Had the inspection done on the new condo today, and it's pretty much OK -- the only big thing is that it needs a new water heater. Everything else that the inspector pointed out was pretty minor stuff. Also, the contractor came by and took some measurements for the ramp, and that looks doable, too.

Excellent, Hil. Newer water heaters are more energy efficient anyway. Is it gas? I'm so excited for you. Did you say you wanted to make some modifications to the kitchen too?

Well, I heard back from the contractor. Officially, he cannot build the ramp, because there's no way to build a ramp in that space that conforms to the city regulations about wheelchair ramps. Unofficially, he's sending me some specs and quotes. (The city requires that all ramps, even ones within private homes, be built according to the standards that were written to allow for pretty much everyone to use the ramp, even in a really bulky wheelchair. So the city is requiring that the ramp be 60 inches wide, which is just not going to fit at all. What I actually need is 36 inches, and he's willing to build that, unofficially.)

I called my parents and told them about the ramp situation, and now my mom is freaking out and insisting that I contact like eight different people to ask their opinions.

She thinks that I could call my realtor and ask her. But the contractor was originally hired through the realtor, and he told me that, if he's going to do it without the city permits, then I'll need to hire him directly, rather than having him do it through the realtor -- that his response to the realtor will be that he can't do it. So I'm not sure if I'm supposed to talk about it with the realtor or not.

Any advice?

Go with the contractor that seems to understand your position. The only suggestion I have is that it should be easy to remove if you decide to sell sometime in the future

What Beth said—make sure it's fairly easy to remove (though I don't see how making a small ramp is LESS good than keeping stairs, when it comes to regulations but)

My mother also keeps telling me to do things because, "When we bought our house, we had to ..." and I have not yet responded, "You bought your house in 1985! Things have changed since then!" But I have been very tempted.

Thanks. So, do I talk to the realtor about this or not? Or do I ask the contractor if it's OK to talk to the realtor about it?