Home Renovation Permits
What requires a permit, what happens if you skip one, and how to handle unpermitted work.
🔴 Almost Always Requires a Permit
- •Electrical panel upgrade or rewiring
- •Plumbing: new lines, water heater relocation
- •HVAC installation or replacement
- •Adding or removing walls (especially load-bearing)
- •New windows or doors (structural changes)
- •Deck construction or major repair
- •Room additions or ADUs
- •Garage conversions
- •Roofing in most jurisdictions
- •Foundation repair
🟢 Usually Does NOT Require a Permit
- •Painting (interior and exterior)
- •Flooring replacement (tile, hardwood, carpet)
- •Cabinet replacement (not moving)
- •Countertop replacement
- •Faucet, toilet, sink replacement (in-kind)
- •Light fixture replacement (no rewiring)
- •Fence (under height limit, varies by city)
- •Small sheds (under 120–200 sq ft, varies)
- •Landscaping
- •Appliance replacement
What Happens If You Skip a Permit?
- ⚠️Sale complications: Buyers and their lenders may require permits to be retroactively obtained — or the work to be demolished and redone.
- ⚠️Insurance issues: Your homeowners insurance may deny a claim related to unpermitted work.
- ⚠️Fines: Municipalities can issue stop-work orders and fines — sometimes equal to multiple times the permit cost.
- ⚠️Safety: Permits require inspections that catch potentially life-threatening errors in electrical, structural, and plumbing work.
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