Fairfax County supervisors on Monday closed a loophole in county code that has let residents skirt safety regulations governing the building of new homes by claiming to only create “additions.”

County staff said they receive an average three permit applications each week for home “additions” that are actually entirely new homes.

The board unanimously voted to broaden the definition of what constitutes a new house to prevent residents from exploiting the rule.

“It will put an end to the houses that somebody buys and totally knocks down or just leaves a single wall standing, and then has the chutzpah to call it an addition,” said Lee District Supervisor Dana Kauffman, the lead proponent of the policy change.

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The problem, officials and staff say, is these larger new structures are often built on existing foundations with inadequate power, water and sewer connections.

The regulatory process for building additions is far less stringent than that for constructing an entirely new dwelling.

Under the new guidelines, any project that more than doubles the size of the home, or demolishes half of it, will be considered the construction of a new house, according to county spokeswoman Merni Fitzgerald.

“It does not prevent these additions from being built,” she said. “But it does allow more scrutiny and more inspection.”

wflook@dcexaminer.com