HELP! Buying building but not ADA compliant

[James W.]

I am in escrow to buy a 10,000 sq ft commercial investment property in Southern California. The buildiing has 2 floors with 2 sets of stairs going up but no elevator or wheelchair access. Does the ADA require wheelchair access for all buildings?

I am not sure if the building is ADA compliant and if I will get sued for not being compliant.

[Garrick Oconnell]

I wanted to address this in 2014 as it is in an older thread it is still a question that resonates constantly with property owners, and commercial property purchasers. My company performs CASp inspections (I do BP in the after hours) our headquarters are located in San Diego so I am very familiar with the climate and accessible building issues here.

IF YOU ARE NOT IN CA CASp DOES NOT APPLY TO YOU.

You do not have to provide a elevator for a two story building IF there are no medical facilities located on the second floor I.E. lab, dentist, and doctor, etc.... You should not take any tenants that have a medical practice on the second floor even if they are OK with limited accessibility unless you are planning on installing an elevator.

July 1, 2013: SB1186 went into effect requiring all commercial leases in CA to include whether or not the property has been inspected by a CASp and if not what level of compliance the property is in.

This is very important to Bigger Pockets members:

I have personally seen companies looking to purchase properties use there CASp inspection as a bargaining tool to reduce the purchase price of the property. From multimillion dollar business parks, and shopping centers to several hundred thousand dollar properties multi-family housing.

or

You require the existing owner fix the ADA barriers and deficiencies before taking ownership, which is probably the cause of the sale.

This is very important in CA "Grandfathering" does not exit

"Grandfathering"= "Alternate accessibility" which means you will have to spend more money to provide access 9/10 times.

Plans signed by the city, architect, or contractor do not mean you are in compliance or meet the code. Only a CASp inspector can certify a property for compliance (in CA.)

When in doubt just CASp it it will save you money in the long run.