Unpermitted Studio in San Diego ........

[Edward Mac]

Hi!

I'm recently viewed a "Three Unit" property in San Diego. After walking the property I found out the the two story "2 unit" building in the back is actually a permitted 1 bedroom 1 bath and an unpermitted studio. The building was all built at the same time and is very nice, which actually raises more questions as to why the "studio" is not permitted. The "studio" has a bathroom, fridge and kitchen sink (but no oven). 

Does anyone know the process/obstacles that I should be thinking about? 

Thanks for your help!

[Andy Eakes]

@Edward Mac Hey Edward! I share your confusion as to why the studio is not permitted if it was built all at the same time? Anyways, you have some options. Technically, no body has to know that it is not permitted if you rent it out on your own. Any professional agent or broker is probably going to tell you though that for renting, its probably best to have everything permitted should something go horribly wrong. If you tell a tenant or a nosy neighbor what the situation is, they can report you and the city will want to do an inspection. If it is not up to code, then they will ask you to remove it or bring it up to code. With permits and construction costs, that could be expensive. But with the housing crisis in San Diego, the have relaxed ADU laws and even waive the permit fees! (At least they are supposed to). But while this has made that sort of stuff cheaper, everyone is on it now, so getting permits and approval may take longer than normal.

I am not you and you should ultimately decide what you want to do, but consider your risk options and ask yourself if it is worth it. I have been looking at a ton of properties in SD and have seen my fair share of unpermitted extensions and ADUs, so what you're dealing with isn't totally uncommon. 

Good luck in your investing!