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On 22 Mar 2006 11:03:43 -0600, (Todd H.) wrote:

"cmay" writes:

I have heard different things regarding the requirements for counting a
bedroom as a bedroom.

Mostly I have heard that it must have a closet and a window.

But I have also heard variations on that for rooms that are below
grade.

Some say they must have a window that of a specific type that will
allow a person to crawl out in the event of a fire.

Some say that they must NOT be 100% below grade, that if they are 50%
below grade then they are ok.

What are the rules?
Is it specific to your town?

It's tricky, and it depends on your audience, and your locality.

For instance, here in Illinois, as an owner of a raised ranch style
house (ranch with an english basement -- i.e 60% above grade
basement), with 3 BR upstairs, and I can list my lower level office in
MLS as BR4 and count it in the bedrooms field. MLS rules require a
way to separately close the space from living area (i.e. a door), a
window you can get out of, but no "bedroom" can be in a basement
that's 50% or more below grade. Since I have an english basement, I
can count this as a bedroom, so, for an MLS audience, I have a 4 BR
house. A closet is not required, according to a local real estate
newsletter article I found--their rationale stated that older homes
didn't have closets and used armoires instead, but they still have
bedrooms. I know these MLS rules vary by state though, as I
discovered in my research into the matter.

However, the appraiser counts my house as a 3BR because my lower level
"bedroom" lacks a built-in closet.

That all said, there are realtors who are listing full on basement
bedrooms in mls in the bedroom fields around here and getting away
with it. If they were reported, I assume they'd be fined, but it seems
to happen all the time. I was careful to have the rules followed
closely when listing my home.

Best Regards,

When is a Bonus Room a bedroom?
I've heard (in Florida) that a house with a bonus room is taxed less than a
house where the bonus room is called a bedroom. Such as, a 3 bedroom with bonus
is taxed less than a 4 bedroom, even though they are all under roof and HVAC.

Any insight to this?