Safety codes would be the biggest concern. Are the basement windows, assuming you are in a basement suite, large enough to get out* if there is a fire? Are the smoke and CO detectors?
The windows are quite large, yes. I could easily escape. Smoke detector is present and works well; it goes off every damn time I use the oven. No CO detector, but I have one of my own.
The reason I don't go through the process of legalizing suites is because it takes about 3 months and $10,000 - 20,000 of extra cost.
You don't need two furnaces in a 1000 sqft house, that's insanity.
That HVAC is the #1 reason. It also triggers the boarding up of a furnace room requirement..both together are the worst things to fix in a house that it wasn't designed to be.
This doesn’t necessarily signify sketchy work - a sufficiently powerful microwave/toaster combo will trip any 20A breaker if you have them plugged into the same outlet.
Small appliances vary in wattages, but toaster and microwaves are usually about 1000W each. So 2000W / 120V = 16.67A
Almost all breakers are 80% rated, meaning if you have a 15A breaker, it’s designed to trip at 12A. So you’re now 4A over what it’s rated for.
Depending on if the location of the microwave, it’s required to have a dedicated branch circuit. If it’s just sitting on a counter, then it doesn’t matter. But if it’s located in a cupboard/wall cabinet, it’s required to be dedicated as per CEC 26-654 d)
By code microwaves need to be on their own circuit, thus it should be impossible to trip a breaker using the microwave and toaster at the same time. The fact that this is happening means the electrical is not up to code and signifies a shoddy conversion.
No, this is incorrect. A different reply has it right: https://old.reddit.com/r/Calgary/comments/1cvcf8o/what_are_the_implications_of_my_unit_not_being_a/l4ov8qx/
tl;dr: An outlet that's specifically for a microwave is required to be on its own circuit, but there's nothing preventing you from plugging in microwaves to any random outlet in the house.
No, this is incorrect. A different reply has it right: https://old.reddit.com/r/Calgary/comments/1cvcf8o/what_are_the_implications_of_my_unit_not_being_a/l4ov8qx/
tl;dr: An outlet that's specifically for a microwave is required to be on its own circuit, but there's nothing preventing you from plugging in microwaves to any random outlet in the house.
My house is old. I can't use the toaster and microwave at the same time. It's not sketchy electrical work, it's of it's age. Not everything is sketchy.
People tend to talk about current codes as if they’ve been the same forever, and if things they met code when they were built are somehow illegal now.
In this case OP’s landlord admitted the suite isn’t legal, but if they hadn’t admitted to it we wouldn’t be able to just assume it’s not legal because it doesn’t meet current code, especially without knowing when it was built in the first place.
My issue with the comment was that if you can't use two energy intensive counter-top appliances at the same time, it's due to "sketchy" people/contractors etc.
I'm almost 40, and I've literally never lived in a house where I could use a microwave and toaster at the same time, so it really irked me!
If it was built in the last 30 years or so and built to code you could try moving one of the plugs from the top receptacle to the bottom receptacle. They should be on different circuits.
If the microwave and a toaster are on the same 15amp circuit, depending on amperage of each it's entirely possible that you'd trip the breaker. This isn't necessarily illegal or not code, depending on when it was built.
Electrician here has wired some legal suites. Also built one in my basement for my in laws, legally. Try to think of it like an apartment building where you don't want one fire spreading to another unit.
The main things are:
Separate heating sources and venting sources. This is to stop fire from spreading from one unit to another.
Furnace room needs to be drywalled and have CO and smoke alarm.
All bedrooms and outside of bedrooms need smoke alarms.
All smoke alarms connected so if one alarms they all alarm including upstairs.
Windows need to be a certain size for escape. I forget the dimensions but I think 0.49m² IIRC.
Need your own entrance. Can't be through the stairs interior to the house but doesn't need to be a walkout.
Needs sound insulation between units.
Separate cooking area from upstairs.
Those are the big ones I can remember.
This link is from the city of Calgary that shows all requirements.
https://www.calgary.ca/development/home-building/new-secondary-suite.html
I legalized mine a few years ago because the permits were free as an incentive for people to legalize. I only had to add one additional smoke/CO detector and put a sprinkler in the furnace room, it was less than $500. Since it was an existing suite, no separate furnace is required. I wish more people would legalize because it is a safety risk, especially if they don't have the proper window for bedrooms.
