Anything that required a permit and didn't get one. The ones we see most:

• Finished basements, especially with a bathroom, kitchen or bedroom
• Attic conversions and dormers
• Garage conversions to living space
• Decks, porches, patios with roofs, and sunrooms
• Rear or side extensions
• Second kitchens and accessory apartments
• Pools, sheds over the size limit, fences over the height limit, and central A/C or generators

Unpermitted work surfaces at the worst moment. A buyer's title search compares the house to the certificate of occupancy. A lender may refuse to fund. An insurer can dispute a claim tied to unpermitted work. A neighbor's complaint can bring an inspector and a violation with daily fines. Legalizing on your own schedule is cheaper and faster than doing it under a contract deadline or an open violation.

New York City

An architect or engineer files the as-built work in DOB NOW, usually as an alteration. Plans are reviewed against the NYC Construction Codes and Zoning Resolution. Inspections follow, then sign-off and, where the use or occupancy changes, a new certificate of occupancy.

Long Island

Each town and village runs its own building department under the NYS Uniform Code. Expect a current survey, as-built plans, an electrical inspection certificate from an approved third-party agency, and a final inspection. The result is a certificate of occupancy or certificate of completion. If the work breaks a zoning rule, you'll need a variance first.

Florida

Usually filed as an "after-the-fact" permit. Many South Florida jurisdictions charge increased fees for work started without a permit. Plans must meet the Florida Building Code, and in Miami-Dade and Broward the High-Velocity Hurricane Zone rules, including approved windows and doors.

Sometimes. Inspectors need to see what they're approving. We often avoid full demolition with small inspection openings, photos from construction, contractor affidavits, or an engineer's letter. Electrical and plumbing are the areas most likely to need exposure.

It depends on zoning first, then building code. The property must be allowed to have a second unit. Then the space needs legal ceiling height, a code-compliant egress window or door from each sleeping room, fire separation from the rest of the house, smoke and CO alarms, and proper ventilation.

In NYC, the 2024 City of Yes rules and a basement conversion pilot program in select neighborhoods opened new paths. On Long Island, most towns handle this as an accessory apartment permit with owner-occupancy requirements. See our ADU page.

A simple legalization with no zoning problem often takes two to four months from plans to final. If a variance is needed, add the zoning board hearing, which can add several months. Busy departments and examiner objections stretch timelines. We give you a job-specific estimate after reviewing the records.

Budget for four pieces: survey and plans from a licensed professional, filing and permit fees (plus any penalty fees for work without a permit), corrections the inspector requires, and our expediting fee. We quote our fee as a flat amount once we've seen the file.

Before you close, have us compare the house to the permit history and C.O. You can then ask the seller to legalize, negotiate a credit, or set up an escrow holdback. After closing, the problem is yours.

An area variance relaxes a dimensional rule: how close to the lot line, how tall, how much of the lot is covered. Most residential variances are area variances.

A use variance allows a use the zone doesn't permit, such as a two-family house in a one-family zone. Use variances are much harder to get because the owner must show unnecessary hardship.

For area variances, New York law (Town Law §267-b, Village Law §7-712-b) has the board weigh the benefit to you against the harm to the neighborhood, using five factors:

• Will it change the character of the neighborhood or hurt nearby properties?
• Can you get the same benefit another way?
• How substantial is the request?
• Will it harm physical or environmental conditions?
• Was the difficulty self-created? (This counts but doesn't decide the case.)

We build the application around those five questions, with photos, prior approvals on your block, and the smallest relief that works.

• Side, front or rear yard setbacks for extensions, decks and porches
• Lot coverage and gross floor area
• Building height and dormers
• Fence and wall height
• Pool, shed and A/C unit location
• Driveway width and parking
• Existing structures built without permits, when legalizing them

• The building department reviews your plans and issues a denial (disapproval) listing the zoning sections you don't meet. That denial is what the board hears.
• We prepare the application, drawings, photos and legal narrative.
• Neighbors within a set radius are notified by mail, and a sign may be posted.
• You or we appear at a public hearing. Neighbors can speak for or against.
• The board votes, sometimes with conditions. Then the building permit is issued.

