Pin ItIf you are planning to buy apartments in New York City you may want to look closely at your contract before signing the dotted line. Mayor Michael Bloomberg has recently proposed legislation that could ban smoking in apartments or at least mandate building owners to disclose whether the building is a smoking or non-smoking building. This is expected to greatly increase the number of non-smoking buildings within the city and will give potential owners the right to know whether they are going to be exposed to second hand smoke from investing in an apartment that is not smoke free. An astounding amount of New Yorkers actually favor the bill that is being proposed.
Who will the New Smoking Ban Effect?
This bill has been controversial because it as well address whether a person can smoke in their private dwellings which some say is an invasion of privacy. The bill will not affect tenants directly but it will affect building owners who will be obligated to disclose the smoking policy of their building to potential tenants, and if they do not comply with the ordinance they can be fined a $100 fee. The bill has been favored by many non-smoking New Yorkers who many of them say that they have been subject to second hand smoke in their places of residence. The smoking ban will be entirely up to building owners to enforce and they must as well disclose where the smoking policy effects their tenant, such as if it only includes public areas or if it includes a ban on private residences as well.
How will this affect Your Investment?
This is something that will not affect your investment directly, but it may be beneficial to you if you are a non-smoker. It can give you many more options as well as the ability to choose whether the place that you choose to live will put you at risk of exposure to second hand smoke. For people that are looking to invest in an apartment in New York City that has a smoking ban, there may be insurance benefits as well. In a non-smoking building there can be less risk for an incident of fire which can in turn translate to insurance savings for those who want to invest in a New York apartment. This will also make it possible for people who want to live in a non-smoking community to do so if they please, though the law has been met with opposition from those who say it is an invasion of privacy.
