Buying a Historic Home in Lynchburg

Two kinds of "historic"

A National Register district is a federal and state listing. It recognizes the neighborhood and can open the door to tax credits, but by itself it doesn't regulate what you do to your house. A local historic district is part of the city's zoning, and it does: exterior changes there go through design review. Many Lynchburg neighborhoods are both. Some are only one. Always check the parcel.

Which districts have local review

On the city's current map, the local historic districts are Garland Hill and Diamond Hill (both 1978), Daniel's Hill (1978, enlarged in 2008), Court House Hill (1990), Rivermont (2002), Pierce Street (2005), Sandusky (2005), and Federal Hill and Locust Thicket (2007). Individual landmarks, such as Point of Honor and the Anne Spencer House, are protected on their own.

College Hill is one of the original seven hills, but it is not a local district on the city's map. That's a good example of why you check rather than assume.

What needs a certificate of appropriateness

In a local district, a certificate is needed before any change that affects the outside of a building. That includes new construction, additions, demolition, roofs, chimneys, fences, signs, and color changes, and it applies to newer buildings in the district too. No building or demolition permit is issued without one.

The city planner can approve minor work: routine maintenance, repainting, like-for-like siding, trim or roofing, storm windows, and skylights or solar panels not visible from the street. Major work, including demolition and visible changes, goes to the Historic Preservation Commission. Applications are due at least 15 days before its meeting. Interior work doesn't need a certificate.

Tax credits and the city's rehab exemption

Virginia's historic rehabilitation tax credit is 25 percent of eligible rehabilitation costs. Unlike the federal credit, it covers owner-occupied homes as well as rental and commercial property. For an owner-occupied home, the work has to total at least 25 percent of the building's assessed value, and the house generally has to be individually listed or contributing to a listed district. Talk to the Virginia Department of Historic Resources before you start work, not after.

Separately, Lynchburg's real estate rehabilitation program can exempt the added value of a qualifying residential rehab from real estate tax for up to ten years.

What to inspect in a hundred-year-old house on a hill

Start with the ground: retaining walls, grading, drainage, and the foundation. In the Hill City, water moving downhill causes more trouble than anything else. Then the envelope: the roof, flashing, chimneys, and gutters. Then the systems: wiring, the panel, plumbing, and heating. If the house was built before 1978, the seller must give a lead-based paint disclosure, and you can test for it.

Bring an inspector who works on old houses every week, and price the repairs before you price the offer.

Ask before you write an offer

Is the house in a local district, a National Register district, both, or neither?

Was past exterior work approved, and are there open violations?

Would the work I'm planning need major or minor review?

Is the house listed or contributing, for the tax credit?

Who are the contractors here who do this work well, and know the commission?