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October 4, 2007
What are the legal ramifications to adding a shower to cellar/rec room bathroom
First of all why the units with below ground get flamed so much. We purposely purchased a 1200 sf apt with the rec room below ground, which we use as master bedroom with office and sitting area. We did this because otherwise we could not get the square footage for what we could afford. Plus we had the same set up in our brownstone rental which really worked for us.
Our place does not have a full bath in the rec/bedroom, although 90% of new developments we saw did. This is a major pain since we have to use the upstairs bathroom and we now want to ad a shower to this bathroom.
What are the legal ramifications for us and the building?
I know it's not legal, but again, this was one of the only places with this set up that did not have a full bath in the downstairs space. And I really wish the developer just did it like the other ones.
Comments
I have a large rec room that includes a full bathroom that was installed by the seller during a gut reno/ condo conversion.
Basically if you are adding plumbing you will have to get a permit which will likely be denied. If you do get someone to do the work without a permit you can do what my builder did and install a "False" wall that makes the shower area look like a closet - this will only be necessary if you have an inspection or sell the place down the road.
Posted by: guest at October 4, 2007 6:37 PM
Thank you for your reply. So how did all these buildings get permits to do so, and pass inspection? Some had master baths with fancy tubs and separate showers.
We're not flippers, but we do want to sell in a couple of years and I don't want this to have negative impact.
Posted by: kdabrowski at October 4, 2007 7:07 PM
Not sure about the other places - I know mine was hidden behind the fake wall until after inspection.
Perhaps they added the bathrooms after inspection, paid someone off, or used some loophole. Really dont have alot of knowledge regarding how new developments work.
I know you are concerned about the ramifications down the road, maybe someone else could comment on what happens to unreported violations when selling as I dont have any experience with this.
Posted by: guest at October 4, 2007 9:15 PM
They probably all did it after the final inspection. They made it a closet first and illegally stubbed up plumbing that was hidden in the wall. If you can't afford to buy a place and do a legal renovation, you should save up more money, not break the law. You're a bunch of idiots.
Posted by: guest at October 4, 2007 10:09 PM
Bad laws were meant to be broken. There is no logical reason for not allowing a shower below street grade.
Posted by: guest at October 5, 2007 8:51 AM
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