Are you renovating them or just trying to have them on the books as legal renovations??

If you are renovating , then you should be able to use the plans from the designer. If you are removing walls /windows/doors then you will need an architect.

At least that is how it is handled by me.

Just to have them on the books as the county require me to legalize them.

Contact the city or county or whatever entity is demanding this and ask them exactly what they want.

I bought a house in Alameda Co. with lots of unpermitted work and neither the city nor county had any knowledge or interest in it. There was no reason for me to "legalize" it. Why do you have to? Are you renting it out or something?

It was done illegally, but it's done. Generally, as long as it's safe, you don't need to worry about it. If there is any issue about safety, get a professional in to check it out...especially electric.

it’s reported to the county and they demand us to legalize the violations. the unpermitted work was done by a previous owner and they sold. i bought knowing that i need to pull permit for the unpermited remodels

My company is based in Oakland. This is called a legal non-conforming space. Building counter should be able to give you a list of requirements. There is a misconception about moving walls etc, including load bearing walls. Using prescriptive measures out of our California building code, even the novice can submit to county/Muni. If the engineer of records agrees with the prescriptive code you have illustrated, they will self stamp.(This is true of all regions regardless of what may be the documented case. I work all over the country)

Regardless, this is common for unpermitted space.

Any other questions you have, feel free to reach out.

www.rabbittdesign.net

You'll want to get this resolved, especially for resale. Plead the innocent homeowner act to inspection and hope for some sympathy.

I totally feel your pain! We live in Scottsdale / Phoenix and have been shocked by not only the prices of homes, but the rampant number of flippers that simply do not get permits. We understand that for cosemtic changes, permits are not needed most of the time. But lately, it seems like it has gotten really bad with the low inventory of homes available to purchase, so heads up to anyone looking in the area. We've seen "remodeled" homes that have had walls removed, plumbing relocated and worst of all, electrical re-wiring, etc. all done with out a single permit, which means no inspection to make sure it was done to code. We too have contacted the building department at the city and they are willing to help a homeowner go back and get things inspected and signed off on, but it could prove to be a painfully expensive process. For example, we were told that for wall removal, we'd need to open up some areas of the walls for inspection and get the stamp of approval from a structural engineer. However, I have to say, the folks in the building department are more than happy to help. People need to understand that there are insurance and lender issues with homes that do not have permits and if anything happens (like a fire, for example) insurance companies investigate. No permits? No payments for loss. Not something to mess around with at all.