plumbing hacks, and major structural shifts. But here’s what’s ridiculous, cities want to see even the so-called “small projects” like window replacements or tossing in a bathroom handled the right way. Cut corners, and it opens the door for fines, forced demo, or a paperwork avalanche when inspections come around. How It Affects the Sale So...