Legal Brief for June, 2011

Development and Building Permits

In May's Legal Brief, I reviewed the significance of Compliance Certificates in the context of Real Property Reports.   A problem that often arises during a compliance review is that it will come to light that the required permits for changes to the property have not been obtained by the current or prior owners.  These changes can include adding a garage or deck to the property, or altering an existing structure.

There are a variety of permits that are required for a structure that is being built on a property.  In the City of Edmonton for example, if you are building a garage, you will be required to obtain first of all what is known as a "development permit".  This permit is to obtain approval for the type of structure that you wish to construct.  You must then also obtain what is known as a "building permit".  This permit allows the City to review your actual building plans and specifications, so that it can determine if your proposal will comply with applicable building code standards.  You may also be required to obtain mechanical permits if utililty services are involved with what you are building.

Homeowners are sometimes in a rush to get started on their projects, and they don’t take the necessary steps to apply for these permits.  Or they may simply not care, and are determined to just get their work done regardless of any safety issues.  The garage or deck goes up, and the homeowner is pleased with the result.  Life is good.

However, the day of reckoning comes when the homeowner goes to sell the property.  Oftentimes it becomes necessary to have a new Real Property Report done for the sale.  The seller is then required to have a Compliance Certificate stamp on the Report as part of the seller's requirements in the sale contract.  The Report is submitted to the municipal authority, the existence of the additions is noted, the municipality's file is reviewed to check the permit history (or lack thereof!), and lo and behold, in many cases it turns out that the homeowner has not obtained the necessary permits.

It is permissible to apply for retroactive permits to address this problem.  However, like in many situations, delay can be costly, and the fees may be much more expensive than at the time of construction, and penalties may also be added to the cost.  In addition, there is the burden of the stress arising from having this last minute complication in the sale process.

So the next time you are thinking of expanding your deck, or building a nice gazebo in the backyard, make sure you do it right.  Get your permits now, while you can.  It will save you much grief and expense down the road when you go to sell your property.  In Edmonton, you can contact the Planning & Development Department of the City of Edmonton, located on the 5th floor, 10250 - 101 Street, or by phoning 311 within Edmonton and 780-442-5311 if you live outside Edmonton.

Permits - don't build without them!