Has anyone here been successful in permitting a conversion?

Never built in Houston before so take my feedback with a grain of salt but I'd put money on it being impossible to build a duplex from scratch for $125 a foot (including everything from drawings, engineering, permit fees, general conditions, labor, material, landscaping).Out here in AZ the builder cost is going to be $200 a foot at best, but add 20% on top of that for the client cost.

So they permitted the room as a bedroom and do the work through a contractor for $20,000 and now they get more money today due to livable pace added verse a dining room that was not providing as much value as a rental. 

End to end, I bought the land, secured permits, got the PPA and IA, SUP, and still own the project.

Do you have any permits or anything to show you can rent it out?  

I have heard you have to own land with all permits and engineering completed before closing on the construction loan exclusively in California. 

How was the permitting process with the city?

*Renovation Costs – Includes labor, materials, permits, and unexpected repairs*Holding Costs — Utilities, property taxes, and financing costs during the renovation time.

I had one short term rental that was granted a permit earlier this year and I have been operating it for months now as an STR.

It took almost a year to get my occupancy permit again.