English basement - legal to rent out?
Is it legal to rent out an English basement by itself? If so, what are the rules (where can I find)? If residential rentals are illegal in an English basement, can you rent it out for something like an artist’s studio?
Is it legal to rent out an English basement by itself? If so, what are the rules (where can I find)? If residential rentals are illegal in an English basement, can you rent it out for something like an artist’s studio?
if you are going 100% legal, you also need to have a Certificate of Occupancy that lists the space as a dwelling unit.
The window height is determined by the street facing windows because that’s where the fire department would most likely be making a rescue. Alley’s aren’t the easiest, or primary means, for FDNY to access a building and the code reflects it.
Also note that if your basement is in the back of the building, the window measurement is taken at the front of the building not the back. We have a situation where the back windows of the basement are significantly higher above ground than the front of the building but that doesn’t matter.
Yes you can. We’ve done this legally with an inspector / appraiser seeing everything first. You need two exit doors in the front and back(fire safety) full windows(forgot how many) and a certain ceiling height above street level. You should invest in a fire safety door and the proper enclosure of your mechanicals and carbon monoxide. detector.
while this is unofficial, it might be possible for the owners to have “roommates” who live in the basement and elect to use a separate entrance.
There would be no lease, but your roommates would be expected to share in the expenses of the “household.”
A tenant needs to be able to escape any leased residential space through the windows. English basements have iron bars over the windows. Also English basements have the boiler or furnace on the same level, and that might be another reason the city doesn’t allow a tenant in there. Carbon monoxide.