Can I Rehab A Big House Into A Duplex?
I have found a pretty big house that is in real bad shape. It looks like it was added onto a few times and the layout is not right for a normal house. What are the rules for turning it into a duplex or a house with a back apartment?
Thanks,
Randy
To do it legitimately you should make sure this use would be allowed under the current zoning.
Not all residential districts allow two- or multi-family.
You can contact the local zoning admin. or land use dept. or whatever your municipality calls it. They will be able to give you all the restrictions, allowed uses, etc. Try to get a tax id but they should also be able to use an address.
If it is not allowed you could go the due process route (i.e. re-zone). I don't know the area so I don't know how easy/difficult that might be.
That's the best place to start IMO, other than some rough number crunching. Due diligence.
Good luck. Keep us posted.
Don[ Edited by dheckel on Date 06/28/2003 ]
Forgot to ask....
How big is the lot?
Don
rezone and get a building permit. You'll probably need a cert. of occupancy when complete.
It's on a quarter acre lot. It is zoned residential but I am not sure what that means. I guess I will have check with zoning dept. on Monday to find out. Do I check with the county or the city?
A caveat upfront: I am not an experienced RE investor (some, but not a lot). I am an experienced remodeling contractor.
My feeling about rehabbing is that the layout of a house is critical. If you are planning to convert a big one, then work on the layout. A few walls, here and there, may make a world of difference.
A caveat upfront: I am not an experienced RE investor (some, but not a lot). I am an experienced remodeling contractor.
My feeling about rehabbing is that the layout of a house is critical. If you are planning to convert a big one, then work on the layout. A few walls, here and there, may make a world of difference.
A caveat upfront: I am not an experienced RE investor (some, but not a lot). I am an experienced remodeling contractor.
My feeling about rehabbing is that the layout of a house is critical. If you are planning to convert a big one, then work on the layout. A few walls, here and there, may make a world of difference.
If you live in a city or a village they will have their own zoning, planning, etc. dept.
If you are in a town then most likely the county in which that town is located would have zoning jurisdiction.
Do you receive city services (i.e. sewer, water, etc)? If so, you are probably not in a town.
Don[ Edited by dheckel on Date 06/30/2003 ]