My house is listed as a 2 bedroom, 1 bathroom home on all the real estate web sites, but I actually have 2 bathrooms. Obviously, 2 bathrooms as opposed to 1 is more equity for me so I have questions? How do I find out if the bathroom is actually permitted and if it is not permitted how do I go about permitting it so the listings are correct.
Any help is much appreciated.
You can check with the city. If it’s not permitted and you get it approved, then you risk an increase in property taxes. The lack of permit doesn’t stop you from listing it as 2/2 when you put it up for sale.
Cities like san jose has website to search for building permit history for any property in the city. If you don’t see the permit for the second bathroom, it is better to get the permit.
One of the property that i bought had the same bathroom permit issue. I made my offer with addendum saying full permit on the second bathroom before closing and seller accepted it. It took a while but worked out.
I don’t think buyers like the property without proper bathroom permit.
Now that the property tax will go up based on the purchase price at the new transaction, i don’t think property tax is going to be an issue.
I guess the real issue is getting the contractor who can pull the permit by upgrading the bathroom up to code as well as cost.
Appraisals go off what the appraiser sees in person. What’s on Zillow only affects how you feel. Avoid it if it causes you emotional distress.
I don’t think a un-permitted bathroom will decrease your property value. It may not increase it as much had the bathroom been permitted.
Some buyers avoid unpermitted stuff like a plague. Most are fine with it, especially in SF. So at least don’t tear it out. You may consider bringing it up to code. Most realtors will advise against listing it as 2 baths if one of the bathrooms wasn’t permitted. You may open yourself to misrepresentation lawsuits.