A homeowner in Winnipeg's West End says red tape and bureaucracy at city hall is preventing him from living in his own home, due to thousands of dollars in renovations he is being forced to make.

Brian Boxall said he knew he had to upgrade the knob-and-tube wiring in his Banning Street house before he could move in, so he laid out his plans to tear down the interior walls.

Boxall said he obtained a permit from the City of Winnipeg to carry out the work, but a city inspector later told him the project was deemed to be "new construction" because he had ripped out the walls.

"Because the walls are down, you now have access to all the interior workings of the home, such as ventilation and plumbing," Boxall told CBC News on Monday.

"But of course, there was no warning to this," he added. "I was never notified that this is something that would happen."

Boxall said the city is forcing him to replace the plumbing and put in a new ventilation system — all at a cost of about $11,000, which is money he said he doesn't have.

"It's an extremely stressful and almost a desperate situation," Boxall said.

"I basically cleaned out my bank account, I'm still facing this extra $10,000, and … there's still a lot of work to be done here."

Boxall said he feels misled, as he feels someone should have suggested the cheaper option of punching holes into the walls in order to get to the wiring.

"It's a real slap in the face when they would rather [have] someone be basically out on the street than working on redeveloping these neighbourhoods," he said.

Coun. Russ Wyatt told CBC News on Tuesday that he has asked the city's property and planning department to look into what happened in Boxall's case, and what can be done.

In the meantime, Boxall said he is living in his parents' basement while he considers his legal options.