pros/cons of doing basic rehab without a permit

[Jack Knight]

I am trying to rehab a unit after we finally got a tough tenant out. It is in rough shape, but it is hard to get someone inside the next 6 months to do the rehab with a permit. I'm looking into doing a smaller version of the rehab, without the permit but avoiding plumbing, electrical, and moving walls. This would get it rent-able, but not as nice as I'd like. This smaller rehab would be repairing some couple foot by couple foot holes in the wall and ceiling, replacing several broken doors, refinishing the wood floors, putting new linoleum in the bathroom, putting in new cabinets (but keeping the sink) and painting everything. Has anyone done something like this and familiar with what the pros and cons are of skipping the permit on a small rehab? 

I'd like to do the other work with a permit in a couple years when the unit turns over, and hopefully labor is easier to come by, so I'd like to avoid making problems for myself at that point too. 

This is in central Massachusetts near Shrewsbury. Does this vary much by town or is it a state thing?