Yeah..... But you have to admit that it's largely because of so much hillbilly, dangerous stuff being done by unqualified people who were clueless. Which resulted in people being sold homes that they thought were built up to code only to find massive problems down the road. On top of that there are too many knuckledraggers with no training, credentials or skills calling themselves "contractors" and leaving the people that hire them with no recourse when they discover they have been left with shoddy work. Authorities have no choice but to clean things up...
My own garage is a good example. Built by the previous owner (a city cop) from reclaimed lumber, they decided they wanted taller walls, so they nailed two studs together beside each other to get the height they wanted. There is very little structural integrity to what they did. The wiring was another nightmare that spread into the whole house.
Here in this part of SK, you can still do your own construction, electrical, plumbing etc as a homeowner, but you have to pull the same permits and be subject to the same regulations and inspections as a contractor - and you can only get a permit to do your own home. You can't build shaky, hillbilly things that are structurally unsound. You also cant build things that are so unsightly that you negatively affect your neighbors property values....and I'm perfectly okay with that.
Yep, agree with just about all of that.
Problem is... most of those hillbillies and know-nothing contractors don't bother to file for permits in the first place, so building codes and inspections are moot points for anything they build. Like most anything else, the rues exist only for those willing to follow them.
I do my own stuff too, and have had no problems getting my electrical permits inspected and passed as well as our dining room construction reno.
... But, when I wanted to beef up the floor joists in this old shack - built in 1905, long before any building codes were in place - I was told I needed to submit architectural drawings and an engineering report detailing where and how the new footings for the basement support posts were going to be installed. When I told them the whole idea behind the plan was to
get rid of the existing support posts, they just about shit themselves. It's only a 16 foot span... when I told them I was going to be the General Contractor, they demanded an inspector and an engineer be allowed in to "look around". Coincidentally, after I told them "NO", I've been visited, on different occasions, by the County Building and Planning department, for site inspections.
My insurance company has also been here three times to inspect.
In Ontario, as the registered homeowner, you are allowed to do your own repairs and, for the most part, your own reno work. BUT, you run the risk of being sued at a later date, if you sell the property and things are found to be sub-standard and it can be proven you did the work.
This province has made it incredibly difficult to do anything without endless permits, fees and inspections by government agencies. No wonder the underground economy is growing by leaps and bounds...