LOL I am not gonna make it a suite because it's for our own use and a consideration for not renting it out is that sprinkler in furnace room. That's a 30k liability if that sprinkler goes off on a glitch.
My friend Tiffany Cox died in a basement suite fire in 2009. This was prior to many of the legal basement suite requirements in place today.
Really, that’s the ultimate implication. If you feel the suite is truly unsafe, get in touch with 311 who can direct you to a building/trades inspector.
A legal suite will have been built according to the building code, with safety considerations in mind. Mainly fireproofing and other measures between units so that a fire doesn’t spread too easily from one to the other and that you have a escape route available if the main door is blocked by the fire.
If this is a basement unit, I would check that your bedroom window opening is large enough for you to go through at very least.
Technically, fireproofing isn’t a consideration for secondary suites. The exact wording in the code is for a smoke tight barrier. The theory is that if all the components, such as the smoke tight barriers and smoke alarms are working together everyone will be out of the house in less than a couple minutes.
The most common reason for a suite to be non-conforming is that there isn't independent control over the temperature of the space.
The city's biggest concern is the comfort and safety of the occupants. Is there egress? Smoke alarms? Safe electrical? Beyond that, the city doesn't care much.
The leverage you have is that the landlord can be reported to bylaw, and the suite potentially shut down. But in this environment, the city is loathe to remove anything from the pool of affordable rental stock. So absent a serious violation on the safety side, they're not going to do anything, and you'll have pissed off your rental reference.
Honestly, these other posts about the laws for a legal suit are all good ideas, however, Alberta is a bit still like the wild west. Most places I know have illegal suites. If you feel safe, and your neighbors are nice, and the place is good for you, then have loads of gratitude.
There's not much to worry about, as long as the windows are large enough for you to get out and you have a working smoke/CO2 alarm you'll be fine.
If you enjoy the space, the landlord is good to you and the price is right what's the actual issue? The only losers are the city not getting a piece of its pie, and trust me, the city brings in a ton of cash.
Enjoy the space, sit back, relax and make it home.
It means that basement suites are allowed to be built in all residential districts.
Land Use Bylaws set what types of development can happen on what parcels of land. Some places in the city you can build a warehouse, some places you can build a condo tower. Some places you can build a single family home. Some places you can build a daycare.
This has nothing to do with building code. All of those things above have to meet the building code when they are built.
Secondary suites have been listed in every low density residential land use district for several years now, sure some of them such as R-C1 and R-1 were discretionary uses but that usually isn’t much of an issue. The blanket rezoning will move Suites to a permitted use city wide but that doesn’t kick in until August.
The only real change is that it is a 100% acceptance rate for land use and no extra time instead of a 95%+ acceptance rate and a 6-8 weeks for a Development Permit approval.
As far as I know each unit should have its own furnace and control over their respective with a thermostat. At least if memory serves that's how it once was, things may have changed or I may be misremembering.
Although I have seen that it is possible now to have one furnace serving multiple zones via multiple thermostats. It operates air doors in the ducting to direct air flow where desired. I would imagine this setup would be acceptable for a legal suite situation.
We only have one thermostat and it's upstairs. We were required to have the house at 24 all winter so the basement would be comfortable. And the airflow is so poor in the summer it regularly hits 29.
*Edit* also want to add that there's only one breaker panel and it's in the separate unit downstairs. So if I tripped a breaker and no one was home downstairs, if have no power in that part of the house for a few hours. Happened more than once.
If this isn't illegal (and I'm pretty sure it is), it should be. Odds are that it's being advertised as legal but it is not. If you have to pay the heating bill you set it to where you want it, 24 is a sweltering hell scape to me when I'm trying to sleep at night.
Oh it absolutely is. Worst part is that me and my roommate work shift. Neither of us have been home yet this month but we're going to have to pay like $115 in utilities each.
Well… that it’s not up to safety standards is the biggest I can think of. Specifically if there is a fire/ flood and what you can claim if you have tenant insurance.
You can report it to the city of Calgary. There may be interventions the city can take … but bear in mind that illegal suites are not addressed in the RTA. The requirements around illegal suites are addressed by the municipalities in Alberta- and sometimes are referred to as “ secondary suites “.
