DOB Complaint Violation
I recently had a contractor put up a vestibule in front of my house. I’m pretty sure my neighbor called 311 to complain and so there is an outstanding complaint for “A 1-FAMILY HOME IS DOING CONSTRUCTION, AN EXTENSION IN THE FRONT W/O ANY PERMITS. Category 5.” In the interim, I found out that the…
I recently had a contractor put up a vestibule in front of my house. I’m pretty sure my neighbor called 311 to complain and so there is an outstanding complaint for “A 1-FAMILY HOME IS DOING CONSTRUCTION, AN EXTENSION IN THE FRONT W/O ANY PERMITS. Category 5.” In the interim, I found out that the contractor is not insured and he “lied” to me saying that there was no need to file. (I was STUPID enough to believe him). Short of suing him I feel helpless. I visited a “violations removal” storefront near the DOB offices. They want about $5,000 to cover “legalization” and new house plans, etc… They told me that my house is an R2A 1-family home, and that my vestibule is ahead by 3 feet of my acjacent neighbor’s property. So I will probably need to try to legalize it as is but will most likely need to tear it down and meet DOB code. Additionally, I will need to pay NYC DOB $2,500 in penalties and also risk having my whole house inspected and open to further violations. Have I just opened a “can of worms” ? What if I ignore the violation ? Does the DOB have to issue a violation within 45 days or can they take their time. What should I do – hire an expeditor / violations removal firm with in-house architect & engineer / architect alone ? HELP !!! What if i do NOTHING if I plan to live in the house for the next 5 years or more ? What will be the max penalty I have to pay ? HELP !!!
Best would be if you can get an architect to file and legalize everything if possible BEFORE dob comes down.
Regarding your neighbors there are perfectly 100% legal eyesores as well and that may be the case so it is hard to generalize and it is as well possible that it is not legal. You have to do your research to really determine if it was legal or not.
Thanks! I was told by the “Violations Removal” company that it is best to update architectural plans for my whole house as DOB will want to enter the home and write up violations for “anything and everything” inside that may have changed from the home 21 years ago (when the last architectural plans were submitted to the city). I have only lived in the house for the past few years so not sure what could have been changed inside before me.
1. Do I just wait and hold to see what DOB hits me up for as a violation (i.e. the front exterior vestibule)?
OR
2. Do I hire an architect to deal with the front vestibule issue before DOB issues the violation and try to “legalize” it even though the archtect believes it violates current DOB code ? He suggested we just submit it for legalizaton in the slight hope they might somehow approve it — but that begs the question, “Why would the DOB approve something that is in violation of their front setback code” ? Are they that errativ and stupid or is their something else going on ?
3. How come certain renovated/newly rebuilt houses in my neighborhood CLEARLY violate rules (eyesores), and seem to have no issues ???? while my house barely changes the aesthetics of my house and I get in trouble ? Are they “connected” or are payoffs occuring ? It seems so unfair.
120 sq. ft. exemption applies for temporary structures not for a permanent extension.
If there is no violation, there will be one forthcoming. All they need to do is show up and look. I would stay away from the so called violation fixers. All they are going to do is hire an architect. Cut out the middle man. That is all you need to do. If you are lucky, the extension fits within the setbacks and was built correctly.
If no violation yet and just a complaint, make your vestibule look dirty and old.
When the inspector comes, first, he will notice that there is currently no construction going on. So that gets X’ed out.
If there is no construction going on, why would you need permits? So that should technically get X’ed out also.
The vestibule is and always was existing. The inspector will have to prove that it was not existing. If anything else, you were just repairing / refurbishing / painting / the existing vestibule. Repairs done in your own home, under (I believe) 120sf is exempt from filing.
I wouldn’t do anything either.
A violation has not been issued as of yet. With all the layoffs DOB has had recently, what are the chances that nothing will happen since it was just a “complaint” ? Is there a time limit in which DOB has to issue a violation ?
Relax and don’t do anything hastily!!
1. A complaint is not a violation and till DOB comes down you definitly have the time to file for your thing but you have to rush a little bit. Frst, check with an architect if it os doable by code and zoning. A survey of your property will be a very big help.
2. If you receive a violation fron the DOB:
The DOB inspector’s issue 2 types of violations one is an ECB violation which penalties are only assesed after a hearing where you will have a chance to defend yourself but which you will most likely lose unless the inspector does not serve it properly. Usually these violations may result in significant civil penalties if in default but expect it to be 800-2400 dollars in average.DOB may give you a stipulation offer which may reduce the penalty to 250-400 dollars in average.
The other type of violation is a DOB violation which is not associated with any penalties with exception of a civil penalty that is required to be paid prior to obtaining the permit and you cannot get your way around this in general. Sometimes the inspector will tie it to the ECB and then if you are lucky that the judge dismisses the violation you will be off the hook. These penalty ranges are as follows: (minimum penalty) 1 and 2 family: 500.00 3 and up or commercial: 5,000.00. that is why these numbers are so different.
Thanks. Any Architect or Violations removal expert you can recommend ?