Renovating a two-family home: separate the two project briefs

Why one wish list for the whole house gets muddled

In a two-family house, a single list of "things we want done" usually mixes three different projects: the owner's own unit, the other unit (rented, lived in by relatives, or empty), and the parts of the building both depend on. When they sit on one page, estimates are hard to compare by unit, the other household's needs get lost, and shared items like a water shutoff or the front stair have no clear owner.

Splitting the list does not mean splitting the job. It means every person involved can see which unit a decision belongs to, who makes it, and which items affect both. The day-to-day logistics of staying in the house while work happens are covered separately in living at home during a renovation; this article is about writing the scope down.

Briefs 1 and 2: what each unit brief records

Keep each unit brief to one page. The same headings in both make them easy to compare.

• Who lives there during the work: the owner's household, relatives, a tenant, or nobody. This is a practical description for planning, not a legal classification.
• Who decides: the person who approves selections and changes for that unit, and the person the contractor should contact about access.
• Rooms in scope: kitchen, bathroom, floors, paint, basement areas used by that unit, and anything explicitly not included.
• Finish level: a refresh, a mid-range remodel or a full renovation, stated in words both briefs use the same way. See cosmetic refresh vs. full renovation.
• What must keep working: a toilet each night, a way to cook, heat, the route in and out, power for any medical equipment.
• Known problems: leaks, soft floors, old wiring or plumbing the occupants have noticed, with photos and dates.
• Budget envelope for this unit: a working range the owner sets, kept separate from the shared list.

Brief 3: the shared list

The third page lists everything that serves or affects both units. These are the items most likely to be missed, double-counted or scheduled without warning to the other household.

Legal use and records: questions to raise, not answers

A brief should note what you know about the house's recorded legal use, because some changes depend on it. This article does not determine whether your house is a legal two-family dwelling or whether a change is allowed.

• In New York City, the Department of Buildings says a Certificate of Occupancy (CO) states a building's legal use and/or type of permitted occupancy, and that an existing building needs a new or amended CO when its use, egress or occupancy changes. DOB also says buildings built before 1938 aren't required to have a CO unless later alterations changed their use, egress or occupancy, and that a Letter of No Objection can be requested to confirm the legal use of such a building. DOB's page explains how to look up a CO in DOB NOW or the older BIS system.
• In Suffolk County, the New York State Uniform Code applies, as it does everywhere in the state except New York City. Ask your town or incorporated village building department which record shows your house's legal use and what it requires for your scope.
• Anything that adds, removes or combines a unit, changes how people get in or out, or converts a basement or attic to living space belongs with a registered design professional and the building authority before it goes into either brief. See renovation permits in NYC vs. Suffolk and finishing a basement.

For general construction work in a one- or two-family house in New York City, DOB says the owner must hire a Registered Design Professional to submit plans before a general contractor does the work, when the work goes beyond the exempt categories. Write down who that professional is in the shared list.

A rented or occupied unit in an older house: lead questions to raise early

If the house was built before 1978 and the work will disturb paint, write the year built at the top of both briefs. Two sets of rules may come up, and both are for the contractor and, where needed, an attorney to confirm.

• EPA's Renovation, Repair and Painting (RRP) Rule applies to anyone paid to do work that disturbs painted surfaces in homes built before 1978, including sole proprietorships, and it applies to landlords of rented homes. Under EPA's pre-renovation education requirements, the firm gives the owner the Renovate Right pamphlet no more than 60 days before work begins; when the owner does not live in the unit, the firm must also give a copy to an adult occupant; and for work in common areas, each affected unit receives written information about the work.
• In New York City, Local Law 1 of 2004, administered by HPD, covers tenant-occupied units in private dwellings of one or two units built before 1960. HPD publishes the owner duties under this law. Whether and how it applies to a particular house is a question for an attorney or HPD.
• Whether these rules apply to your house and unit, and exactly what each requires, is a question for the contractor's certified staff, HPD (in New York City) or an attorney. The renovating an older home guide covers lead, asbestos, wiring and pipes in more depth.

Turning the three briefs into an estimate request

1. Send all three pages to every contractor you ask, so each prices the same scope.
2. Ask for the estimate to be broken out by Unit 1, Unit 2 and shared work, even if it is one contract.
3. Ask for a phase plan that shows which weeks affect which unit, and which shutoffs or route changes reach both.
4. Name the decision-maker and the access contact for each unit in the estimate request.
5. Ask how changes in one unit's scope will be documented without changing the other unit's brief by accident.
6. Keep dated versions of each brief; when one changes, re-send it to everyone who priced it.

Line the proposals up using how to compare remodeling estimates, and use the dependency order in whole-home renovation: what to do first if the shared systems need work before either unit is finished.