Home renovations are often necessary when it comes to making your house look better. Then again, certain home renovations also require you to secure a building permit before the work can even be done. So, in that regard, if you are planning to enclose or renovate something as small as your home’s porch, do you still require a building permit for you to be able to do that?
As long as the porch does not cover more than 200 square feet and is supported by an exterior wall, there is no need for you to secure a building permit for that action. However, you should also take note that you have to follow all of the necessary requirements by the building code as well.
The good news for you here is that, as long as your porch is small and does not cover an area of more than 200 square feet, there is no need for you to actually get a building permit. This means that you can hire a contractor for the job without going through some of the legal requisites. Nevertheless, it still is important for you to abide by the requirements set forth in the building code even if no permit is required.
Can I enclose my porch?
When it comes to different home renovations that you may want to do to not only make your home look better but to improve it and to fix certain issues, there are certain things that you need to abide by first. This includes the necessary actions that are stipulated in the building code of your respective local ordinance. In most cases, you would need to have to secure a building permit for you to perform any renovation on your home. Still, this isn’t always the case.
In relation to that, you might want to do something such as enclosing your porch whenever you want to protect your home’s porch or add more security features to your home because, after all, an enclosed porch is going to be more difficult for robbers to get through. Moreover, enclosed porches can also be great for whenever you want to protect yourself against the elements without totally sacrificing the outdoor feels of a porch. But, as good as an enclosed porch may be, can you actually enclose it?
Yes, you can enclose your own porch because there is nothing in the building code that suggests that you are not allowed to enclose your home’s porch. There are even those who recommend that you actually enclose your porch because of the very fact that it adds a certain level of security and insulation to your home whenever you are wary of robbers and of the weather.
So, in that regard, you can enclose your porch if you want to. However, just because you are allowed to enclose your porch it doesn’t completely mean that you can actually do it without adhering to the requisites of the law. And that is something we are going to talk about next.
Do I need building permission to enclose a porch?
Now that you know that you can enclose your porch and choose the kind of design that you believe is best for your porch, it now becomes a matter of whether or not you can actually do so without abiding with some of the legal requirements.
Specifically speaking, we are here to talk about whether you actually need a building permit to enclose your porch. After all, the law can be strict regarding building permits especially because of how you need to make sure that you are abiding with the safety standards and the minimum requirements set by the law.
The good news here is that you are not required to actually secure a building permit to enclose your porch as long as there you are abiding by the limits that the law requires. Specifically, the limits state that you are only allowed to enclose your porch without a building permit as long as the total area of the porch is not more than 200 square feet. And because not a lot of porches are actually more than 200 square feet, you are basically good to go.
Of course, the law also requires that your porch needs to be supported by an external wall. So, as long as you have those two covered, there is no need for you to secure a building permit to enclose your porch. Still, you would have to abide by the other requirements in the building code as well such as the minimum standards needed for your porch to be safe and secure.
Basically, you still need to follow the building code just like any other home renovations do. The only difference between enclosing a porch and a larger home renovation is that there is no need for a building permit.
Do I need planning permission to enclose a porch?
While you don’t need a building permit for you to enclose a porch, you now have to look at whether a planning permit is needed because there are some home renovations that may require a planning permit but may not require a building permit.
In that regard, you don’t need a planning permit to enclose your porch or to build a porch as long as the job will not be more than 3 square meters measured from the outside. That means that you also have to take into consideration the thickness of the walls. Also, you need to also make sure that the porch is no more than 3 meters in height (measured from the outside) and is at least 2 meters away from the road.
As long as you have those covered, there is no need for you to secure a planning permit for you to enclose or build a porch for your home. Exceeding any of those limits, however, will require you to get a planning permit.
Do I need a building permit to fix my porch?
Finally, is a permit actually needed for you to fix your porch? Well, no because the law states that you don’t have to secure a building permit to fix any existing portion of your home as long as the job is simply a minor repair job.
As such, if you are not even required to have a building permit to enclose a porch that is under 200 square feet, then it also follows that fixing an existing porch and repairing some parts of it will not require you to secure a building permit as well.
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