I’ll preface this by acknowledging that I need to talk with an attorney and an insurance agent, but before I seek that advice I’d like some some outside perspective.
I’ve been working with an architect to design a three unit apartment building that I intend to build and hold for investment. The units will be small studio apartments with less than 400 square feet on the main level, which will include a full kitchen, a bathroom (with a stacked washer and dryer), and an open living area.
In addition to this, we’ve included a loft area in the vaulted ceiling. This area will be approximately 8 by 14 feet and should work well as a “sleeping loft”, allowing for better use of the living room below.
We don’t really have the space to provide a proper stairway, which is okay, because our state, Washington, provides an exception to the International Building Code stair requirement. Ladder access to small lofts is specifically permitted.
I believe the apartments will be great for singles or couples, and that is my target market.
In my opinion, the ladder access to the loft could be potentially dangerous for small children or toddlers.
So here’s my dilemma. It is illegal to discriminate against families with children in the provision of housing, but this type of housing, while legal, is potentially unsafe for children.
I’d appreciate any ideas on how to approach this. Thanks in advance.
You can check the ordinances to see if you can restrict the number of persons based on the number of bedrooms. Sounds like there will not be a bedroom so you may be able to restrict based on that.
I lived in a place where the owner didn’t want a lot of kids. They were 3 bedroom townhouse style apts. The owner took out the closet and removed the door so it was suddenly a 2 bedroom apt with a den. Max 2 children allowed.
I don’t have expertise in this, but my first impression of your predicament is that your building will meet the state building code, but may not suit those outside your target market.
Doesn’t fair housing deal with denial of access to buy or rent the place? If you specifically say no to families with children, seems like a problem. But if you allow them to make the choice as to whether it is safe or not, doesn’t seem like a problem.
I would talk to an attorney. I assume your concern is your liability. The attorney might be able to draft a very prominent attachment to the lease that you’d require ANY tenant to sign acknowledging that the apartment contains features that could be dangerous for children. The problem is that minors rights can’t be waived even by their parents. You need legal advice on this.
I would avoid mentioning that families may not be welcome either in ads or while showing apartment. Point out the ladders to potential tenants so they are well aware of them but let them make the decision. A clear disclaimer in the lease may help limit liability but someone could still sue and cost you some time and money. And just because something is “to code” does not necessarily shield you from all liability. Definitely talk to a lawyer.
@sherpa , I am not a lawyer and this is not legal advice. Merely the musings of me.
Though housing laws/regulations vary by state and city, many municipalities allow regulation of occupancy by bedroom. For instance, a usual standard (though not universally standard) is 2 people per bedroom – thus, a 2 BR house could be restricted to only 4 total tenants – sometimes, the standard says 2 per BR + 1 extra to the total. This standard, as I who is not a lawyer understands it, when written into law, allows municipalities to limit tenants when landlords wish to increase the number to increase revenue (think of landlords renting houses to college students and packing 3 kids per room,) and also allows landlords to limit tenancy by enforcing lease restrictions of no more than 2 tenants per bedroom, where tenants might wish to move in more people than the unit can reasonably hold.
Where I am uncertain is, if you have a studio unit, what is the standard expected occupancy? Is it one person or two? If it is one, you can stipulate that in the signing and only one adult (no child) can move in. If you go this route, you might lose the ability to rent to couples, but if your market is as hot as I assume it is, that won’t be a revenue loser for you.
Check your city’s housing regulations and see what the expected/allowed occupancy restrictions are for studio units and/or based on square footage.
What I was thinking was not children, but people with mobility issues. Wouldn’t having all of the loft apartments set up in this manner this violate ADA requirements?
@MWolf I don’t really see why it would. The vast majority of houses - even those built today - are not accessible. Stairs only, narrow doorways, etc all would violate ADA laws in businesses but not housing.
ADA regulations only apply to buildings containing 4 or more units. This will be a 3 unit building.
Permissible age restrictions on apartments are limited to properties geared to folks 55 and older, which is not my target demographic.
I’m waiting for a call back from the State office of Fair Housing.
A representative of the local landlords’ trade association suggested I have an attorney draft a carefully worded “Safety Advisory” to be signed by all residents.
I’m still struggling with this and welcome any further input.
Just that, no matter your good intentions, people can be litigious. You need a housing attorney. There may be ways to designate the property. Eg, student housing.
We’ve got a local place with single resident only status. Business folks like it.
A spiral case, even a narrow one, takes up far more space than a ladder. A ladder is not dangerous to kids. Unless they are very, very, young. I think they can run up and down easier than grownups and they love it, too. You may not like to rent to families with kids. I am building a house and put a loft under the ceiling for kid visitors. A ladder doesn’t meet the code in my state but I plan to house kids there anyway. We rented a tiny houseboat once from a family of 3. They had a small daughter 4-5 years old. Her bedroom was the loft. The father was the architect who designed the place.
Regarding the loft ladder design, I imagine some options are safer than others. This site speaks of how “industry leaders choose the Lapeyre Alternating Tread Stair for its improved ergonomics and safety and its efficient design.”
And this shows a nice, elegant residential implementation that would seem to me to be quite a bit safer than a ladder, although requiring a little more space.
I saw the alternating steps in a ladder in a tiny home show once. I guess by alternation the rise can be only as much as run, not twice as much. Does it see the code if the code is enforced?
Alternating tread devices are not allowed in residential buildings by the International Building Code, but Washington State may have an exception, or you might be able to ask for a variance from the State Building Code ($50 and not too much paperwork here in NYS for getting variances for too low basements or too low handrails on existing buildings, my only experience with the process.) Can you have some sort of removable baby gate as part of your stair design?
Frankly, even a normal stair was dangerous for my young toddlers.
This may vary by state but…in at least some areas, housing discrimination laws don’t apply if you have fewer than 4 units–just like ADA. So ask an attorney in your area, but lead with the fact that it’s only 3 units.
Have you spoken with your insurer yet? Our agent tipped us off about a home improvement we were doing which was going to cause a huge hassle getting a COO, even thought it was up to code. We were surprised how savvy he was about various “do this, not that” items on a punch list!