Purchasing a property with no occupancy permits (Pittsburgh)

[Vlad K.]

I'm looking at a small multi-family in the Pittsburgh area. It's zoned correctly on the county website but the seller does not have occupancy permits for the units. If the seller is unwilling to do the work to get the permits, how much of a risk is it to purchase the place? What goes into securing an occupancy permit? What do inspectors look for? What is the worst case scenario (given that it's zoned correctly) as to what they might ask me to repair?

[Alexis Miller]

Hi @Vlad K.,

It actually depends on the municipality here, not the county. So City of Pittsburgh has different rules than other boroughs outside the city. If your property is in the city of Pittsburgh and it has 3 or more units, the most expensive improvements you'll need to consider to get an occupancy permit is that all units need to have 2 means of egress. In most cases, that means building a fire escape or a second staircase so that every unit could escape the building during a fire from 2 different places. That is the main reason why many people in Pittsburgh do not consider a building without an occupancy permit, unless of course you have the budget for that improvement and can still make the numbers work.