Rental Housing Codes and Compliance for Landlords

To achieve this goal, landlords, tenants and local code enforcement officials must work together to prevent injuries, illnesses and deaths that could result from unsafe rental housing conditions. The end result will be a safer and improved housing stock, one that prevents occupants from living in conditions like those above.

Lets take a look at the roles and responsibilities that landlords, tenants and enforcement officials have regarding rental housing codes.

Landlord Responsibilities - All landlords (or owners) are responsible for maintaining their rental properties in a safe and habitable condition. This includes all interior and exterior portions of the premises. Landlords are required to exercise constant vigilance for unsafe conditions and make repairs as necessary to comply with applicable housing codes for rental property.

Tenant Responsibilities - Tenants are responsible to keep their rental units in a clean and sanitary condition. By law, they are not permitted to modify their rental units in ways that will create health and safety hazards. Tenants are also responsible to be aware of residential safety and to request that the landlord make necessary repairs when there are rental housing code violations involved.

The tenant is also required to report the code violations to the code enforcement official if the landlord does not take reasonable action to fix the violations after being notified.

Code Enforcement Officials - Local code enforcement officials are responsible for investigating all code complaints that are brought to their attention. They are also responsible for informing residents about safety hazards and ways to prevent them, inspect rental units for compliance with safety codes, and issue citations or condemnations for code violations.

Components of Housing Code Enforcement

Rental housing code enforcement can take place at two levels:

1. Where the enforcement official inspects certain rental units on a scheduled basis to ensure compliance with the housing code, and

2. Where the enforcement official inspects rental units after being notified (typically by a tenant) of a housing code complaint. In these situations, property owners are required to correct all identified code violations within reasonable time periods.

Housing codes for rental property apply to all persons who rent one or more dwellings to one or more persons. These codes can vary among local, city or state governments, so it is recommended that you obtain the exact code requirements for your given locality.

The most common rental housing code requirements address minimum health and safety standards for the following...

• plumbing and heating systems ,
• electrical systems ,
• light and ventilation ,
• structural adequacy ,
• sanitary systems , and
• egress and overcrowding .

For more in-depth information about rental housing codes, please visit The Landlord's Library book collection. It's a terrific, one-stop source for practical, comprehensive information on the entire subject of residential landlording.

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