Most buyers have a home inspected by a home and structural pest control (“termite”) inspector. Additional inspections recommended, such as for roof or drainage, should also be done.Ideally, you want to know not only the severity of a defect, but how much it will cost to repair. An item that is often overlooked during buyers’ inspections is the permit history on the house. Many times a new homeowner will apply for a permit to do some work on their home and when they apply at the city building department, they find out that previous owners took out permits that were still outstanding with no record of final approvals given. The permit request will be denied by the city. This happens all the time.

The homeowners then have to do all of the work that all of the previous permits covered, get the city to inspect the work performed, then get final approval. This can cost the new homeowner thousands of dollars for repairs not even counting the time and disruption it can cause.While you’re checking out the permit situation, be sure to research if any back fees are owed against the property for past permits or anything else.