Do bedrooms have to have closets?

This just came in from the Maine Association of REALTORS (MAR) legal council:


LEGAL SPOTLIGHT by MAR Legal Counsel: A long-standing rumor has resurfaced about bedrooms not being able to be called bedrooms unless they have a closet. I cannot find any legal requirement anywhere for a closet. It is not in the building code. It is not in the MREIS rules. It could be in a local ordinance, but you would have to check with the town. It is not in the life safety code (egress windows, and two means of egress, but not a closet). It is not in the plumbing code (you need to be careful not to state anywhere that there are more bedrooms than the septic system design calls for, but closets don't matter). So closets may be desirable, but not necessary or legally required.

FSBO...Not in this soft market

Many people calculate the commission they pay to a real estate agent and decide to explore other, cheaper ways to sell – primarily the For-Sale-By-Owner (FSBO). Soft markets like we are in are the worst time for FSBO’s. With so many homes on the market it is more difficult for a FSBO to be seen, buyers are picker (and negotiate harder) and lending practices are tightened.

According to the National Association of REALTORS, fewer than 10% of FBSO are successful in completing a sale. Before you try to fly solo consider:

1. Do you have the resources, data and history to accurately price your home to sell?

2. If you fly solo, your home will not be listed in the Maine Multiple Listing Service (MLS), REALTOR.com or syndicated to countless websites. The MLS and REALTOR.com are the top sales tools for marketing your home. How can you compete with the homes that are being advertised on this level when the majority (90%) of buyers shop for homes online?

3. Do you have the time and schedule flexibility to show your home?

4. Can you separate your emotional attachment to your home in order to show it in a neutral objective manner?

5. How are your negotiating skills? Without the buffer of an agent, you will be dealing directly with the buyer’s negotiating strategy, pricing and views (opinions factual or otherwise) about your home.

6. Do you know what your legal requirements are and what information to share with the buyer?

7. Do you have the resources and information available to respond and mediate any problems that occur with the sale?

8. Do you understand all the forms, process and required paperwork?

9. Do you know the steps necessary to finalize the sale?

The reality is that if you want to get maximum value, exposure for your home and guidance it makes sense to hire a real estate agent. That's why many of those FSBOs yard signs are removed and replaced after a few weeks or months and list with a brokerage sign. We just hope it is a Jaret and Cohn sign...