Is it legal to rent an in law as an apartment in Massachusetts?

Question

I've been looking to purchase a duplex or triplex in the plymouth county area but not many are available. I've also thought about the idea of buying a single family home with an in law and renting that out. I never considered until now that it might not actually be legal to do. I've tried to find information on this but can't really come up with any concrete yes or no answer. Some say its not legal and some say it is. I'm assuming it varies from county to county.

Anyone know for sure what the status of this is?

Charlie MacPherson · Answer

@Michael Pursell That's going to vary by town, not by county.  Our county governments aren't big in regulation.

They service things like the Registry of Deeds, county jails, transporting prisoners, etc.

If you have a property in mind, call that town's Building Department.

Charlie MacPherson · Answer

@Michael Pursell @Jonathan R McLaughlin is right about the liability, which made me think about homeowner's insurance.

Be sure you talk to your insurance agent about whether an "unofficial rental unit" is covered or needs a different kind of policy.

If there was some sort of claim, it wouldn't surprise me at all to see an insurance company deny the claim if it wasn't a legal, permitted ADU.

Jonathan R McLaughlin · Answer

@Michael Pursell following up on @Charlie MacPherson good comment you also may want to pay attention to the exact wording of this stuff and how its individually interpreted by the various building departments: Accessory Dwelling Unit, In-Law and other terms may mean something slightly different town by town and be treated differently, likewise if you owner occupy or not.

If it doesn't have two exits it usually isn't legal to rent via lease. Also, the banks won't finance it as a two family or count any income.  With the right layout most people will deal with this regulation by having roommates, who while they may have run of the house in theory, stay within their area, even if it isn't a legally defined unit. Make sense?

A third wrinkle with enforcement/financing etc. is often the presence of a stove. Can't have a stove in an illegal apartment. Funny thing is this isn't a code driven test but it seems pretty standard among the inspectors. People have been known to pull stoves out of the secondary kitchen before appraisal or inspection.

If you are renting out you should figure out if you can get a second entrance (variance?) as this will make most issues go away. If the apartment doesn't have one you really can't rent it legally and you will always be in the wrong if something goes wrong.

If it wasn't for illegal in-laws a lot of people in the Boston area would be in even more of a pinch, but that still leaves you in a precarious position liability wise if there is a problem. Owner occs will have an easier time getting along day to day, as will those who own something that is safe in all other aspects, i.e. ceiling height, stairs etc.

Mike Buckley · Answer

@Michael Pursell Sorry I meant to say I think the in-law idea would work because it still is separate from your personal space, although I'm using the word "bedroom" for legal purposes. You would still have separate living spaces but you would have an agreement with the person you rent it out to only to use the other section. I'm not a lawyer but I couldn't see the difference between renting a room and an entire in law section.

Michael Pursell · Answer

thanks @Charlie MacPherson thats some good advice about the building department

@Mike Buckley I guess thats the question I'm asking. I dont have a house yet, so no extra room to rent out but I'd prefer owning something with separate space. It would also be a space I would live in short term, probably two years and move out of and continue to rent.

Mike Buckley · Answer

what exactly would the difference be if you just took your house and rented one of the "bedrooms" out to a friend to help pay the mortgage? It prob wouldn't count as an additional unit as far as value goes but could work to help to pay the bills and may not trigger any red flags.

Is it legal to rent an in law as an apartment in Massachusetts?

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