Investor · Denver, CO · Member since 2017 · 21 posts · 9 votes
I'm looking at a SFR in NW Aurora, Colorado in Adams County, just a few blocks east of Denver. It is a 4 bedroom, 2 bath house roughly 1600 SF. Two of the bedrooms are downstairs. They have closets but do not have egress windows.
Can this house legally be listed on the MLS as a 4 bedroom? Can it be advertised and rented as a 4 bedroom? What kind of liability is involved?
Lots of houses in our area like that. I see them listed as "non-conforming bedrooms". When I was looking at student housing in Greeley I saw lots of properties like that, too. I even discussed it with the city building department. The inspector said they were grandfathered in vs. newer codes. And that he got calls every year from upset parents who's kids had rented one of these. He told them the were legal and could not be forced to change, nor was it justification to break a lease.
Where you will absolutely hit an issue is with section 8. Basement bedrooms that do not have proper egress based on the latest codes are not counted toward the number of bedrooms.
All that said, I don't like this sort of property at all. The liability is just too big for me. Converting these to have proper egress may not be too difficult. I've done it in my residence. There are local companies that specialize in doing this job. Having enough space to dig a properly sized window well can be the tricky part.
It's worth putting in the money to legally make it a room. Also maybe it is worth converting the SFH into a multiunit house by closing off the basement from the upstairs and adding windows and doors in the basement; granted that your home isn't in a highly prone flood zone.
Lots of houses in our area like that. I see them listed as "non-conforming bedrooms". When I was looking at student housing in Greeley I saw lots of properties like that, too. I even discussed it with the city building department. The inspector said they were grandfathered in vs. newer codes. And that he got calls every year from upset parents who's kids had rented one of these. He told them the were legal and could not be forced to change, nor was it justification to break a lease.
Where you will absolutely hit an issue is with section 8. Basement bedrooms that do not have proper egress based on the latest codes are not counted toward the number of bedrooms.
All that said, I don't like this sort of property at all. The liability is just too big for me. Converting these to have proper egress may not be too difficult. I've done it in my residence. There are local companies that specialize in doing this job. Having enough space to dig a properly sized window well can be the tricky part.
If it had egress windows in the rooms and no closets, you could list it as a 4 bedroom house - at least on craigslist and zillow/trulia, etc. There are no laws against that.
But to list it as 4 bedrooms with no egress windows is a huge no-no. And for exactly the reason Deanna mentioned above - liability. Most villages won't even let you have a closet and finished space if the room doesn't have an egress window.
That is a bedroom to them and you'd have to bring it up to code (i.e. install the egress window). You'd be liable for sure if you advertised it as a 4 bedroom and someone got caught down there in a fire. You'd probably be fined big time if the village even found out someone was living down there and it had no egress window.
Putting it in your lease is a good idea. Adding an egress window for each bedroom is a better idea. I gotta think you'd get your money back for that. I guess it depends on the variables of the house. But typically, by me, there's a significant difference in a 2 bdrm to a 4 bdrm. Usually 300 to 400 a month (i.e. 1450 to 1050).
Now I'm curious, assuming these rooms are below grade, are there acceptable window well parameters for egress? I've never seen one that would suffice. In my city, if it's more than 50% below grade it's not inhabitable as primary living space, period.
Aurora CO uses International Residential Code. Most cities here do. IRC R310.1 covers windows and R310.2 covers window wells. R310.1 states minimum clear opening must be 24" wide and 20" high with a new clear opening of 5.7 sq.ft. Sills must be no higher than 44" from floor to the bottom of the clear opening. Window wells must be minimum of 9 sq.ft. with a minimum width of 36" and minimum horizontal projection of 36". A permanent ladder or steps are required if the window well depth is greater than 44".
The easiest way to meet this is with a 4'0"x4'0" sliding window. In many houses, basements have small windows at the top of the foundation. You dig an adequate hole, cut the foundation and install a new window. If there's adequate clearance, you can use an excavator. If not, well there are always shovels. The show stopper is the need for 3' from the house to the outside of the window well, and more than that when installing the window well.
So, at least around here, you can absolutely have legal basement bedrooms. Other locales may have stricter codes and regulations.
@Michael M. watch which advice you take on this subject because there is some variation around the country based on state, city, county, etc. It sounds like @Jon Holdman has solid understanding, but I would call the country to check on your specific property.
I added an egress window to a property and I created a big water collection pit. With proper grading and a large window cover, I got the issue under control. I would caution you to consider if it is worth $10K and potential water issues to add the egress. See what the county says and go from there.
To be held liable, they have to prove you had knowledge or were complicit in some way. Someone could argue just having the rooms there makes you complicit. Many would argue it is not worth taking your chances.
Thank you all for the reply. I realize that the definition of a legal bedroom as well as what constitutes an egress will differ depending on location. @Jon Holdman. I appreciate the local insight. This is exactly what I was looking for in this post and why I specified the city and county in my original post.
I have a call into the building inspector. Well see what they say.
The fact is this house was recently listed on the MLS as a 4 bedroom. I talked with the current tenants and they mentioned it also was advertised as a 4 bedroom (although there is only a couple living there in one bedroom).
Any local Aurora or Denver area agents have any additional insights?
@Michael M. so "legal" is not exactly the word I would use. There are no laws enacted by the legislature for what you can and can't call a bed room. Here there is Section 8 with their definition. There is what is customary but there is nothing in the MLS rules that define a bedroom. I would think that perhaps looking to the appraiser's side would be the way to go. IMO if the county records count the basement bedrooms as bedrooms then there would be no issue counting them. I would also add the non-conforming caveat.
For me adding the egress would be worth it just like all the others suggested.
My guess would be that the addition of the basement bedrooms was not even properly permitted. If it were it would have the egress windows.
Calling in a building inspector will likely open up a can of worms but in the end the rooms will likely be made legal and safe. Chances are the insurance company does not know they exist and if they did they would drop the policy. May even void the policy if there is a fire and death results.
Hey Michael! I searched the forums for this exact question, a basement bedroom in aurora, Colorado. wanted to know what you ended up doing and how it all turned out. Thanks!