NYC

Variances go to the Board of Standards and Appeals (BSA), which is slower and more formal than a Long Island town board.

Florida

Handled by a board of adjustment, zoning hearing examiner or city commission, depending on the city. Standards differ by local code.

From filing to decision is often three to six months on Long Island, longer at the NYC BSA. Chances improve when the request is modest, similar variances have been granted nearby, and neighbors support it or at least don't object. We'll tell you plainly if we think an application is weak and suggest a design change instead.

Yes. Hearings are public. We prepare written opposition and testimony aimed at the same five factors the board must weigh.

• No permit, or an expired permit
• Work beyond the approved scope or plans
• Unsafe conditions: excavation, shoring, scaffolding, falling debris
• Unlicensed or uninsured contractor
• Failed or skipped inspections
• A neighbor complaint that led to an inspection

In NYC the DOB can halt all work on a site or only the work in question. A partial order may let unrelated work continue. Read the order carefully. It states what is stopped and usually why.

• Get a copy of the order and any related violations.
• Identify every condition the department cited.
• File or amend permits and plans to cover the work.
• Make the site safe and correct any hazardous condition.
• Pay required penalties or fees.
• Request re-inspection and a rescission of the order.

NYC

The order is rescinded by DOB after the underlying issues are addressed. Related violations may also need to be resolved at an OATH hearing.

Long Island

Towns often pair a stop work order with an appearance ticket returnable in district court. Clearing the permit issue helps resolve the court case.

Florida

The building official lifts the order once permits are issued and conditions corrected. Unlicensed contracting can also involve the state licensing board.

Usually you can secure the site, make it weathertight, and correct dangerous conditions. Ask the department first, in writing if possible. We handle that request.

A missing permit on otherwise good work can clear in days to a few weeks once filed. Orders involving plans that need new approvals, structural engineering or zoning relief take longer.

The department looks to the owner and the permit holder. You may have a claim against the contractor, which is a question for your attorney. Our job is to get the order lifted and the work legal.

To the building department, the work was never approved as finished. Lenders and buyers treat that as a defect. Some Florida lenders and title underwriters won't close with open permits on the record, and NYC buyers' attorneys routinely require sign-offs.

NYC

Search the address in DOB NOW and the older BIS system for permits, sign-offs and violations.

Long Island

Request the building department file from the town or village, often through a FOIL request. Many permits aren't online.

Florida

Search the city or county permit portal. At closing, title companies usually order a municipal lien and open permit search.

We pull these records as the first step of every job.

• Find what inspections were never passed.
• Confirm the work built matches the approved plans. If not, amend the plans.
• Schedule and pass the remaining inspections, including electrical and plumbing sign-offs.
• Obtain the final: a letter of completion, certificate of completion or certificate of occupancy.

Very common. Most departments let a new licensed contractor take over the permit, or let the owner take responsibility in some cases. We handle the change-of-contractor paperwork.

Florida permits expire if work stops or inspections lapse. Many can be renewed or reactivated for a fee to finish inspections. Florida law also lets building departments close some older permits when no safety hazard is apparent. We check which route applies.

Open permits stay with the property, not the person. Once you own it, the department deals with you. That is why checking before you buy matters.

• Bedrooms or basements without a legal egress window or door
• Ceiling heights below code in basements and attics
• Missing or old smoke and carbon monoxide alarms
• Stairs with uneven risers, no handrail, or low guardrails
• No fire separation between an attached garage and the house
• Missing GFCI or AFCI electrical protection, and unpermitted wiring
• Deck ledgers and footings built without proper attachment
• Pool barriers and gates
• In Florida, windows, doors and roofing without state or Miami-Dade product approval

NYC

DOB and ECB-type violations go to an OATH hearing. Missing the hearing leads to a default penalty, and unpaid penalties can be docketed as judgments.

