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So, the Wife and I are considering expanding our deck, then sell the home next year or so (deck needs a redo anyhow). This expansion also will involve hooking up to sewer (currently septic). We also considered expanding as close as possible to septic set back to avoid sewer hook up. Town hall building department sez "what deck"....there is no deck on file.....yet, the field card shows the deck, and that we have been taxed on. We have been here 16 years, bought with the deck in place, they do not grandfather items in, boy did we open a can of worms. Is there any way to convince the town to grandfather in this deck ?....it is 14 inches off the ground and is overbuilt (very strong), just needs new wood.
So,what is the bldg. dept. saying ? You can or cannot expand the un-permitted deck ? Are they willing to help you get it permitted ? Are they willing to do an inspection to see if it was done to code and then you pull a permit based on what they find and allow you to rectify any deficiencies ?
Once satisfied, they could then sign off on the current deck and you could proceed with the properly permitted expansion. In my experience, pulling a permit after the work is done usually costs twice what the permit would have cost if pulled before work was started.
Where I live in VA the term "Grandfathered" does not exist and is called "non conforming".
You cannot do anything here without a variance or meeting existing code and setbacks.
In my area, the "field card" is what the tax assessor uses to determine the value of the property for the purpose of assessing real estate taxes. It will have every feature listed even if it was done without a permit. It has no bearing on the legal requirements of the building department. Here, if the assessor has an item on the field card that is not considered a permitted feature per building dept., property owners can use the building department's file to argue for a lower valuation of that feature since it's non-conforming. But, just like you placed "value" to that deck even though it appears not to have a permit when built, the assessor also places some value to it when computing taxes.
So, the Wife and I are considering expanding our deck, then sell the home next year or so (deck needs a redo anyhow). This expansion also will involve hooking up to sewer (currently septic). We also considered expanding as close as possible to septic set back to avoid sewer hook up. Town hall building department sez "what deck"....there is no deck on file.....yet, the field card shows the deck, and that we have been taxed on. We have been here 16 years, bought with the deck in place, they do not grandfather items in, boy did we open a can of worms. Is there any way to convince the town to grandfather in this deck ?....it is 14 inches off the ground and is overbuilt (very strong), just needs new wood.
There are lots of unpermitted decks, outbuildings, additions and renovations in any jurisdiction. How active your building department is in going after such things we can't know. They aren't real active, if you've been living there all this time and didn't know it was unpermitted. You didn't ask the question, most buyers don't.
Your choice is here is either to seek the permit to make the deck legal (they don't just "grandfather" it, you will have to pay the fees and they will need to inspect it like any other permitted work) or, you can make your repairs and additions on your still-unpermitted deck and live on. That's what many people do. Just do it up to code, just in case... Because the risk is having to fight the county later and either pay up then, or rip it out if it can't be approved.
Problem is that it would need to be disclosed when we list the house for sale, this may have a negative effect.
Yes it can. Honestly, unless there are setback or encroachment issues that would make them reject an application for a deck there, the amount of work to bring a low deck into compliance is probably worth doing if you're remodeling it anyway. You may pay a higher permit fee, because it's late and they can make you, but a good general contractor ought to be able to finesse getting and completing the permit with the county. Most of the work should be open and easy to inspect, unlike those who have unpermitted work that is now hidden behind drywall.
Building department and taxing are different entities. They may or may not talk to each other or exchange data. Data exchange probably getting better, but not 100% and depends on the jurisdiction. Talk to the building department in person, not on the phone. Explain what you want to do and how to get it right. Chances are they'll help you. Might even be easier today since you want to redeck...so if they really want to inspect, they have a chance to see everything. I'd be surprised if they actually inspect decks.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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In both states where I have built decks, California and Washington, there is no need for a permit if the deck is under 30" off the ground (CA) or under 18" off the ground (WA).
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