We started remodeling our kitchen last year—nothing huge, just updating cabinets, countertops, and some plumbing. Honestly thought we'd be done in a couple months tops. But life happened, you know, delays with supplies, contractor scheduling issues... the usual stuff. Anyway, I totally forgot about the permits we got from the city until yesterday when I stumbled across them in a drawer. Turns out they've been expired for almost two months already. Oops.
I called the city office today and got a pretty vague answer about needing to renew or possibly reapply completely. I'm kinda worried this will mean extra fees or even worse—more inspections and red tape slowing us down again. Has anyone else here had permits expire mid-project? Curious how much hassle it was to sort out or if there's maybe an easy way around this that I'm missing.
We had something similar happen when renovating our bathroom last summer—permits expired halfway through. Honestly, renewing wasn't too bad, just a quick form and a small fee. Hopefully your city is equally reasonable about it...good luck!
"Honestly, renewing wasn't too bad, just a quick form and a small fee."
Yeah, same here. Had permits lapse on a duplex reno last year—initially panicked thinking it'd be a bureaucratic nightmare, but it turned out pretty straightforward. One thing I'd add though: double-check if your city requires another inspection after renewal. Ours did, which caught me off guard and delayed things by about a week...not terrible, but something to keep in mind. Good luck getting it sorted!
"double-check if your city requires another inspection after renewal."
Good point, inspections can sneak up on you. Had a similar issue last summer—permit expired mid-deck build. Renewal itself was easy enough, but our city required updated drawings since the code had changed slightly. Wasn't a huge deal, but it added some unexpected paperwork and a few extra days. Might be worth checking if your local codes have shifted at all since your original approval...
Wasn't a huge deal, but it added some unexpected paperwork and a few extra days. Might be worth checking if your local codes have shifted at all since your original approval...
Had permits lapse twice during our historic reno—city made us resubmit everything from scratch both times. Agree with above, definitely check for code changes. Better to deal with it now than get blindsided later.