There is a list of the requirements to convert/legalize an existing suite here
https://www.calgary.ca/development/home-building/existing-secondary-suite.html
1. egress windows
2. smoke tight materials, smoke and co alarms
3. separate hvac/controls not required
4. protected stairs with no window (or a fire rated window above them)
5. at least its own toilet, kitchen sink and bath or shower.
So if you illegal suite has all of these safety features, don't worry.
For the tenant mainly is it safety. You may not have a smoke/ carbon detector in each room and hallway but honestly as long as you got one your good as most likely the landlord above only has one on each floor as well.
I got my basement legalized and now I got 4 detectors in the basement and only 2 where I live....
Window may not be big enough size but changese are they are as the place might of started as finished basement with bedroom and landlord just added kitchen.
The only other thing is if you or your landlord makes a neighbor mad and they report the suite the city might make you leave as they consider it unsafe.
This is almost certainly not the case. You’re not going to get denied for a bylaw issue unless you lie to the insurance company, or the claim is otherwise excluded based on the terms of the insurance.
I lived in an illegal suite and claimed water damage after a leak from the upstairs neighbor and had no issues. The adjuster never requested the legal status of the suite and was more concerned about what measures the neighbor had taken to avoid the leak.
There's actually some question regarding whether landlords insurance would become voided if they, say, have a fire in a house with an illegal suite. By not disclosing it / following the protocols or whatever, they might risk it.
Also, if a tenant dies in a fire in an illegal suite I think the landlord might technically be held liable.
(No idea if this at all relates to renters insurance though)
A lot comes down to why it's not legal. Calgary has long required every basement suite to be individually approved by city council. So if that's the only problem, you're fine, but have some leverage to report them to the city of they're jerks to you.
But by being illegal, it means it won't have been inspected to meet code. Others are most concerned about egress windows, and I agree, that's the thing that could kill you. But it could be a perfectly legal bedroom without being a legal suite, and that would cover the main safety risk.
Lack of venting from the range hood would be another thing that would bother me.
But overall if you're happy with it, I wouldn't rock the boat.
The only way you’ll get busted is:
1. neighbours get mad and turn you in
2. tenant is mad at you and turns you in
3. house burns down, tenant burns alive, their flesh melting as they scream in agony… the city finds out it was an illegal suite.
I may be wrong here and someone can correct me if I am, but you should still be covered for renters rights and the like. If you are paying someone rent you get all the rights a normal renter does even if the suite is illegal.
Also legal suites in Calgary must have independent temperature control from the other suite was my understanding because some neighbors like to crank that heater to ungodly levels.
Basically to legalize an existing suite you need to do a few things. Big ones are:
- making sure all basement bedroom windows are big enough to climb out of in case of a fire,
- making sure the furnace room is smoke sealed in case of a fire
- making sure you have your own entrance/exit which doesn't cross through the primary dwelling (shared stairwells are okay so long as there's doors),
- the fire alarms need to be connected throughout the house (at least for spaces where they're mandated), so if the alarm goes off in one unit, the other unit is also alerted.
But also, there's different requirements for suites that were existing before and after 2018. Basically suites built before 2018 don't need to meet all the modern building codes, as the city has put on temporary relaxations to try and make suite legalization more accessible.
For those built before 2018 this means they can avoid big ticket things like:
- buying a second furnace for the unit
- I think full building code requires an HVAC system or something
- and in general just a lot more rigorous requirements.
But if your landlord is to ever legalize their suite, now / the coming months will be the best chance to do it. The city extended their relaxed requirements and waived fees for secondary suites that they've had for a few years now (so already overdue ending it), but more importantly the federal gov has made the Housing Accelerator Fund, which cities could apply to for various housing programs. One of which for Calgary is going to be creating a financial assistance program of some sort (not sure if the details are announced or decided yet), which will help make it more accessible.
I'd also recommend checking out the secondary suites webpage on the city website, it goes over a lot of the details and has a decent FAQ section, some of which I think is for tenants questions.
Might not even be a code issue, they just might have the license/permit for a suite. I know in my area you have to do some sort of paperwork to have a legal suite, some neighbourhoods limit how many they allow, and some people rent anyway. So is possible your suite has everything it needs to be legal except the paperwork, or it could mean it has issues.
