What you need to know about Construction Permits

3/16/2021 (Permalink)

Imagine you live in a neighborhood where every house looks the same, and every block matches the one that came before. The neighborhood is organized into perfect symmetry, then one day the annoying guy down the street builds a hot pink addition to the front side of his property. The roof is a sickening green-yellow, and the edges protrude out onto the sidewalk. The window trimmings are a gaudy royal blue, and the front door to this weird forward addition is a bright fire engine red.

I bet you think that scenario is excessive and unrealistic, and that’s because it is! The reason you’ve never seen/heard of something like this is because of construction permits. Construction permits are official approvals for projects/remodels to homes and commercial buildings which are issued by the local government. A specific example would be adding some concrete to your driveway. The design and land usage must be approved by the association if you have one, and the local building department.

Keep in mind, a construction permit is not needed for simple repairs around the house. You don’t need to submit an application to patch a wall, or fix a leaky faucet. The construction permit is used for major mechanical or structural changes to a house, like space additions or work on gas lines. The whole point of the construction permit is to make sure that the annoying guy down the street doesn’t ruin the aesthetic of the neighborhood with his hot pink front addition. It’s also for the crazy lady next door that thinks she can reconfigure all her electrical wires by herself, even though she’s never done anything even remotely close to it before. The permits are used to keep everyone safe, and to allow the neighborhood to look its best.