Commercial REI reversion

[Brett Merrill]

Hello BiggerPockets community! I have a quick question that I would like to pick everyone’s brain about. I have a great property located in a downtown area that is currently listed for commercial. It is an interesting property because it was originally a multi family home that was turned into office spaces meaning that they took all of the kitchen and showers out and turn them all into offices. All the plumbing is still intact in capped off. I would love to converted back to a multi family. I have already spoken with the building department and it is zoned properly to be reverted back to a multi family.What I am struggling with it is how to get a list of everything that would need to be brought up to code upon final inspection. I have spoken with the building commissioner and it seems like no building inspector is willing to just go out there and walk around and give a list of things that need to be brought up to code. The commissioner said that I should get an architect involved. I have called around to a few places but it does not seem like many people do this. Does anyone have any advice as to how I could officially do this so I can get a good estimate on wood would need to be done. They are offering seller financing so there is a good amount of money opened up for renovations. Thanks for the help!

[Omar Khan]

@Brett Merrill You are correct. I don't know any building inspector who would offer to tour your property and point out what needs to be done. This is because (A) they are busy and (B) nobody wants the headache of saying do 10 things and then realizing that they missed something and are now being blamed for it. 

Your best bet would be to hire a local architect that is well-versed in your market's building codes. They can help you develop a budget and a plan on how to tackle this issue. 

You should also analyze whether converting to a multifamily is the best and highest use of this property. It might turn out that leaving it as is might be the best economic decision.