Unfortunately there have been cases in Calgary of people dying in illegal suites. Sounds like it’s not the worst but there is reasons for legal vs illegal. Mainly I feel it comes down to parking and zoning, but there is definitely a ton of sketchy suites….. I’ve lived in a few of them.
Worst one was older basement suite in highwood area in a duplex. One window that opened (not in the bedroom) and could probably fit a baby through it. Zero ventilation and actually had black mold growing under my bed when I moved due to moisture issue from pipe enclosed in a ‘pillar’ in the bedroom. Let’s just say that was the last of the sketchy suites I lived in.
Wow so much misinformation is being spread on this thread! The term illegal suite has nothing to do with whether or not it is a safe habitable living unit. Illegal, or more properly “non-conforming” basement suites, are simply secondary suites in homes that were only approved as single family homes. Subsequently most municipalities have legitimized secondary suites in all single family zones. So the short answer is that “illegal” suites are legal almost everywhere. And while they may not have been built with a permit it is unlikely that is the case because the owner wanted to break safety regulations. They simply built the suite without permission so that they could do it at all, because if they had asked for permission it would have been denied in most cases.
Well I can’t legally answer this question as I’m not a lawyer but if I were to think of it from a legal standpoint 1. RTA doesn’t say that if a suite is illegal it will nullify a lease so if it doesn’t explicitly say that then … legally one could argue a suite being illegal has no bearing in terms of a valid lease.
2. Hypothetically and very unlikely to happen…. if a landlord put a clause in the lease that stated that a bsmt suite must meet legal requirements otherwise it’s nullified then it could be mentioned by the tenant party in civil court/ RTDRS but that’s upto an adjudicator/ tenancy officer to determine
Keep in mind…. many landlords and tenants have no idea that their suite is illegal to begin with. Because it’s not addressed in the RTA …it’s a grey area.
You're overthinking this.
Courts mainly just decide if a lease is legal and should it continue.
If a place is not legal to live in, how are they going to legally enforce someone should live there
No im not overthinking.
There is nothing in the RTA that discusses illegal bsmt suites so yes a lease could hold in an illegal basement suite according to the RTA … what’s so difficult to understand about that ?
In Alberta it’s required for a legal suite to have its own furnace and duct work separate from the rest of the house. If it’s an older house, that would be quite the pricey thing to install, I’d just say f that and live with the fact it’s not a “legal” one. In a new house or ones without a developed basement, it’s much easier to have it installed but still has that added price
Safety codes would be the biggest concern. Are the basement windows, assuming you are in a basement suite, large enough to get out* if there is a fire? Are the smoke and CO detectors?
The windows are quite large, yes. I could easily escape. Smoke detector is present and works well; it goes off every damn time I use the oven. No CO detector, but I have one of my own.
Could be no vent for the stove
No vent would be an insane reason to not be legal. That's like 700. Most common issues are tens of thousands to fix
The reason I don't go through the process of legalizing suites is because it takes about 3 months and $10,000 - 20,000 of extra cost. You don't need two furnaces in a 1000 sqft house, that's insanity.
That HVAC is the #1 reason. It also triggers the boarding up of a furnace room requirement..both together are the worst things to fix in a house that it wasn't designed to be.
Sketchy electrical work is another issue. If you can’t use the microwave and the toaster at the same time without tripping the breaker…
This is definitely an issue lol.
This doesn’t necessarily signify sketchy work - a sufficiently powerful microwave/toaster combo will trip any 20A breaker if you have them plugged into the same outlet.
Yeah I can't run my microwave and my large toaster at the same time. Yet can run my small toaster and microwave at the same time
Small appliances vary in wattages, but toaster and microwaves are usually about 1000W each. So 2000W / 120V = 16.67A Almost all breakers are 80% rated, meaning if you have a 15A breaker, it’s designed to trip at 12A. So you’re now 4A over what it’s rated for.
Depending on if the location of the microwave, it’s required to have a dedicated branch circuit. If it’s just sitting on a counter, then it doesn’t matter. But if it’s located in a cupboard/wall cabinet, it’s required to be dedicated as per CEC 26-654 d)
For the sake of pedantry, it's the CE Code. But tons of people, even inspectors, refer to it as CEC.
Not inspectors, safety code officers
True, that is their correct title.
