The simple answer is yes… It protects the homeowner as the Building Inspectors’ confirm the work was done right. It also protects the Contractor for the same reason.

It’s very easy to pull a permit on line through the “BSEED” on line permit application. You can also visit the building department and pull the permit in person at 2 Woodward Ave Ste 401, Detroit, MI 48226.

• As most of the houses in Detroit are historic or simply old properties, the demolition work is significantly more extensive than a house in the suburbs. So don’t believe what you see on HGTV. For example, the bathroom tile is typically wet set on pored concrete. So demo is not just chipping away tile from drywall. The tile needs to be removed with a sledge hammer… Another example is demolition of a wall. In the suburbs you are pulling down drywall in large sheets. In a Detroit home the wall is typically plaster. Plaster is wet set on wood lath. The wall comes down in little pieces. Bottom line demolition work in a Detroit home is 200 times more difficult than a home in the suburbs.

The answer is yes. The main reason is so many of the Detroit homes have been DYI renovation projects and simply just not done right.

• The most common is cracked ceiling joists causing sagging in the floors. Once an issue like this is exposed, the common fix is to jack up the damaged joist to get as much of the sagging out as possible and then sister up new joists to repair the structural issues. Here is an example of sistering up damed joists. Click here to read our article on What Structural Issues to Look for when Restoring a Historic Home in Detroit.

s most Detroit houses have some sort of steam heating, there is no duct work. So you cannot install a forced air A/C system as you would in the suburbs. If the Detroit home does not have duct work, the easiest way is to install A/C is to install a Split HVAC system. Click here for a description of how a split system works.