Hung Sheetrock in framed room without permit

[Bluefavorite]

What is the name of your state?KY
Bought house, room on second floor, already framed, sub floor, insulation, double hung window but was unfinished. Passed inspection.

Owner planned on finishing it. We nailed up sheetrock as it waa cold. We did not get a permit as we did not change anything structural and we did not touch electrical. It has not been taped and ceiling is not up due to the need to install access to the eaves.

Worried I should have had it approved and inspected. Going to have a remo contractor do some work and have them finish the room. If so, I assume they would fix any issues and the fact I did this almost 10 years ago won't matter.

I have read you can get fined for doing work after the fact.

 

[LdiJ]

What is the name of your state?KY
Bought house, room on second floor, already framed, sub floor, insulation, double hung window but was unfinished. Passed inspection.

Owner planned on finishing it. We nailed up sheetrock as it waa cold. We did not get a permit as we did not change anything structural and we did not touch electrical. It has not been taped and ceiling is not up due to the need to install access to the eaves.

Worried I should have had it approved and inspected. Going to have a remo contractor do some work and have them finish the room. If so, I assume they would fix any issues and the fact I did this almost 10 years ago won't matter.

I have read you can get fined for doing work after the fact.

I think that someone would have to be familiar with your local community ordinances in order to be able to answer that question.

 

[Bluefavorite]

I think that someone would have to be familiar with your local community ordinances in order to be able to answer that question.

Right. Well I looked at my local laws and there is nothing about it. And my state just says only if you mess with electric/plumbing.

I even called an indie inspector and sent pics and he said he was too booked to come out. So I guess I will just let the contractors look at it and if it needs fixed, they can fix it and that will be that. I mean, I am not calling county and asking :/ .

I did think of selling after and my realtor had no issues with it. Used same realtor and she deff knows codes and told us our bannisters were a tad too far apart and we would need to fix them.

 

[quincy]

Right. Well I looked at my local laws and there is nothing about it. And my state just says only if you mess with electric/plumbing.

I even called an indie inspector and sent pics and he said he was too booked to come out. So I guess I will just let the contractors look at it and if it needs fixed, they can fix it and that will be that. I mean, I am not calling county and asking :/ .

I did think of selling after and my realtor had no issues with it. Used same realtor and she deff knows codes and told us our bannisters were a tad too far apart and we would need to fix them.

Just make sure that any contractor you hire is licensed and insured.

 

[adjusterjack]

I did think of selling after and my realtor had no issues with it. Used same realtor and she deff knows codes and told us our bannisters were a tad too far apart and we would need to fix them.

Don't rely on realtors for advice on any of this. Once they get their commission, if you have a code or permit problem, they will conveniently forget everything they told you.

Find out if your seller had a permit. If he did you may be able to continue the work under that permit.

And so what, if you have to get a permit. A permit is cheaper than tearing it out later and redoing it.

Don't be penny wise and dollar foolish.

 

[quincy]

Don't rely on realtors for advice on any of this. Once they get their commission, if you have a code or permit problem, they will conveniently forget everything they told you.

Find out if your seller had a permit. If he did you may be able to continue the work under that permit.

And so what, if you have to get a permit. A permit is cheaper than tearing it out later and redoing it.

Don't be penny wise and dollar foolish.

The house apparently was purchased 10 years ago.

 

[adjusterjack]

The house apparently was purchased 10 years ago.

Ah, missed that.

When OP goes to sell and the buyer's inspector spots unpermitted work or work not to code and reports to the buyer, OP could be faced with a big expense.

 

[quincy]

Ah, missed that.

When OP goes to sell and the buyer's inspector spots unpermitted work or work not to code and reports to the buyer, OP could be faced with a big expense.

Any listing agreement with a realtor should disclose known issues with the house and sold “as is.” The wise buyer will have an inspection and use any code violations found during the inspection in their price-negotiations.

It is (generally) not illegal to sell a home that has code violations. These violations, however, will need to be fixed by either the buyer or the seller, per the terms of the purchase agreement.

 

[Bluefavorite]

It is ok. A contractor is coming to look at it and fix it. yes they are insured. I bought this in 2013 and did the work in 2014. The prior owner did not have a permit he was just a really good carpenter. In the area I moved from, it is so rural, only contractors use permits. You could add a whole upstairs and nobody say anything.

However, there seem to be no codes here on hanging drywall to a room that is ready for drywall of you own the home. Only if you knock down load bearing walls, mess with the wiring, plumbing and HVAC.

My realtor did say we could sell it as is as long as the buyer did not care and their bank put up the money even if my stairs did not pass inspection. That is how houses in disrepair get sold. I would update it, small price to make more money. When I purchased it the owner never showed anyone the permit for building his deck and installing the hot tub. Nobody asked, not even the bank.

Either way I may try a DIY in my own home and if I mess up, mt bad. I would never hire a contractor and pay those prices without them being kosher. That is why you DIY. Save money. It cut my winter heating costs from $500 to $200 and summer costs too, by putting up that drywall. So my savings over those years will still be more than I will spend to get a contractor to tweak it to whatever the code is. And having them run a vent into it from the HVAC in that room, in a closet, will convert it to a "bedroom" giving me more equity.

 

[Bluefavorite]

Ah, missed that.

When OP goes to sell and the buyer's inspector spots unpermitted work or work not to code and reports to the buyer, OP could be faced with a big expense.

When I was purchasing it, I could walk away if it did not pass inspection. But the owner got an inspection their own self prior to selling it.

 

[quincy]

A major problem with code violations when selling a house is that a bank often will not finance a loan until the house is brought up to code.

If converting a room to a bedroom, there are codes you need to be aware of (safety codes, proper ingress and egress). You will also want to insulate prior to installing drywall.

Good luck.

 

[Bluefavorite]

I do not need any more advice on ths. People are not actually reading the question and a pro is coming to fix it. Geez.

 

[quincy]

I do not need any more advice on ths. People are not actually reading the question and a [deleted] pro is coming to fix it. Geez.

Geez is right. A “thank you” to the volunteers who have spent time on your matter seems to me to be a more appropriate response.

Please clean up your language as it violates the conditions of use on this site. Thank you.

 

[not2cleverRed]

I do not need any more advice on ths. People are not actually reading the question and a f*cking pro is coming to fix it. Geez.

How charming.

People have read the question. They chose not to answer it.

You only get fined if you get caught. And for interior work such as yours, you would probably only get caught if you tried to sell/rent out the house - i.e. you do something requiring an inspection. So, hiring someone competent to remedy your DIY should cover that.

What could cause is if the previous owner took out permits on the work that they were planning on doing. (A relative in NJ had that issue. Since you are in rural KY, things should be less litigious.)

My experience, when living in a rural area: it is easier to get forgiveness than permission.

 

[quincy]

... People have read the question. They chose not to answer it. ...

Well, actually, the question was answered.