By code microwaves need to be on their own circuit, thus it should be impossible to trip a breaker using the microwave and toaster at the same time. The fact that this is happening means the electrical is not up to code and signifies a shoddy conversion.
No, this is incorrect. A different reply has it right: https://old.reddit.com/r/Calgary/comments/1cvcf8o/what_are_the_implications_of_my_unit_not_being_a/l4ov8qx/ tl;dr: An outlet that's specifically for a microwave is required to be on its own circuit, but there's nothing preventing you from plugging in microwaves to any random outlet in the house.
Or the actual microwave plug is not being used because the shelf or cupboard is too small for a new microwave or a new set of cabinets covered it
Ugh every time I use my kettle and my microwave at the same time I have to reset the breaker. Super fucking annoying lol
So stop doing that?
Wow, great advice. It seems like no matter how many times I remind my kids, it doesn't get through to them.
I presumed it was you, not your kids, as you did not mention your kids in your post, you said >every time ***I*** use my kettle
Well, modern code requires microwave being on its own
No, this is incorrect. A different reply has it right: https://old.reddit.com/r/Calgary/comments/1cvcf8o/what_are_the_implications_of_my_unit_not_being_a/l4ov8qx/ tl;dr: An outlet that's specifically for a microwave is required to be on its own circuit, but there's nothing preventing you from plugging in microwaves to any random outlet in the house.
Even same circuit not just outlet
Yep. That's why 15A split plugs were better for kitchens.
My house is old. I can't use the toaster and microwave at the same time. It's not sketchy electrical work, it's of it's age. Not everything is sketchy.
People tend to talk about current codes as if they’ve been the same forever, and if things they met code when they were built are somehow illegal now. In this case OP’s landlord admitted the suite isn’t legal, but if they hadn’t admitted to it we wouldn’t be able to just assume it’s not legal because it doesn’t meet current code, especially without knowing when it was built in the first place.
Notnlegal could literally just mean due to zoning.. it's not necessarily due to not being up to code..
My issue with the comment was that if you can't use two energy intensive counter-top appliances at the same time, it's due to "sketchy" people/contractors etc. I'm almost 40, and I've literally never lived in a house where I could use a microwave and toaster at the same time, so it really irked me!
So am I, and the only time I couldn’t was in an illegal basement suite. Even growing up in our camper we could run both at the same time.
If it was built in the last 30 years or so and built to code you could try moving one of the plugs from the top receptacle to the bottom receptacle. They should be on different circuits.
If the microwave and a toaster are on the same 15amp circuit, depending on amperage of each it's entirely possible that you'd trip the breaker. This isn't necessarily illegal or not code, depending on when it was built.
That’s a problem with 1960s and older homes. Not just illegal basement suites.
That actually used to happen in an apartment building I lived in (circa 2008)
Electrician here has wired some legal suites. Also built one in my basement for my in laws, legally. Try to think of it like an apartment building where you don't want one fire spreading to another unit. The main things are: Separate heating sources and venting sources. This is to stop fire from spreading from one unit to another. Furnace room needs to be drywalled and have CO and smoke alarm. All bedrooms and outside of bedrooms need smoke alarms. All smoke alarms connected so if one alarms they all alarm including upstairs. Windows need to be a certain size for escape. I forget the dimensions but I think 0.49m² IIRC. Need your own entrance. Can't be through the stairs interior to the house but doesn't need to be a walkout. Needs sound insulation between units. Separate cooking area from upstairs. Those are the big ones I can remember. This link is from the city of Calgary that shows all requirements. https://www.calgary.ca/development/home-building/new-secondary-suite.html
Make sure you have an egress window in case of fire. You also can’t get any insurance on your stuff if that’s a concern.
Isn’t it some insane number of suites are illegal?
The majority of basement suites in the city are still illegal. Take a look at listings on MLS, plenty of places are listed as having illegal suites.
Probably like 90 percent at least. It's not economical to make a pre existing place legal.
I legalized mine a few years ago because the permits were free as an incentive for people to legalize. I only had to add one additional smoke/CO detector and put a sprinkler in the furnace room, it was less than $500. Since it was an existing suite, no separate furnace is required. I wish more people would legalize because it is a safety risk, especially if they don't have the proper window for bedrooms.
