It is illegal to build a new home without a permit. Once a building permit has been obtained, construction can begin.
John Spolnik, Chief building inspector for the City of Hamilton says:
"Once the subdivision's created, the builder comes in and makes application for permit or permits, depending on how many they want to do at one time. They are required to have a full set of plans, pay all of the fees upon issuance, but they have to have a full set of plans. Under the fairly recent rules of the Provincial Government, they have to have qualified designers now, as the municipalities have to have qualified reviewers, and tied in with that there is now a time for review.
"So with a new home, the municipality is obligated to provide that review within ten working days for a new home and they either have to issue the permit within that period of time or provide a list of the requirements and the reasons that they can't issue it."
Real Estate lawyer Bob Aaron says:
"When construction begins before the permit is issued, it’s up to the municipality to come along and issue a stop work order and enforce it with the law, if necessary. They should not be allowed – nobody should be allowed to build without a permit.
 Check out Ontario’s Building Code Act which outlines the rules and regulations for building in Ontario. Each province has an act with specific requirements. [PDF 1.6 MB]
How it works: When building a new home, a builder must apply for a building permit. Once the permit has been granted, the builder can start construction. Throughout construction, a municipal inspector should come and inspect the home at certain times.
Here is Joe and Joanne's building permit [PDF 4.1 MB]
They inspect in stages from excavation, foundation, structural, final completion, electrical and plumbing.
Here are Joe and Joanne's inspection records [Coming on January 12, 2009]
Here are some examples of when you may need to apply for a building permit:
- Construction of a new building
- Any addition to an existing building
- Renovation, repair or adding to a building
- Demolishing a building
- Building of a deck
- Heating, Ventilation & Air Conditioning (HVAC) Permit
- Plumbing Permit
- Demolition Permit
- Swimming Pool Enclosure Permit
- Sign Permit
- Sign Variance Permit
Check on-line or call your municipality for a full listing of building permit requirements.
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