Maybe I’m being completely paranoid, but it the outside back entrance is in any way hard to get to, especially for young tots, I see a problem there. What if one of the kids falls and gets hurt? What will Tracy say or do then? Demand that brother pay medical bills because he should have made a “safer” entrance? Oh. I don’t like the sound of that.
Another factor, kids normally come with support, whether from pappy or the taxpayers. You’d be amazed how much easier it would be for the tenant to find a more suitable place to live if she gets that money.
This is the normal, standard method of problem-solving in the kids’ situation, and excuses for avoiding that solution need not be accepted.
This is not the correct solution. Your brother may only be getting in deeper (and not in a good wild monkeysex kind of way) by doing this. Making any other substantive changes, modifications or additions (be they interior or exterior) to the property may only increase his degree of noncompliance with the building code and zoning authorities.
If he is unwilling to seek or take advice from an authority (i.e., attorney) on this matter, he is more than a little stupid. If money is an issue, most areas have a Bar referral service that gets you a half hour interview with a lawyer who specializes in the field of your problem. The “donation” is usually around $30.[sup]00[/sup] for what normally would cost near a hundred. He should also go out and get a landlord’s handbook on eviction and a tenant’s handbook on renter’s rights and take notes while READING THEM BOTH cover to cover.