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Updated over 5 years ago, 06/24/2019
Can I do my Rehabs myself? (Michigan)
I've been stewing on this thought for over months now. I thought I had the answer once I talked to my boss for a day about it (we are a Renovations company). However, after reading about permits in J Scott's "Estimating Rehab Costs" book, I learned that some jurisdictions don't allow rental property owners to pull their own permits. My boss seems to be convinced that you can, as any liability will pass to you, and therefore code is enforced in order to protect the general contractor. But other forum posts seem to indicate that code is there to protect the general contractor and tenants, which seems fair to me.
My question now becomes: If I intend on doing most of the renovation work myself, whether it be a flip or Rehab Rental, am I legally allowed to do the work without a builders license? This would include pulling permits and scheduling inspections, and obviously all the work as well. I plan on one day getting my license, but if I find a property before then, I don't want to screw myself by buying the property and then learning that I can't perform the work myself, thereby under budgeting my rehab costs.
Thanks to all that take the time to read this!