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The city permit fee I almost paid for my Hazel Park storefront was 40% too high
I was getting ready to put up a new sign for my shop on John R. The city website said the fee was $350 for a permit. I almost just paid it online. Then I called the building department on a whim and talked to a lady named Cheryl. She told me since my sign was under 6 square feet, it only cost $210. Nobody advertised that anywhere. I saved $140 just because I picked up the phone instead of clicking submit. Has anyone else caught a similar overcharge dealing with Detroit or the inner ring suburbs?
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henderson.mason3mo ago
Doesn't it just make you wonder what kind of secret handshake you need to know before you actually get the real price on things? I swear these cities run their fee schedules like they're protecting state secrets instead of just being a pain to look up. Sounds like Cheryl and Linda are the only ones holding the keys to the discount kingdom. Meanwhile the rest of us are almost paying full price while doing all the work ourselves on their clunky websites. Makes you think the real permit fee is just for the privilege of being patient enough to call and ask.
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hannah2403mo ago
Jumped straight into a similar thing with my dry cleaner's sign in Ferndale last year. The city's online portal showed a $280 fee for any sign permit, no exceptions listed anywhere. I called the clerk's office (shout out to Linda on the second floor) and she told me about a "window sign exemption" that made it only $95 if the sign is inside the window and under 4 feet. Nobody tells you about the loopholes until you ask, which is kind of ridiculous honestly. Ended up saving $185 just because I picked up the phone instead of clicking that submit button. Makes you wonder how many people just pay whatever the website says (including me before that call).
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