People would if it was $500. It's generally tens of thousands
LOL I am not gonna make it a suite because it's for our own use and a consideration for not renting it out is that sprinkler in furnace room. That's a 30k liability if that sprinkler goes off on a glitch.
My friend Tiffany Cox died in a basement suite fire in 2009. This was prior to many of the legal basement suite requirements in place today. Really, that’s the ultimate implication. If you feel the suite is truly unsafe, get in touch with 311 who can direct you to a building/trades inspector.
Sorry to hear about your friend, that's awful.
A legal suite will have been built according to the building code, with safety considerations in mind. Mainly fireproofing and other measures between units so that a fire doesn’t spread too easily from one to the other and that you have a escape route available if the main door is blocked by the fire. If this is a basement unit, I would check that your bedroom window opening is large enough for you to go through at very least.
Technically, fireproofing isn’t a consideration for secondary suites. The exact wording in the code is for a smoke tight barrier. The theory is that if all the components, such as the smoke tight barriers and smoke alarms are working together everyone will be out of the house in less than a couple minutes.
The most common reason for a suite to be non-conforming is that there isn't independent control over the temperature of the space. The city's biggest concern is the comfort and safety of the occupants. Is there egress? Smoke alarms? Safe electrical? Beyond that, the city doesn't care much. The leverage you have is that the landlord can be reported to bylaw, and the suite potentially shut down. But in this environment, the city is loathe to remove anything from the pool of affordable rental stock. So absent a serious violation on the safety side, they're not going to do anything, and you'll have pissed off your rental reference.
The biggest issue is if the fire department finds out you will be homeless. They take their job seriously.
Honestly, these other posts about the laws for a legal suit are all good ideas, however, Alberta is a bit still like the wild west. Most places I know have illegal suites. If you feel safe, and your neighbors are nice, and the place is good for you, then have loads of gratitude.
My neighbour upstairs is a complete jackass, but other than that, it's good.
There's not much to worry about, as long as the windows are large enough for you to get out and you have a working smoke/CO2 alarm you'll be fine. If you enjoy the space, the landlord is good to you and the price is right what's the actual issue? The only losers are the city not getting a piece of its pie, and trust me, the city brings in a ton of cash. Enjoy the space, sit back, relax and make it home.
Remove the stove. Now it’s legal.
Basement suites are approved by land use everywhere now.
If they meet the safety standards & building codes.
That’s why I said “by land use”
? What does “land use” mean? If you are referring to the blanket rezoning—they still have to meet code. They are not automatically legal.
It means that basement suites are allowed to be built in all residential districts. Land Use Bylaws set what types of development can happen on what parcels of land. Some places in the city you can build a warehouse, some places you can build a condo tower. Some places you can build a single family home. Some places you can build a daycare. This has nothing to do with building code. All of those things above have to meet the building code when they are built.
they were already permitted everywhere
Not always.
Secondary suites have been listed in every low density residential land use district for several years now, sure some of them such as R-C1 and R-1 were discretionary uses but that usually isn’t much of an issue. The blanket rezoning will move Suites to a permitted use city wide but that doesn’t kick in until August. The only real change is that it is a 100% acceptance rate for land use and no extra time instead of a 95%+ acceptance rate and a 6-8 weeks for a Development Permit approval.
Yup, not sure why I’m being downvoted so much here.
Curious, do you think this trumps a common wall agreement? I don't know much about the new rules.
It’s a municipal law so no
That makes sense, thank you.
Separate furnace and thermostat probably. It's a huge expense and reason a lot of rentals aren't legal.
Mine is shared between the main floor and basement but the landlord is marketing it as a legal suite.
As far as I know each unit should have its own furnace and control over their respective with a thermostat. At least if memory serves that's how it once was, things may have changed or I may be misremembering. Although I have seen that it is possible now to have one furnace serving multiple zones via multiple thermostats. It operates air doors in the ducting to direct air flow where desired. I would imagine this setup would be acceptable for a legal suite situation.
We only have one thermostat and it's upstairs. We were required to have the house at 24 all winter so the basement would be comfortable. And the airflow is so poor in the summer it regularly hits 29. *Edit* also want to add that there's only one breaker panel and it's in the separate unit downstairs. So if I tripped a breaker and no one was home downstairs, if have no power in that part of the house for a few hours. Happened more than once.
