Decks that are built more than 30 inches above the adjacent level will undoubtedly require a building permit. Covers smaller than 30 inches are exempt as long as they do not exceed 200 square feet in area, are not connected to the house and do not serve the required exit door. Roofs are load-bearing structures; therefore, a permit is required to build, repair, or replace a platform, or to change its design. Building a terrace without a permit can result in its removal, possible penalties and back taxes on the property.
A building permit is required if the terrace is attached to the house or is 30 inches above ground level. If the platform is freestanding, 30 or less high and less than 200 square feet, a permit is not required. Part of the basis of granting permits is to ensure that an authorized inspector controls the works at every stage of the construction process to ensure that a healthy and safe structure is delivered to him at the end of construction. These are the companies that take money to make quick money and leave you nothing but an empty promise and build you a shoddy structure and then hide, leaving the innocent owner nowhere to turn when things go wrong.
You may have bought a new house without a terrace, or you may have an old house that needs to tear up and rebuild a rotting terrace. Alternatively, the building inspector could tell you to break something and rebuild it in a specific way. If the deck was built, say 10 years ago, and even if it met the building codes of the time, if the building codes have changed, you'll have to work on the structure to bring it up to the code. Depending on the state and region in which you live, there may be slight differences in building construction regulations and statutes.
If you build a deck without permission, you're putting yourself and others at risk, as it's possible that the deck was built incorrectly. The permit fee varies depending on what you are building; for example, permission to build a complete custom house does not have the same price as a permit to build a terrace or patio. While all municipalities and counties have different requirements for obtaining permits, North Carolina has strict regulations on granting permits.
