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The permit process can be long and arduous or pretty simple depending on the size and function of your project. However, basic rule, get a permit.

 

Permit Process

The specific things you want to know are:

1) How large can I build before school taxes must be paid?  This again is specific to the area you are in. My county states, at 500 sq. ft. school taxes must be paid. It is rated by the square ft. on the entire amount. An addition of 499 sq. ft. pays no school taxes. An addition of 500 sq. ft. pays approximately $3100.00 in school taxes.

2) How large can I build with field plans? Field plans are plans you draw yourself. They don't have to be great. They don't have to look like blue prints. They just have to give the inspector an idea of what you want to do. And how your going to do it. An architect will cost you a few thousand for anything. My county's mark is 1,000 sq. ft. At 1000 you have to go to plan check. This where your plans need to look good and have all the details. There are programs out there to design with. They turn out good looking drawings and if you are computer savey, you can figure it out. Still, you have to know how to design and engineer and still may have to get a real engineer to verify and certify your plans and accept your check of another few thousand. .... And then you will mostly never get through plan check the first or even the second time. Causing cost in drawing changes and then re-engineering and adding months onto your wait time! so If you are going to build, realize the difference in cost of your sq. footage at certain increments. I added a little less than 500 sq. ft at a time to my home. 3 times! You can have more than one permit open at a time. I started with a 480 sf. ft kitchen. Before I got too far, I added a permit for 475 sq. ft. of laundry and sunroom. Soon after that I pulled a permit for the studio at 440 sq. ft. That's nearly 1400 square ft. at finish. Cost for permits, $700.00. Had I permited it all at once, permits, architect, engineering, school taxs ... about $12,000.00 before I could ever dig a footing! Plus that 1400 sq. ft. was more than doubling the size of the existing structure, so fire sprinklers would have been ordered at about $6,000.00 plus the $250.00 fire inspection fee. So plan accordinly. If you can build in sections, do it. Just think ahead as to where everything is going to fit.

If you are building a new house, of course you are going to have to go through all of the above. Don't worry, this is going to be a big project and there is still plenty of ways to save money later.

 

Beej

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