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Am I responsible for contractor not pulling permit?

8 years ago

Contractor doing job. He said he pulled permit.
He has done some of the work. Remove tree, build storage to garage.
I found out by going in to Code Compliance, that he did NOT pull permit.
CC/permit person said, "do not do anything else until you have the permit".
They will be issuing a fine.
Am I responsible for getting the fine or will he get the fine?
San Antonio, Tx
Thank-you.

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Comments (8)

_sophiewheeler
8 years ago
You own the property, you own the fine. Charge it to the contractor and subtract it from what you owe him. Then fire him. And find someone who will do above board work.

If he's even licensed to work in your town, he may lose that license with the town.
snoonyb
8 years ago
"build storage to garage."

If the storage is not conforming arch. and is instead simply for the housing of lawn and yard equip., it may not require a permit.

Is there specific verbiage in the contract addressing to whom the responsibility for the permits, is?

Depending upon the scope of the project, you may be premature.

As a courtesy and before the city issues a stop work order, inform the contractor of your conduct.
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Sorry to hear you are in this situation. Did you have a written contract? Where I am in Ct I honestly don't think they will let you file in small claims if you don't have a contract but they might. I had a contractor pull the same kind of thing, but he had signed a contract and was licensed. We won in court, but he never paid us back, even though we garnished wages, etc. He kept changing jobs and avoiding the payments. Now we are stuck with about half the judgement unpaid, attorney's fees, and nothing else. Another contractor had to finish the work and it cost more because we had to undo what was done improperly. It was an expensive nightmare. The work you were going to do might and might not have been allowed, depending on your zoning for your area. Here, an auxillary apartment is allowed, but it depends on quite few factors, such as your water and sewer tie ins or septic etc. Here, I don't believe the Dept. of Health allows for a tie in to an existing septic, but I could be wrong. (The ones I've seen had to have their own separate septic if not say an inlaw apartment in the basement say) If it wasn't legal and you had no contract, I think you might be throwing your money away. Just my opinion though. You can find out what is needed for the local small claims court in your area, including the cost to file and the amount you can sue for. It might just be an expensive lesson learned though. I hope it works out for you.
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renovator8
8 years ago
good luck with your project

This post was edited by Renovator8 on Sun, Mar 23, 14 at 9:07
renovator8
8 years ago
good luck with your project

This post was edited by Renovator8 on Sun, Mar 23, 14 at 9:08
sundownr
8 years ago
I know a GC in SA if you are looking. :)
lazy_gardens
8 years ago
"Am I responsible for getting the fine or will he get the fine? "

Depends on what the state or county laws and regulations say.

In NM, the contractor is responsible for pulling permits on any work they do that is subject to permit ... not the homeowner. And it's a statewide thing. If my HVAC contractor had not pulled permits, he would have had the fine and a ding on his license. The work would have been inspe3cted and if it passed, it passed.

I would be responsible only for permits on things I did myself that were subject to permits.
renovator8
8 years ago
good luck with your project

This post was edited by Renovator8 on Sun, Mar 23, 14 at 9:09
annkh_nd
8 years ago
I've had work done on my house in North Dakota twice, and I purchased the building permits in both cases. The city simply asked me who was doing the work.

When it was windows and roof, I was told I didn't need an inspection; when I did my kitchen, the electricians arranged for the inspection at a time when they were on site, in case anything had to be fixed.

I have a friend in the permit office, so I usually call her before I hire a contractor. She knows who has a good reputation, and who does great work. I'm lucky to have such a resource!

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