All the All Pro Home Inspectors at All Pro Home Inspectors Inc. get asked by our Ponte Vedra Beach, FL house buyers every now and then if particular alterations or additions discovered (or exposed by the home sellers) need to be or should have been permitted. The answer usually depends upon precisely what was modified, improved or added to the home involved. Over the years and right after doing thousands of pre-purchase home All Pro Home Inspections, we have discovered that the majority of house buyers, house sellers, and homeowners do not know what should be permitted vs what might not need to be permitted. This particular list will serve as a great place to start in determining if your modification or addition needs to be permitted based on the latest International Residential Code (IRC) manual.
Based on the IRC, permits are not needed for the following:
* Unattached one-story accessory structures (tool sheds) less than or equal to two hundred sq.ft.?* Fences less than or of about six feet., driveways, sidewalks, swings and play ground equipment?* Maintaining walls lower than or of about four feet. coming from the bottom of the ground to the very top of the wall & with no surcharge?* Water tanks in grade below or equal to 5,000 gallons & height/width ratio lower than or of about 2:1?* Tiling, painting, cabinets, carpeting, counter & similar finish work?* Awnings showing lower than or equal to fifty four inches coming from exterior wall & supported from wall?* Decks under or of about two hundred sq. ft. & lower than or equal to 30 inches above grade and not attached to home or serving a mandatory exit door
We wished to provide this particular list of what normally can be done to your house without a permit in accordance with the latest IRC to help clear up some of the confusion for our home buyers, sellers, and owners. In case what you are planning to build falls outside of the list above it’s safe to believe that the permit is necessary. Nevertheless, the local city/county building official has got the final say concerning what should be permitted. Therefore prior to deciding to build be sure to contact your local building department to prevent troubles and big penalties down the road.
To learn more regarding building permits in Ponte Vedra Beach, FL, speak to All Pro Home Inspectors Inc. at 904-807-0939 today!