Question 1

How do you work out which permits my project needs?

Accepted Answer

We test what you plan to build against the Ontario Building Code and the zoning by-law for your address before anything is drawn. The Building Code Act counts a material alteration as construction, so taking out a load-bearing wall or adding a second unit needs a permit, and so can a change in how a commercial space is used. Fine Engineering hands you that list at the first meeting.

Question 2

What do you need from me to start the drawings?

Accepted Answer

The address, a sketch or a few lines on what you want, and some photos. A survey or the original drawings of the house help if you have them. We measure the building ourselves at the site visit and read the zoning that applies to the address. Fine Engineering then confirms which sheets the permit needs and quotes from that scope.

Question 3

What happens if the city comes back with questions?

Accepted Answer

We answer them at no extra charge. Plans examiners often send comments or ask for changes before a permit is issued, so we revise the drawings, reply in writing and resubmit. A structural comment goes to the engineer who designed that part of the work. Fine Engineering stays on the file until the permit is in your hands.

Question 4

Do you design legal basements and garden suites?

Accepted Answer

Yes, both. A basement unit has to meet the Building Code on ceiling height, fire separation, exits and alarms, and a garden suite also has to fit the zoning’s limits on size and setbacks. Fine Engineering measures the space, draws the unit, takes it through the permit and can build it. Either kind of unit can be rented out once it passes its final inspection.

Question 5

Do you build what you design?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Alongside the engineering and permit drawings we build interior renovations, legal basements, garden suites, additions, and decks and porches, so the people who drew the project are the ones building it. If you already have a contractor, you can hire Fine Engineering for the drawings alone and have them build from the set.

Question 6

What do your P.Eng and BCIN credentials cover?

Accepted Answer

Between them, they let one office prepare and sign the architectural, structural and HVAC drawings for a house or a small building. P.Eng means a Professional Engineer licensed by Professional Engineers Ontario. A BCIN is the province’s registration for designers who prepare permit drawings under the Building Code, granted one category at a time. Fine Engineering’s engineer holds both, with BCIN qualifications in Small Buildings, Structural and HVAC.

Question 7

Who will I work with on my project?

Accepted Answer

A small team in one Richmond Hill office. Alexander Cardenas Fernandez, P.Eng, designs and stamps the structural and mechanical work. Mijal Artica, the mechanical and electrical designer, prepares HVAC designs and load calculations. Anton Reznikov, the project coordinator, looks after Building Code requirements, consultants and documentation. Robert Grin, Fine Engineering’s Director, is Broker of Record at Fine Homes Real Estate and advises on property value.

Question 8

Can you help before I buy a property?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Our engineer can inspect the house before you firm up the deal and report on the structure, the foundation and any work that looks unpermitted. With a real estate broker on the team, Fine Engineering can also tell you whether the zoning allows a basement unit or a garden suite, and what a renovation or a second unit would do to the property’s value.

Question 9

Do you work with builders and investors?

Accepted Answer

Yes, as well as homeowners. A builder usually brings us a job of their own that needs permit drawings, or structural, HVAC or grading design. An investor is more often looking at a house that could take a legal second unit or a garden suite and earn rent from it. Fine Engineering works with both on residential and commercial jobs.

Question 10

Do you take on commercial projects?

Accepted Answer

Yes. We prepare commercial permit drawings and change of use applications, design steel framing for commercial units, and lay out fire alarms, sprinklers and emergency lighting. In one Fine Engineering project on Weber Street in Kitchener, a dental office became a supermarket, which took an interior renovation, a new plumbing system and upgraded fire separations to meet the Ontario Fire Code.

Question 11

Do you charge for the first consultation?

Accepted Answer

No. The first consultation is free, whether we meet at the property or go through your photos and the address together. The quote comes after it and sets out what the drawings and engineering will cover, so you know what Fine Engineering will deliver before you commit to anything.

Question 12

What kinds of projects have you done?

Accepted Answer

Fine Engineering has completed more than 200 building designs since 2016. They include a full-home interior renovation in Richmond Hill that removed structural walls, a 1,100 sq ft legal basement unit in Vaughan, two-storey garden suites in Toronto and Richmond Hill, a grading plan for an 11,700 sq ft site in Guelph, and a new custom home in Haldimand County.

Question 13

Where do you work?

