Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Pennsylvania
If a person owns two homes, can the one be empty?
A friend of mine has two homes within 20 miles of each other. The one home has no one living in it and has been empty for 10 years. Is that legal? The utilities are still turned on and she has the grass cut once a week during the summer. Their are homes on both sides of the home that is empty and their are people living in them.
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: proeprty owner's rights and obligations
There is no law that requires an owner of property to have it occupied. Rather, the owner may do what he or she wants with it as long as zoning laws are complied with. The grass cutting is a perfect example of what the owner must do to avoid any liability.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, an owner can create an obligation to occupy the property by contract. If there is a mortgage on the property and the mortgage documents require that the property be occupied, the owner might be in violation of the mortgage. Also, affidavits might have been executed when any such loan was obtained in which the owners stated that he or she would occupy the property. Non owner occupied properties require a larger investment by the borrower.
I hope this has been helpful, but feel free to call or e-mail with further questions.
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