"basement bedrooms"
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Anonymous
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As I search for apartments on craigslist, I've run into several ads for a bedroom in the basement. These "bedrooms" have either no windows at all, or the very small basement windows. I thought this was illegal?
Do some landlords just not care? |
Anonymous
| It is. Basically, they are renting a room. I'd keep looking. |
Anonymous
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Yes, it is illegal.
Yes, some landlords just don't care. You can report them. |
Anonymous
| Are you talking about a basement in someone's SFH or an English basement? |
Anonymous
| The window has to open so that it could be a potential exit in case of disaster. |
Anonymous
Report them to whom? I honestly don't know. |
Anonymous
The window has to be large enough for a firefighter in full gear can get through... |
Anonymous
The city or county, depending on where it is... |
Anonymous
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It isn't always illegal. It depends on whether it has enough windows/entrances of appropriate size.
Depends on the code. I have a bedroom in my basement that absolutely meets code as a bedroom. |
Anonymous
| You may need to check local ordinances. Some jurisdictions, a room needs to have two modes of egress not into the same room (e.g. two doors, but they cannot both exit into the same room) plus a closet of some sort. So a room that has one exit to a hallway and one exit to another room, like a gameroom would work. So basements that are set up in a circle pattern even without windows can still have a bedroom downstairs. Also, regulations on acceptable housing including bedrooms are frequently managed by local ordinances. In Maryland, this is by county. The district has its own codes. Not sure about VA. |
Anonymous
a basement in a SFH or a townhouse. Typically a living space, a smaller room, and a bathroom. |
Anonymous
| We have a room in our basement that we use as a guestroom. It's a nice, large room with two closets. However, it only has one small, high window. I know this would not be considered a legal bedroom since there is only one door and the window is not large enough for egress. My question is - would you feel comfortable using this as a bedroom, or would you feel it's a danger to people who stay in the room? |
Anonymous
Its illegal , if a fire occurred you'd be in a lot of trouble including criminal. |
Anonymous
I would not use that as a bedroom. It IS a danger to anyone staying in the room--nothing to do with how anyone "feels" about it. |
Anonymous
| Would you put your kids in that room with no means of an escape in case of a fire? Then why would you put anyone in there? We have a egress window in our basement bedroom that is large enough by MD regs. We also have a door to the outside but its not inherently easy to get to so I see that as a secondary means of escape. It just not worth it to me to even consider putting anyone in that kind of damager without an escape path. |