Complying with Zoning Laws
Planned communities and condominiums often have their own detailed
rules affecting home-based businesses. Typically, these rules are
stricter than local zoning ordinances.
Is it legal to run a business in your home? The answer depends on
where you live and what you do. To understand how this works, let's
start with the case of Bob Mullin, (Metropolitan Development
Commission v. Mullin, 339 N.E.2d 751 (Ind. App. 1979), whose plight
made its way into the lawbooks. Bob ran his insurance business from
his two-bedroom home in Indianapolis. He thought he was on safe
legal ground. After all, unlike in some cities, the local zoning
ordinance allowed people to use their homes for "home occupations".
As long as a home was used primarily as a residence, it could also
be used for "professions and domestic occupations, crafts or
services". The ordinance specifically allowed homes to be used for
such occupations as law, medicine, dentistry, architecture,
engineering, writing, painting, music lessons and photography. Also,
people could use their homes for such businesses as dressmaking,
tailoring, hair grooming, washing, ironing and cabinetmaking. So why
not an insurance business?
Bob Mullin used his living room as a reception room and office,
complete with a secretary's desk and filing cabinet. He put his own
desk in the dining room in place of a dining room table. The
photocopier stood in the kitchen next to the stove and refrigerator,
and he converted one of the bedrooms into an office.
The zoning board took Bob to court, claiming he'd gone too far.
The Indiana Court of Appeals agreed. The court ruled that it was
okay for Bob to conduct an insurance business at home, but that
Bob's usage was excessive. The business had taken over the house to
the point that the primary use was no longer residential. The court
told Bob to cut back or close down.
This case demonstrates but one of the many ways that local zoning
ordinances can have a devastating effect on a home-based business.
The good news is that by learning the law and using discretion, you
may find that zoning isn't a real problem for your business.
- Partnerships
- Corporations
- Sole Proprietorships
- Incorporation Basics
- Naming your Business
- Writing a Business Plan
- Limited
Liability Companies
- Complying with Zoning Laws
- Getting
Licenses and Permits
- Why Form a Nonprofit Corporation?
-
Choosing Between a Corporation and an LLC
- Leases and Rental Agreements: An Overview