Accepted Answer

Across the Greater Toronto Area, on projects within about 90 minutes of our office at 9201 Yonge Street in Richmond Hill. Fine Engineering has also worked further out, in London, Strathroy and Haldimand County. Our location pages cover the main municipalities we serve, with the department that issues the building permit in each and the conservation authority that reviews first.

Question 14

How long does a building permit take for a house in Ontario?

Accepted Answer

Once a complete application is in, Ontario’s Building Code gives the municipality 10 business days to issue a house permit or refuse it with reasons. Larger and more complex buildings get a longer period. The count only starts when nothing is missing, so an absent sheet or an unresolved zoning issue holds it back. Fine Engineering checks zoning and code before anything is submitted.

Question 15

What makes a building permit application complete?

Accepted Answer

The application form, the drawings the Building Code calls for, and every other approval the project depends on. Zoning counts as applicable law, so a needed minor variance has to be granted before the permit can be issued, and a lot in a conservation authority’s regulated area may need that authority’s permit first. Fine Engineering assembles the whole package, with the designer’s registration details on the drawings.

Question 16

Why would a building permit be refused?

Accepted Answer

Most often because the plans do not show that the work meets the Building Code or applicable law, such as the zoning by-law. A permit is also withheld when the law requires an engineer’s or architect’s design and the drawings lack one, or when the builder of a new home is unlicensed. The refusal must state its reasons, and Fine Engineering revises the set to answer each one.

Question 17

What should I do if the city issues a stop-work order?

Accepted Answer

Stop work and start on the drawings. A stop-work order usually means construction began without a permit or departed from the approved plans. Getting out of it takes a permit application that shows what was built and what is proposed, then whatever inspections the city asks for. Fine Engineering prepares those drawings and replies to the city’s letters.

Question 18

What happens at a building inspection?

Accepted Answer

A municipal inspector visits at set stages to confirm the work matches the permit drawings and the Building Code, and nothing gets covered up until its stage has passed. Footings and framing are typical stages. The final inspection is the one that lets the permit close. On its own projects, Fine Engineering’s drawings are the set the inspector checks against.

Question 19

Does a building permit expire?

Accepted Answer

It can be revoked, which has much the same effect. The Building Code Act lets the chief building official revoke a permit when work has not seriously begun within six months of issue, or has been halted for over a year. A permit whose inspections were never finished stays open on the property. Fine Engineering can draw what an old permit still needs so the city can close it.

Question 20

Do I need a permit to demolish a house?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Ontario’s Building Code Act treats demolition like construction: it cannot start until the chief building official has issued a permit. A rebuild therefore usually needs one permit to take the old house down and another for the new one. A protected tree or a conservation authority’s regulated area on the lot can add an approval of its own. Fine Engineering files both applications on rebuilds.

Question 21

Do I need an engineer to remove a load-bearing wall?

Accepted Answer

Often, yes. The opening needs a beam sized for the load above, posts under each end and a path that carries the load down to the foundation. The Building Code’s span tables cover some simple cases, but once the beam falls outside them, a licensed P.Eng has to design and stamp it. Fine Engineering prepares the engineering and the permit drawings together.

Question 22

How can you tell if a wall is load-bearing?

Accepted Answer

Not reliably by looking at it. A wall that runs across the floor joists, sits over a beam or another wall below, or stands near the middle of the house is more likely to carry load. Only the framing above and below confirms it, which is why Fine Engineering checks the structure on site before designing any removal.

Question 23

Is a steel or wood beam better for an open-concept renovation?

Accepted Answer

That depends on the span and the load above. Engineered wood handles many household openings and is simpler to install, while steel carries a longer span in a shallower depth, which helps when the owner wants a flush ceiling. Fine Engineering sizes both options and recommends the one that suits the opening, the ceiling and the budget.

Question 24

What is a point load in construction?

Accepted Answer

A concentrated load, such as the end of a beam resting on a post, that has to travel straight down to the foundation instead of spreading across a floor. Each one needs solid blocking or a post below it, and often a new footing under the basement slab. Fine Engineering’s structural drawings mark every point load and show what carries it.

Question 25

Do I need a permit to make a door or window opening bigger?

Accepted Answer

In most cases, yes, because it is a structural alteration. The wall above a new or wider opening needs a header or lintel sized for what it carries, and in a bearing wall the posts at each side take that load down. Toronto Building, for one, lists cutting or enlarging an opening as permit work. Fine Engineering sizes the header and draws it for the permit.

