All Forum Posts by: James Matthews

Thanks so much Derek for your reply. Very much appreciated. From what it appears, a sprinkler pipe in the irrigation system close to the house blew. It was running for several hours before noticed and water came theough the basement concrete wall. I was not able to see first hand how much water actually came in and was sitting in basement as i was out of town. But i also think the tenant may have exaggerated the amount. Im not sure if "flooding" would be accurate for the amount of water oresent. Nonetheless i organized through the insurance company a water damage restoration service to come dry it out. Even the technician when first on site phoned me to say it was very minimal. The charge can be $1600 - $2500 for service, im still waiting final bill so dont know exact amount at the moment. The insurance company wants to send guy out to asses but i wonder if im better closing the claim as my out of pocket is around $1700

Hi BP Forum members.

Newbie here!

I purchased my first Investment Property last year so fairly new to this business. Was hoping to get some help with a question I have.

The rental property in question is 2 bed / 1 bath. Both bedrooms and the bathroom are located on the main floor (ground level). The property also has an unfinished non-conforming basement.

The property is currently rented to 2 people (family members). 1 person occupies one of the bedrooms upstairs, and they use the 2nd bedroom upstairs as storage.

As mentioned, the basement is non-conforming as it does not have egress windows. But I know the second tenant sleeps in the basement and uses it as her living space. (has big king bed down there). The basement is unfinished, but she has put curtains up, and setup lighting and has made it very livable. I should also mention that there is a 1/4 bathroom in the basement. It has a toilet and a handbasin.

I have language in my lease that states the following:

“Tenant acknowledges that the basement windows; do not contain egress windows, meaning that the basement area may not be used for sleeping as this violates the Denver Health and Housing Codes. Tenant has acknowledged that failure to comply with this law is not only unsafe due to fire hazards, but also may result in fines, which can be assessed daily while the violation continues. Tenant is liable for all legal costs and fees resulting in failure to comply with the laws surrounding basement use.”

My question is, if I filed an insurance claim for whatever reason (fire / flood), and the insurance company discovered or realized the tenant was occupying / sleeping in the basement, would this be a valid reason for the insurance company to deny the insurance claim?

At this stage I haven’t gone through the policy on the property to try and find this. Google didn’t provide much help either, so hoping the BP Forum members might have knowledge.

I don’t want to ask the insurance company directly either, as I actually have an open claim for flooding that has occurred. The inspector has not been out to the property yet, but this is why I ask the question.

Thanks in advanced.