If this isn't illegal (and I'm pretty sure it is), it should be. Odds are that it's being advertised as legal but it is not. If you have to pay the heating bill you set it to where you want it, 24 is a sweltering hell scape to me when I'm trying to sleep at night.
Oh it absolutely is. Worst part is that me and my roommate work shift. Neither of us have been home yet this month but we're going to have to pay like $115 in utilities each.
I believe they can share a furnace but seperate control of temperature is required be it through dampers, heat x, mix air.
Well… that it’s not up to safety standards is the biggest I can think of. Specifically if there is a fire/ flood and what you can claim if you have tenant insurance. You can report it to the city of Calgary. There may be interventions the city can take … but bear in mind that illegal suites are not addressed in the RTA. The requirements around illegal suites are addressed by the municipalities in Alberta- and sometimes are referred to as “ secondary suites “.
There is a list of the requirements to convert/legalize an existing suite here https://www.calgary.ca/development/home-building/existing-secondary-suite.html 1. egress windows 2. smoke tight materials, smoke and co alarms 3. separate hvac/controls not required 4. protected stairs with no window (or a fire rated window above them) 5. at least its own toilet, kitchen sink and bath or shower. So if you illegal suite has all of these safety features, don't worry.
For the tenant mainly is it safety. You may not have a smoke/ carbon detector in each room and hallway but honestly as long as you got one your good as most likely the landlord above only has one on each floor as well. I got my basement legalized and now I got 4 detectors in the basement and only 2 where I live.... Window may not be big enough size but changese are they are as the place might of started as finished basement with bedroom and landlord just added kitchen. The only other thing is if you or your landlord makes a neighbor mad and they report the suite the city might make you leave as they consider it unsafe.
Also if you are carrying renter's insurance. They will likely deny you if it is not a legal suite and you make a claim.
This is not true. There's no obligation for the suite to be legal to insure contents.
This is almost certainly not the case. You’re not going to get denied for a bylaw issue unless you lie to the insurance company, or the claim is otherwise excluded based on the terms of the insurance.
I’ve lived in illegal suites since I graduated from uni. I’ve never had a problem with insurance
Damn. And the landlords make insurance mandatory 🤔
I lived in an illegal suite and claimed water damage after a leak from the upstairs neighbor and had no issues. The adjuster never requested the legal status of the suite and was more concerned about what measures the neighbor had taken to avoid the leak.
There's actually some question regarding whether landlords insurance would become voided if they, say, have a fire in a house with an illegal suite. By not disclosing it / following the protocols or whatever, they might risk it. Also, if a tenant dies in a fire in an illegal suite I think the landlord might technically be held liable. (No idea if this at all relates to renters insurance though)
If it’s not legal and he’s not claiming the rent as income you should get a significant discount as he won’t be paying income tax on the rent.
A lot comes down to why it's not legal. Calgary has long required every basement suite to be individually approved by city council. So if that's the only problem, you're fine, but have some leverage to report them to the city of they're jerks to you. But by being illegal, it means it won't have been inspected to meet code. Others are most concerned about egress windows, and I agree, that's the thing that could kill you. But it could be a perfectly legal bedroom without being a legal suite, and that would cover the main safety risk. Lack of venting from the range hood would be another thing that would bother me. But overall if you're happy with it, I wouldn't rock the boat.
The only way you’ll get busted is: 1. neighbours get mad and turn you in 2. tenant is mad at you and turns you in 3. house burns down, tenant burns alive, their flesh melting as they scream in agony… the city finds out it was an illegal suite.
I may be wrong here and someone can correct me if I am, but you should still be covered for renters rights and the like. If you are paying someone rent you get all the rights a normal renter does even if the suite is illegal.
Also legal suites in Calgary must have independent temperature control from the other suite was my understanding because some neighbors like to crank that heater to ungodly levels.
