Habitability: Difference between revisions

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{{Globalize|article|USA|2name=the United States|date=August 2019}}

'''Habitability''' is the conformance of a [[House|residence]] or [[wikt:abode|abode]] to the implied [[warranty]] of habitability.{{circular definition}} A residence that complies is said to be '''habitable'''. It is an [[implied warranty]] or contract, meaning it does not have to be an [[express contract]], [[Covenant (law)|covenant]], or [[provision (contracting)|provision]] of a [[contract]]. There was no implied warranty of habitability for tenants at [[common law]] and the [[legal doctrine]] has since developed in many jurisdictions through housing laws and regulations.<ref>{{cite web|title=Landlord-Tenant Law|url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/landlord-tenant_law|website=Wex|publisher=Cornell Law School|access-date=16 December 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Duties of the Landlord|url=https://lawshelf.com/courseware/entry/duties-of-the-landlord|website=LawShelf|publisher=National Paralegal College|access-date=16 December 2017}}</ref>

Habitability is a common law doctrine that is largely synonymous with '''tenantability'''.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Cudney |first1=Kevin |title=Landlord and Tenant--Tenantable Condition of Premises--Relation of Landlord's Statutory Obligations to Common Law Warranty of Landlord's Statutory Obligations to Common Law Warranty of Habitability [Habitability |journal=Case Western Reserve Law Review |date=1975 |volume=25 |issue=2 |page=371}}</ref> In Architecture, the term habitabilty is understood to be an umbrella term for the suitability and value of a built habitat for its inhabitants in a specific environment over time. <ref>{{Cite book|last=Verfasser|first=Häuplik-Meusburger, Sandra|url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/863786893|title=Architecture for Astronauts An Activity-based Approach|isbn=978-3-7091-0667-9|oclc=863786893}}</ref>

* each [[jurisdiction]] may have various rules.<ref>[http://www.tenant.net/Other_Areas/Penn/lvls/llt4wh.html Pennsylvania]</ref><ref>[http://www.allbusiness.com/legal/contracts-agreements-real-estate/4094-1.html generally, United States]</ref><ref>[http://www.dca.ca.gov/publications/landlordbook/problems.shtml California]</ref><ref>[https://www.jstor.org/stable/1371688 District of Columbia]</ref><ref>[http://www.dhca.state.vt.us/Housing/Rules/Part%20III%20Habitability.pdf Vermont (form).]</ref><ref>[http://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth97278/m3/11/high_res_d/adopted/10.COMMUNITY%20DEVELOPMENT.html TITLE 10.COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT Part 7. TEXAS RESIDENTIAL CONSTRUCTION COMMISSION Chapter 304. WARRANTIES AND BUILDING AND PERFORMANCE STANDARDS] Texas Residential Construction Commission</ref><ref>[http://foreclosuresmass.com/help/view/glossary/termid/501 Massachusetts]</ref>

 

Some states, such as [[New York (state)|New York]], have given additional statutory protections in addition to those created by [[caselaw]].<ref>See [http://www.oag.state.ny.us/realestate/habitability.html N.Y. Attorney General's Website] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070312162610/http://www.oag.state.ny.us/realestate/habitability.html |date=2007-03-12 }}, [[q.v.]], and in External sources.</ref> These statutes include:

# Lobby attendant service by a [[concierge]] or landlord <ref>N.Y. Multiple Dwelling Law §50-c</ref>