Question 26

How high does a basement ceiling need to be for a legal apartment?

Accepted Answer

At least 1.95 m, about 6 ft 5 in, under Ontario’s 2024 Building Code, with 1.85 m of clear height allowed under beams and ducts. The measurement runs from the finished floor to the finished ceiling, so new flooring and drywall count against it. Fine Engineering measures the height at the first site visit, before any layout is drawn.

Question 27

Does a basement apartment need a second exit?

Accepted Answer

It needs a safe way out, which is usually its own exterior door. In a house that has stood for five years or more, the 2024 Building Code’s renovation rules also accept an exit route through the other unit, as long as the suite gets an extra escape window that opens from inside without tools and the smoke alarms are linked. Fine Engineering works out which route suits the layout.

Question 28

Do smoke alarms need to be interconnected in a house with a basement apartment?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Once a house has a secondary suite, its smoke alarms must be interconnected, by wire or wirelessly, so one sets off the rest, and shared spaces need them too. A suite with a fuel-burning appliance, or one sharing a wall, floor or ceiling with such an appliance or a garage, also needs carbon monoxide alarms by its bedrooms. Fine Engineering marks every alarm on the permit set.

Question 29

Is a legal basement apartment worth it?

Accepted Answer

For many homeowners, yes. A legal second unit can earn rent and add property value, and because it was built under a permit, it avoids the trouble an unpermitted suite causes when the house is sold. The return depends on how much the basement needs, whether that is more headroom, a new exit or fire separation. Fine Engineering prices that work before any drawing starts.

Question 30

What is the difference between a building permit and zoning approval?

Accepted Answer

Zoning decides what can go on a lot: the use, height, setbacks and coverage, under the municipal zoning by-law. A building permit decides how it is built, under the Ontario Building Code. The permit review checks zoning too, and a design that misses a zoning rule needs a minor variance before the permit can be issued. Fine Engineering reviews both before drawing.

Question 31

What is a minor variance?

Accepted Answer

Permission from the municipality’s Committee of Adjustment to depart slightly from the zoning by-law, for example a smaller side yard or a little more lot coverage, without rezoning the property. The Committee has to be satisfied that the change is minor and meets the other tests the law sets, and a bigger change needs a rezoning instead. Fine Engineering draws the plans and handles the application.

Question 32

Can one lot have a garden suite and a basement apartment?

Accepted Answer

On most serviced urban residential lots in Ontario, yes. Since Bill 23, the Planning Act stops a zoning by-law from prohibiting up to three units there, which can be the house, a basement unit and a unit in a backyard building. Lot size, setbacks and servicing still decide whether both fit, and each unit needs a permit. Fine Engineering designs both units and confirms the zoning allows the pair.

Question 33

Do I need a permit for a pool in Ontario?

Accepted Answer

Almost always, though the rules sit in each municipality’s own by-laws, usually as a pool enclosure permit for the fence around it. An inground pool that changes the grade can also need a site alteration permit, since Ontario’s Municipal Act lets a municipality require one for grade changes. Fine Engineering confirms the local rules and draws the pool permit and grading plans.

Question 34

How much of my lot can I build on?

Accepted Answer

As much as the zoning by-law’s lot coverage limit allows, which changes by municipality and zone, together with the setbacks and any limit on hard surfaces. Where a lot has additional residential units, Ontario lets buildings cover up to 45 per cent of an urban residential lot unless the by-law allows more. Fine Engineering measures coverage and setbacks before drawing an addition or a garden suite.

Question 35

What is a change of use permit?

Accepted Answer

It is the building permit Ontario requires when a building or unit takes on a new use that the Building Code rates as more hazardous, such as an office becoming a restaurant, even if no construction is planned. The new use can bring upgrades to fire separations, plumbing, HVAC or exits. Fine Engineering draws change of use permits and confirms that the zoning allows the new use.

Question 36

Do I need a permit to renovate a commercial space?

Accepted Answer

Usually, yes. New walls, plumbing, HVAC, sprinklers or exits in a commercial unit need a building permit, and the drawings must carry the designer’s credentials and signature under the Ontario Building Code. Paint, flooring and other cosmetic work generally do not. Fine Engineering checks each commercial permit set against the local zoning as well as the Code.