Long Island

An appearance ticket means a court date. Judges usually adjourn while you legalize, but not forever.

Florida

Code enforcement can impose daily fines that accrue until you comply and can become a lien on the property.

Correct the condition, get any required permit, and submit proof. In NYC that is often a certificate of correction. On Long Island, the town tells the court the matter is resolved. In Florida, the inspector confirms compliance and the case is closed, sometimes with a request to reduce accrued fines.

Yes. We compare the house as built to the certificate of occupancy and permit history, list anything unpermitted or open, and estimate what it would take to fix. That gives you facts to negotiate with. This is a records and compliance review, separate from a home inspection.

Yes. Window, door, shutter and roof replacements need permits, and the products must carry a Florida Product Approval or, in the High-Velocity Hurricane Zone, a Miami-Dade Notice of Acceptance.

Zoning codes require a set number of off-street spaces based on use, usually per square foot of floor area or per seat. When you change a use, say from retail to a restaurant or medical office, the required count often goes up. If the lot can't provide the spaces, you need relief from the zoning board.

Ways to make the case:

• A parking study showing actual demand and peak hours
• Shared parking with neighbors whose peak hours differ
• Leased off-site spaces nearby
• Nearby transit, municipal lots or on-street supply
• Reducing seats or floor area to lower the requirement

Long Island

Parking variances are among the most common commercial applications at town zoning boards, especially for restaurants and gyms.

NYC

The City of Yes reforms removed or reduced many parking requirements, especially near transit. Check the current rules before assuming you need relief.

Florida

Many cities allow parking reductions administratively or through a variance, depending on the code.

A written plan, approved by the fire department, describing how a building's occupants are protected and evacuated: exits, alarm and sprinkler systems, staff duties, drills and emergency contacts.

NYC

The FDNY requires fire safety and emergency action plans for many buildings, including office buildings, hotels and places of assembly, with trained staff in designated roles.

Nassau & Suffolk

The county or town fire marshal reviews fire alarm, sprinkler and kitchen hood suppression plans and inspects before occupancy.

Florida

Local fire marshals enforce the Florida Fire Prevention Code, review plans and conduct annual inspections of commercial spaces.

• Zoning approval for the use, and parking relief if needed
• Building permit for the fit-out, often a change of occupancy
• Kitchen hood, exhaust and fire suppression permits
• Grease trap or interceptor approval
• Health department plan review and food service permit
• Place of assembly permit if occupancy is large enough (in NYC, 75 or more people)
• Sign permits, and in NYC, sidewalk café approval if you want outdoor seating
• Final certificate of occupancy (NY) or certificate of use (Florida)

When a space goes from one occupancy classification to another, such as retail to assembly or storage to office, the building must meet the code for the new use. That can trigger sprinklers, more exits, accessible restrooms and a new certificate of occupancy. Check this before signing a lease.

Alterations to commercial space generally must meet accessibility rules for the altered area. Under the federal ADA, when you alter a primary function area, up to 20% of the project cost may need to go toward an accessible path of travel, restrooms and drinking fountains serving it. NYC and Florida have their own accessibility codes on top of this.

NYC

Façade inspections (Local Law 11/FISP) for buildings over six stories, and Local Law 97 emissions limits for most buildings over 25,000 sq ft.

Florida

Milestone structural inspections for condominium and co-op buildings three stories or taller, plus 40-year recertification in Miami-Dade and Broward. Most businesses also need a local certificate of use and business tax receipt.

• Is my use allowed in this zone, as-of-right?
• Does the certificate of occupancy match my use?
• How many parking spaces does my use require, and how many exist?
• Are there open permits or violations on the building?
• Is there a sprinkler system, and is it adequate for my use?
• Are the restrooms and entrance accessible?

We do this review before you sign, so you can negotiate who pays for what.