From the Forum: Is a Cellar Bedroom Ever Legal?

A reader has an accepted offer on a two-family brownstone and is wondering about the legality of renting out the garden-level apartment. It is a duplexed unit, with a second bedroom and bathroom in the cellar. The cellar is below curb level at the front of the house but the bedroom has windows overlooking the garden at the rear. Do the windows make this a legal bedroom? The prospective homeowner suspects it is not legal, but is looking for advice. Should they be worried about any code violations and address this with the current owners during contract negotiations? Assuming it is not a legal bedroom, how should the space be described in a rental listing?

Please chime in with your advice.

[forumTopic id=”general-discussion:cellar-bedbath-legality-wi”]

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