Question 37

What permits do I need to open a business in Ontario?

Accepted Answer

That depends on the business and the municipality. Most need a business registration and a zoning check, and many also need a building permit, a sign permit, a fire inspection or a health approval, plus a liquor licence where alcohol is served. Fine Engineering helps owners put the full list together before the lease is signed or any construction starts.

Question 38

Do I need a permit for a commercial kitchen exhaust?

Accepted Answer

Yes. A commercial cooking hood, its ductwork and its fire suppression are mechanical work that needs a building permit, and the make-up air it calls for changes the HVAC design for the whole unit. Fine Engineering designs kitchen exhaust and make-up air for restaurant fit-outs, on the same drawings as the rest of the mechanical work.

Question 39

How much do building permit drawings cost in the GTA?

Accepted Answer

The price follows the scope. A deck or a single wall removal is a far smaller set than a legal basement, a garden suite or a custom home, and structural or mechanical design adds to it. Municipal permit fees are separate and set by each municipality. Fine Engineering quotes once a free first consultation has pinned the scope down.

Question 40

Who can prepare building permit drawings in Ontario?

Accepted Answer

A designer with a BCIN, a licensed professional engineer or an architect. A homeowner may also draw the permit set for their own project, provided they have the drafting skills and know the Building Code. Anyone else who is paid to prepare the drawings needs one of those three credentials. Fine Engineering’s sets go in under both a BCIN and a P.Eng licence.

Question 41

How do I check if an engineer or designer is licensed in Ontario?

Accepted Answer

Look them up on the public registers. Professional Engineers Ontario lists licensed engineers, and the province’s QuARTS registry lists BCIN designers with the categories each one holds. Ask for the name and registration number before hiring, then check both. Fine Engineering gives clients its numbers so they can do exactly that.

Question 42

Should I hire an engineer or a designer for my permit drawings?

Accepted Answer

For many projects, both. A BCIN designer can prepare the architectural drawings for a house or a small building, while a P.Eng is needed for engineering such as structure outside the Code’s span tables, steel and underpinning. Fine Engineering has both in one office, so a single point of contact covers the whole set.

Question 43

What should I ask before hiring a permit designer?

Accepted Answer

Ask for their BCIN or P.Eng number and the categories they hold, whether they file the application and answer the city’s comments, what happens if the city wants changes, and whether they have done this kind of project in this municipality before. Fine Engineering answers each of these at the free consultation.

Question 44

What is an HRV or ERV and does my house need one?

Accepted Answer

A heat- or energy-recovery ventilator swaps stale indoor air for fresh outdoor air and passes heat between the two airstreams on the way. A new house, or a permit with HVAC work, usually needs a mechanical ventilation design, and Toronto Building asks for one with every HVAC permit application. An HRV or ERV is the usual way to meet it. Fine Engineering sizes them in its HVAC designs.

Question 45

Why is one room colder than the rest of the house?

Accepted Answer

Usually because the heat reaching the room does not match the heat it loses. A room over a garage, or one with more glass and outside wall, loses heat faster, and a long or undersized duct delivers less air than the room needs. A room-by-room heat-loss calculation and a duct design show where the gap is. Fine Engineering does both for existing houses as well as new ones.

Question 46

Do I need a plumbing permit to add a bathroom?

Accepted Answer

Yes. A new bathroom means new drains, vents and water supply, and installing or changing plumbing is building permit work with its own inspections. Replacing a fixture in the same spot usually is not. The drawing shows the drain, waste and vent layout the inspector will check. Plumbing drawings for bathrooms, kitchens and second units are part of Fine Engineering’s mechanical work.

Question 47

Why was my grading plan rejected by the city?

Accepted Answer

Most often because water crosses a property line, the ground slopes too gently away from the house, or the swales and elevations do not tie into the survey. Reviewers also return plans that lack erosion control, or an engineer’s stamp where one is required. Fine Engineering designs grading to each municipality’s own criteria and revises the plan to answer the reviewer’s comments.

Question 48

How steep can my yard be graded?

Accepted Answer

Within limits the municipality sets. Its lot grading criteria give a minimum slope, so water runs away from the house, and a maximum, beyond which the change in level needs a retaining wall. The figures differ from one municipality to the next, so a plan follows the local criteria rather than a rule of thumb. Fine Engineering sets the slopes and any walls in one design.

