Legalize it? (informal second units)

[Carrie K.]

I'm looking to move into a duplex or triplex. In my price range, I keep seeing "single-family homes" with basements or garages that just so happen to have kitchens, bathrooms, and separate entrances.

My first inclination is to see opportunity. If I could get those legalized as second units, that would add value. On the other hand, how do I get a decent level of confidence that I'll be able to legalize it? I don't yet know all the requirements (parking, ceiling height, egress...), and adding a window is one thing, but digging the floor down twelve inches is another. I wouldn't want to buy on the assumption that I could legalize the unit and then find out I couldn't.

But how do I assess this? I doubt the seller would want to give me an option while I kicked over a hornets nest up at Building & Planning. Could I ask the permit counter for general advice without getting into the property specifics? Should I address this during the inspection contingency and pull in an architect or engineer to get their opinion? Should I just assume that if the unit could be legalized, that would have already happened? (I'm not sure I think that -- having met one owner of a place like this, I can say that playing by the rules doesn't seem to be his focus, so I'm not sure he tried.)

Thanks for any advice you have!

[Frank Chin]

Yes, you can get engineers and architects. But, where I am, I'm better of calfling expeditors, many of whom are engineers or architects, who deal with issues of zoning.

Unfortunately, most people on this site are real estate investors, look at it from a real estate standpoint, rather than from a city planner standpoint. My wife was a city planner for a while, and I see the issue from a whole different perspective.

I've invested mostly in duplexes and triplexes, and for a while, ignored the zoning issues. Many rental properties I looked at is as you described, a SFH with a converted attic, a duplex with a basement converted to an apartment. I owned triplexes that's legally a duplex for years. Surprisingly, I owned a legal triplex built in 1939, and legally converted in 1942 to a triplex. How did they do it? During wartime WWII, exception were made due to the scarcity of materials.

I only got involved with zoning issues when one duplex I owned with an illegally cited basement apartment was cited, and I had to get an expeditor because the city order it demolished. At that point I had to get a variance. No luck. There's a neighborhood association that opposed every single variance application because such variances require a public hearing, and it's all shouted down. A Mercedes dealer two blocks from me try to built a parking lot on an empty lot he owns, had a number of variance hearings over 30 years, turned down on each one. How do I know this? Invitations to public hearings for zoning variance must be given to neighbors within 200 feet of the property. I was invited for coffee and donuts to a meeting at his dealer prior to the zoning meeting. The local association had it's people attending telling us why they opposed it. That's 15 years ago, and the lot is still empty.

Would an architect or engineer help the Mercedes dealer? I don't think so.

The best way is to have a meeting an City Planning with a planner. As I mentioned, my wife was a city planner, and the way they look at things, they take into consideration the City Master Plan, local politics. Where does the planner fit in? They look at the school population, electric and gas requirements, traffic, water and sewer, and see how many people the area can accommodate. In urban areas and vicinity, you can't add housing units without looking at these issues. In fact, the local gas utility has stopped providing gas to new construction, and renovations where gas was cut off and had to be turned on again because they claim there's not enough gas capacity.

The expeditor I used was aware of all of these issues, so after much discussion, the unit was turned into an office, which is what I used it as. He had the order to demolish rescinded which saved me $30K. Originally, they want the entire illegal unit gone.

As to the local home association President who opposed all the zoning changes, after 20 years in the area, I have to admit he did lots of good. He got a new school built, funding for local play grounds, in addition to opposing the Mercedes dealer. Recently, there's a GoFundMe page for him as he has Alzheimer's and I sent in my contribution.