Probably the most intimidating part of building your own house
is the permit process. Not only do the the requirements vary
from township to township, but at times the decisions made seem
so subjective that we find ourselves seething in frustration.
However, permits and inspections are a necessary step, and they
are in place predominately for your protection. Ask any
earthquake victim in Iran. Because I am concerned here with new
construction, I won't go into the permits required for
renovation; that's another story.
In a new development, the buyer usually doesn't have to think
about permits; the builder takes care of all the details. With
independent projects, you may end up engaging a contractor who
hires all the sub-contractors and takes care of the permits.
This makes life infinitely easier for the buyer, but you'll pay
for that convenience. In rural areas, because township officials
are usually volunteers, they tend to work only one or two hours
a week, and often after five o'clock. If you miss their time,
you'll probably have to wait another week. This could run your
builder ragged and cause unwelcome delays.
If you decide to get the permits yourself, the first thing you
want to do is go to the township office and acquire their Code
Requirements for Single Family Dwellings, and also their
Building Permit Requirement Checklist (or whatever they call
these documents). The Code Requirements will cover everything
from smoke detectors to egress windows, from stair requirements
to insulation, from foundations to chimneys and anything in
between. It wouldn't hurt to send a copy to your log home
manufacturer, just in case. The Building Permit checklist,
though more simply worded, will be the most important document
to familiarize yourself with. If even one of these items are
unchecked, you won't get that permit that day!
Once you start the process, you come to realize that the
Construction Permit is the most important, the most
sought-after, the most critical objective in your immediate
scope. Without it, you cannot even break ground. Since
everything ties together, the township wants to make sure you
have your "ducks in a row" before they "permit" you to start.
There will usually be a one-year time limit to the permit, or a
six-month time limit if construction is stopped in the middle.
You should budget about $1500-$2000 for your average building
permit, unless there unusual circumstances attached to your
project (wetlands delineation, variances, etc.).
Because every township is different, I'll limit myself to my own
building project, which took place in rural NJ. We chose to sign
up as Homeowner Builder, which the owners can opt to do if they
are going to live in their own house. We were technically
responsible for getting the permits and the subs (although we
hired a contractor who hired most of the subs for us). This
meant that we had to climb a steep learning curve to understand
all the components of the project.
Here is what we had to acquire to qualify for the building
permit:
TAX CERTIFICATION: This document came from the township, and
verified that not only did we own this piece of land, we were up
to date with our property tax payments.
TWO SETS OF SEALED BUILDING PLANS: We learned very quickly how
important this was. What they wanted was an Architect's or
Building Engineer's stamp on the plans that came from the log
home manufacturer. Do not assume that the plans will come
pre-stamped. Not all manufacturers have the ability to apply a
seal from every state. Our plans were not sealed, and we had to
scramble around and find someone willing to stamp someone else's
plans. This is not an easy task, because most architects do not
want to take on that responsibility. This snag set our project
back two months.
Included in the building plan will probably be a separate
foundation plan, since most log homes do not provide a
foundation as part of the building. If there is a separate
foundation plan, it too will need to be stamped by a qualified
engineer or architect.
SIGNED, SEALED ELECTRIC PERMIT APPLICATION: Don't expect the log
home manufacturer to provide electrical drawings. Once you hire
an electrician, you'll have to sit down with him and determine
where you are putting your outlets, light switches and fixtures.
Local code will determine how close together your outlets will
go. Do yourself a favor and put in many more outlets than you
think you will need; retrofitting could be unsightly. Also, plan
on twice as many light fixtures than a standard home - wood
sucks up light like a sponge. While you are at it, it helps to
include your cable wires, phone wires and CAT5 in every room,
even though you may not think you'll need it. Once you move into
the house, you may change a room's usage from your original
conception - we did, and regretted our shortsightedness.
SIGNED, SEALED PLUMBING PERMIT APPLICATION: This is another set
of drawings that will not come from the log home manufacturer.
You and the plumber must figure out where the fixtures are
going, and if you live in the country remember that the plumbing
needs to hook into your septic. (This permit is separate from
the septic design permit).
APPROVED COUNTY SEPTIC DESIGN: The septic design came from the
local civil engineer. The permit application came from the
township, but the septic approval came from the county.
HVAC DIAGRAM showing where your ductwork is going.
DRIVEWAY PERMIT: In our case, this came from the Director of
Public Works. We had to make provision for a pipe to be
installed beneath a 24' paved apron at the end of the driveway.
This allowed the water runoff unimpeded access to the stream
down the block.
STATE WELL PERMIT and TOWNSHIP WELL PERMIT if you are digging
your own well. If there is a drought going on, they might put a
hold on new well permits, which will put a hold on the whole
project. So get it as quickly as possible.
PLOT PLAN AND ZONING APPROVAL: the Plot Plan will come from the
local civil engineer. This is not the same as a survey, which
will be required by the mortgage company. The plot plan shows
the location of the house, driveway, well and septic as well as
the perimeter of the building envelope.
WATER TABLE INVESTIGATION REPORT: this will help you determine
whether you can dig a basement, or do you need to raise the
house up?
These are the big ones. You might have local wetland delineation
issues, easements, or setbacks to worry about. Once you get that
Construction Permit, treat yourself to a celebratory dinner.
You'll have earned it!
The Construction Permit needs to be prominently displayed on the
job site. You also need to keep one of those sealed sets of
building plans on site at all times, just in case you get a
surprise visit from an inspector. Hopefully by now you will have
made friends with the township inspector, because he's going to
have a big say in the ease or difficulty of your project. The
inspections are all spelled out and will be required at each
step in the process before you can move on. This could cause a
delay of one to several days (not counting bad weather), so
think ahead - but not too far ahead. The first inspection will
come pretty quick. When your excavator digs the hole for your
foundation, the township may inspect the bottom of the footing
trenches before placement of footings. If you are using a
Superior Walls precast foundation system, there will be no
footings so this inspection will be unnecessary. However, the
footings for your deck and porches will need to be inspected.
There will be a foundation inspection before the backfill is
shoveled in. The big inspection will be the framing inspection.
This must be done before the insulation is added. Then, there
will be an inspection for the plumbing, the electrical panel and
wiring, the septic or sewer service, then insulation. At the end
of the project, there will be a final inspection before issuance
of a Certificate of Occupancy; the inspector will look at the
finishing work, the smoke detectors, fixtures, etc. There may be
other inspections in between, depending on the township.
Unless you are acting as your own general contractor,
inspections should not concern you, except that if something
fails the whole project grinds to a halt. If you are the
Homeowner Builder, you will probably be arranging the
inspections yourself, and it helps to know what the township is
looking for.
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