Tried skipping permits for a small patio job and it backfired badly
I took on a concrete patio pour in my own backyard last spring, figured it was small enough to skip pulling permits with the city. The job itself went smooth, leveled fine, looked good. But my neighbor spotted the work and called code enforcement because he was mad about some fence line dispute. They showed up two weeks later, made me stop work, and I had to tear out the whole slab at my own cost. $1,800 down the drain plus a $300 fine for not having the permit. Learned the hard way that cutting corners on paperwork just costs more in the long run in LA. Has anyone else dealt with code enforcement over a small project they thought would slide?