Photo by PoPville flickr user Tim Brown
“Dear PoPville,
We recently purchased a home with a basement unit which are hoping to rent out as a furnished unit — the entire house was recently renovated but there is no separate cert of occupancy for the basement alone and all permits were for a one unit construction. The basement has one entrance (through the back yard, and access to the main house we can close off). The house is currently zoned RF-1 where 2 dwelling units may be located within the principal structure. I have been looking into the required licensing with DCRA and of course am completely confused as to what is actually necessary and applies to our property.
I know this is a topic regularly discussed on the site but I’m hoping that the community would have some more recent advice, including where do we even start? And any other helpful tips from other basement apartment landlords’ experiences (aside from the generic “don’t do it”) would also be very helpful!”
Recent Stories

You are cordially invited to the Washington Opera Society’s exclusive Christmas/Hannukah Party!
We are pleased to welcome our great opera stars to the company!
Juliette Di Bello, Manuela Tomasz Korossy, Kristin Sampson from the NY City Opera Company, and Kevin Short of the Metropolitan Opera.
Don’t miss this unique holiday concert of seasonal favorites and hit arias from the operatic repertoire sung by our cast of stellar singers. Maestro Benichou will bring his infectious energy as he leads the WOS Festival Ensemble in an evening sure to remember. Glad tidings!

You are cordially invited to the Embassy of Austria for a thrilling evening with Mozart. What a better way to spend Christmas and Hannukah! Our full orchestra and lead singers, some of whom sing at the Met, will appeal to teens as they begin their journey to the classics! We expect to be sold out soon…..
Get your tickets now!
Under the Gracious Patronage of H.E. Petra Schneebauer, Ambassador of Austria
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Julien Benichou, Conductor
featuring:
Kevin Short as Figaro
Manna K. Jones as Susanna
Stephen Powell as Count Almaviva
Laquita Mitchell as Contessa
Anna Kelly as Cherubino
Maggie Polglaze as Barbarina
John Gibney as Bartolo
Leah Heater as Marcellina
Christopher Jon Hartung as Antonio & Don Curzio
Narration provided by Robin Phillips
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Embassy of Austria
3524 International Court NW
Washington, DC 20008
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Doors Open/Cocktails 6:30 pm
Performance including Intermission 7:15 pm
Wine Reception with Heavy Hors d’oeuvres 9:15 to 10:30 pm
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Tickets:
Box Seats $250
Orchestra Reserved $150
Unreserved $125
Seniors (over 65 years old) Unreserved $80 [sold out]
Students with ID $50
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Cocktail Attire
12 Beers of Christmas: Local Seasonals Tasting at metrobar
Join metrobar and the team at DC Beer for a taste of 12 holiday brews, all made in the DMV by your favorite local breweries! Your ticket gets you access to the afternoon tasting with 3oz pours of each of
Egg Nogg Extravaganza – D.C.
Egg Nogg Extravaganza
Join us for a festive celebration at Spirits & Spice D.C. ! Get ready to indulge in the most delicious and creamy egg nogg you’ve ever tasted paired with our liqueurs. This in-person event is the perfect