Question 49

What is erosion and sediment control?

Accepted Answer

The measures that keep soil on a site during construction: silt fence along the boundaries, a mud mat at the driveway, protection over catch basins and cover on stockpiles. Municipalities often make them a condition of a grading or site alteration approval and inspect for them. Fine Engineering puts erosion and sediment control on every grading plan it draws.

Question 50

Do I need a permit to build a retaining wall in Ontario?

Accepted Answer

Often, yes. A tall retaining wall, or one that holds up a driveway, a building or a neighbour’s yard, generally needs a building permit and an engineered design, and a wall that changes the grade can also need a site alteration permit. Low garden walls usually do not. Fine Engineering confirms the height that triggers a permit on the site, then designs the wall and the grading around it.

Question 51

What should I do if I find cracks in my foundation?

Accepted Answer

Have a structural engineer look before anything is patched. Thin shrinkage cracks are common and usually harmless, but wide cracks, stair-step cracking in a block wall, or a wall bowing inward can mean the structure is moving. Fine Engineering’s P.Eng inspects foundations and specifies the repair when one is needed.

Question 52

Why do floors slope in an old house?

Accepted Answer

Usually settlement in the foundation or in the posts under the main beam, shrinkage in old framing, or a load-bearing wall taken out without a beam to replace it. Some slope is normal in a century home; a slope that keeps getting worse, or a floor that bounces, is not. Fine Engineering traces the cause on site and designs the fix.

Question 53

What is design-build, and why does it matter for a renovation?

Accepted Answer

One firm handles the drawings, the permit and the construction under one contract. A question that comes up on site goes back to the office that drew the plans, instead of being passed back and forth between a separate designer and builder. Fine Engineering works this way on renovations, additions and second units.

Question 54

Who manages the trades on a renovation?

Accepted Answer

The general contractor. That covers scheduling the plumber, electrician and HVAC installer, booking the municipal inspections between their stages and checking the work against the drawings. On the projects it builds, Fine Engineering coordinates the trades itself, and where the permit includes engineered structure, the engineer who designed it reviews that work on site.

Question 55

Should I renovate before selling?

Accepted Answer

That depends on the house and on what buyers in the area want. Work that adds permitted, usable space, such as a legal second unit, can add value, while unpermitted work or a permit left open can hold up a sale. Fine Engineering has a real estate broker on the team who can say which changes are worth making before any money is spent.

From first sketch,through permit, to build.

Permits & Engineering: drawn and stamped in-house.

Residential Permits: read more

Commercial Permits: read more

Structural Engineering: read more

Mechanical & Electrical: read more

Site Engineering: read more

Home Inspection: read more

Renovations: built by the team that engineered them.

Interior Renovations: read more

Legal Basements: read more

Garden Suites: read more

Home Additions: read more

Decks & Porches: read more

New Custom Homes: read more

Clients, in their own words.

Our Projects: real permits, real builds, real value added.

Project Gallery: from the framing to the finished room.

Drawing Samples: sheets from real permit sets.

Where We Work: within 90 minutes of Richmond Hill.

Municipalities we serve

FAQ: the questions every project starts with.

People Also Ask: what the GTA searches before it builds.

One team. One process. Less stress.

From first sketch,through permit, to build.

Permits & Engineering: drawn and stamped in-house.

Renovations: built by the team that engineered them.

Clients, in their own words.

Our Projects: real permits, real builds, real value added.

A-101Two-Storey Garden SuiteToronto · 700 sq ftToronto700 sq ft

A-102Full-Home Interior RenovationRichmond Hill · 2,700 sq ftRichmond Hill2,700 sq ft

A-103Legal Basement ApartmentVaughan · 1,100 sq ftVaughan1,100 sq ft

A-104New Custom HomeHaldimand County · 1,750 sq ftHaldimand County1,750 sq ft

A-105Two-Storey Garden SuiteRichmond Hill · 1,250 sq ftRichmond Hill1,250 sq ft

A-106Commercial Change of UseKitchener · Dental → groceryKitchenerDental → grocery

A-107Porch AdditionLondon · 570 sq ftLondon570 sq ft

A-108Grading Plan & Site AlterationGuelph · 11,700 sq ftGuelph11,700 sq ft