WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PERMITTED AND PERMISSIBLE?

ONE OF THE FREQUENT POINTS OF CONFUSION THAT WE FIND IN THE ESCALATION DEPARTMENT AT CLASS IS DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PERMITTED AND PERMISSIBLE

When to use the word permitted: 
When we’re talking about presence or absence of building permits to cover an addition or repair to a home, we usually use the word “permitted.”  As in “The addition is permitted,” or “The addition was completed without permits.”

When to use the word permissible:
When we’re talking about whether or not the zoning allows some amenity or use to exist we will normally talk about whether the use is “permissible” under the zoning code. As in “the ADU is permissible under zoning, but rental of the ADU is not permissible under zoning.”

Examples provided below:

• Permissible but not permitted.
• Permissible and permitted.
• Non-Permissible and Not Permitted.
• Non-Permissible and Permitted is unlikely as we would hope the local authorities would not issue a building permit for something that’s not permissible.

The Permissibility will go towards your highest and best use analysis and your check boxing for Zoning Compliance. The Underwriter will be looking for specific statements that unusual amenities are “permissible per zoning” or “not permissible per zoning.”

The Building Permits are not usually an issue for the GSEs. As noted above building permits can be good evidence of permissibility.

Keeping these two things straight is an important part of producing a credible report.