Rental Housing Inspection Programs – A Necessary Response [1]
In an attempt to discover poor-quality rental units and force property owners to deal with the problems, the Seattle City Council approved legislation establishing the Rental Housing Registration and Inspection Program [3]on October 1, 2012 according to the Seattle Times [4] article. Beginning in 2014, a four-year period of registration begins for the program with inspections following for the next 10 years along with 5-year renewal of registrations as explained in the summary sheet. Rental properties from single family houses to large apartments are included except for “Short-term vacation rentals; Commercial lodging such as hotels, motels and B&Bs; Housing units in state licensed facilities like assisted living, adult family homes or veterans’ homes; Hospitals and hospices; Emergency or temporary shelters or transitional housing; Facilities owned by or managed for Major Institutions; Housing units in a religious facility occupied by members of the religious order; Housing units, owned by a government entity or housing authority, like Seattle Housing Association” because they have on-going routine city inspections. "Every restaurant receives a health inspection. Every driver passes a safety test to receive a license. We should apply the same health and safety standards to housing," said Jonathan Grant, executive director of the Tenants Union of Washington State [5]. While many are concerned about the program’s voluntary registration phase, the success of Seattle’s program has built-in mechanisms for participation, like outreach, education, code violations to assist in identification of unregistered rentals or face a $1000 penalty for non-compliance. "The biggest challenge will be getting people to register their properties. The bad guys are not going to register," said Tim Hatley, lobbyist for the Washington Multi-Family Housing Association [6]. And, from Sean Martin from Rental Housing Association of Puget Sound [7], "We're very concerned people aren't going to register. If someone has an illegal rental in their basement, how is the city going to know?" Additional program components are: enforceable oversight, database availability for renters, program review assessment, and coverage of complete costs from inception of this fee-based program.
Seattle joins many cities and counties around the country who have previously created new ordinances for rental property as in Baltimore County, MD [8] (2007) that enforces county codes and regulations, which protect and promote public safety, health and welfare; Kalamazoo, MI [9] (2009) ensuring safe, decent and sanitary rental housing; Sacramento, CA [10]; (2008) addressing the issue of substandard rental properties, promoting greater compliance with health and safety standards while preserving the quality of Sacramento’s neighborhoods and available housing; Tukwila, WA [11](2011) requiring all residential rental property owners to obtain an annual residential rental business license and a periodic inspection of each unit, which applies to all multi-family units (2 or more units) and to condominiums, single-family, and accessory dwelling units occupied by tenants who pay rent; and Waukegan, IL [12] (2001) guaranteeing all individuals who live in rental property having a decent place to live while improving the quality of life in their neighborhoods.
Where as in Elizabethville, Pennsylvania, with 1500 city population, the two-year old residential property inspection ordinance was recently challenged by one landlord claiming it violated the constitutional rights of property owners. In a recent decision by the U.S. Middle District Court, the judge dismissed without comment the nine citations and $450 in fines for not obtaining a rental license according to Penn Live [13] (8/28/2012). Susanne L Woodford, Freelance Writer