How many bedrooms does your Clark County, WA home have?
The numbers of bedrooms in your home is important to know. To be considered a bedroom in Washington state, building codes say a room must have egress, as in a door and window large enough for an escape, and a closet (this may be local, not state). It also has to have a working heat source.
The heat source must be a permanent fixture or vent. In other words, you cannot use a plug-in heating unit to meet this requirement. Clark County, WA building officials say the room must be able to maintain a habitable temperature of 70-degrees three feet off of the floor.
What does this mean for vintage homes, built around 1900, which do not typically have a heat source on the second floor? Jan Bazala with the Clark County Permit department says, in general, if the room has egress compliance, a closet and gets heat in some fashion, the county would consider it a bedroom.
However, if any of the bedrooms have been added or altered, without the required building permits, they may not be recognized as "legal." Naturally, the addition of bedrooms, if a vintage home is on a septic system, would also require health department approval.
The number of bedrooms in your Clark County, WA home can add value.
Obviously, since bedrooms add value to a home, it's important to know what constitutes a legal bedroom. Hiring a Realtor® who is well versed in local building codes can be critical when buying and selling a home. What you don't know, can hurt you.
Keep in mind that while local building inspectors may qualify a bedroom as legal for tax purposes, a lender may have different requirements. For example, Fannie Mae does not count below grade rooms as legal bedrooms.
Bedrooms must also have a working smoke detector, wired electronically, and as of this year, according to State Building Code, a CO ( Carbon Monoxide) alarm must also be installed outside of each separate sleeping area, in the immediate vicinity of the room.
If you have any questions as to the number of legal bedrooms in your home, or a home you are considering for purchase, make sure you understand local codes. Or, even better, make sure you hire a competent and knowledgeable Realtor® who can tell you exactly how many bedrooms are in a Clark County, WA home.
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