illegal housing
Unpermitted residential structure
Housing that violates laws, codes, or regulations.
This includes structures built without permits, units that don't meet safety codes, overcrowded dwellings exceeding occupancy limits, or rentals in areas zoned against residential use.
The term also covers housing arrangements that circumvent tenant protections: The city cracked down on illegal housing in converted garages.
What counts as illegal varies by jurisdiction.
- squatterUnauthorized building inhabitant
- off the gridIndependent of infrastructure
- slumImpoverished urban district
- shantyRamshackle dwelling
- tin roofSheet metal roofing
eviction · overcrowded · tenement · slumlord · condemned · unsafe · fire hazard · fire escape · unpermitted · violation · substandard · makeshift · cramped · zoning · occupancy · basement · building code · unlicensed
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