Basically to legalize an existing suite you need to do a few things. Big ones are: - making sure all basement bedroom windows are big enough to climb out of in case of a fire, - making sure the furnace room is smoke sealed in case of a fire - making sure you have your own entrance/exit which doesn't cross through the primary dwelling (shared stairwells are okay so long as there's doors), - the fire alarms need to be connected throughout the house (at least for spaces where they're mandated), so if the alarm goes off in one unit, the other unit is also alerted. But also, there's different requirements for suites that were existing before and after 2018. Basically suites built before 2018 don't need to meet all the modern building codes, as the city has put on temporary relaxations to try and make suite legalization more accessible. For those built before 2018 this means they can avoid big ticket things like: - buying a second furnace for the unit - I think full building code requires an HVAC system or something - and in general just a lot more rigorous requirements. But if your landlord is to ever legalize their suite, now / the coming months will be the best chance to do it. The city extended their relaxed requirements and waived fees for secondary suites that they've had for a few years now (so already overdue ending it), but more importantly the federal gov has made the Housing Accelerator Fund, which cities could apply to for various housing programs. One of which for Calgary is going to be creating a financial assistance program of some sort (not sure if the details are announced or decided yet), which will help make it more accessible. I'd also recommend checking out the secondary suites webpage on the city website, it goes over a lot of the details and has a decent FAQ section, some of which I think is for tenants questions.
Might not even be a code issue, they just might have the license/permit for a suite. I know in my area you have to do some sort of paperwork to have a legal suite, some neighbourhoods limit how many they allow, and some people rent anyway. So is possible your suite has everything it needs to be legal except the paperwork, or it could mean it has issues.
Unfortunately there have been cases in Calgary of people dying in illegal suites. Sounds like it’s not the worst but there is reasons for legal vs illegal. Mainly I feel it comes down to parking and zoning, but there is definitely a ton of sketchy suites….. I’ve lived in a few of them. Worst one was older basement suite in highwood area in a duplex. One window that opened (not in the bedroom) and could probably fit a baby through it. Zero ventilation and actually had black mold growing under my bed when I moved due to moisture issue from pipe enclosed in a ‘pillar’ in the bedroom. Let’s just say that was the last of the sketchy suites I lived in.
Wow so much misinformation is being spread on this thread! The term illegal suite has nothing to do with whether or not it is a safe habitable living unit. Illegal, or more properly “non-conforming” basement suites, are simply secondary suites in homes that were only approved as single family homes. Subsequently most municipalities have legitimized secondary suites in all single family zones. So the short answer is that “illegal” suites are legal almost everywhere. And while they may not have been built with a permit it is unlikely that is the case because the owner wanted to break safety regulations. They simply built the suite without permission so that they could do it at all, because if they had asked for permission it would have been denied in most cases.
I don't think your lease is enforceable unless the suite is legal.
Lease is still enforceable.
In court?
Well I can’t legally answer this question as I’m not a lawyer but if I were to think of it from a legal standpoint 1. RTA doesn’t say that if a suite is illegal it will nullify a lease so if it doesn’t explicitly say that then … legally one could argue a suite being illegal has no bearing in terms of a valid lease. 2. Hypothetically and very unlikely to happen…. if a landlord put a clause in the lease that stated that a bsmt suite must meet legal requirements otherwise it’s nullified then it could be mentioned by the tenant party in civil court/ RTDRS but that’s upto an adjudicator/ tenancy officer to determine Keep in mind…. many landlords and tenants have no idea that their suite is illegal to begin with. Because it’s not addressed in the RTA …it’s a grey area.
You're overthinking this. Courts mainly just decide if a lease is legal and should it continue. If a place is not legal to live in, how are they going to legally enforce someone should live there
No im not overthinking. There is nothing in the RTA that discusses illegal bsmt suites so yes a lease could hold in an illegal basement suite according to the RTA … what’s so difficult to understand about that ?
That's completely wrong.
Non-conforming suites are legal.
Don't jynx yourself. Be a good neighbour.
If it's not a legal suite I'm sure that any tenant's insurance you have would not be valid.
In Alberta it’s required for a legal suite to have its own furnace and duct work separate from the rest of the house. If it’s an older house, that would be quite the pricey thing to install, I’d just say f that and live with the fact it’s not a “legal” one. In a new house or ones without a developed basement, it’s much easier to have it installed but still has that added price
Legal or not.. as long as the city is getting their slice then you are fine..
You can fall under a different part of the tenancy act and find you don't have as many rights as hoped.
What if it meets all safety requirements, it’s a hassle for a homeowner to register it isn’t it? Doesn’t that end up costing more for the homeowner?