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At the direction of City Council, City staff took a deep dive into the ordinance governing multi-family property registration and inspections, with a focus on helping tenants better understand their rights and making it easier to report potential code violations. 

During the review, staff also found ways to improve the ordinance’s wording and make the program more effective. With City Council’s approval on Tuesday, the updated ordinance now includes these changes:

  • Inspection Process: Clarifies how property maintenance inspections are handled. Properties can no longer request a second inspection to improve their yearly score. This encourages property owners to meet standards the first time, knowing the initial inspection determines their score for the year.
  • Property Registration: Confirms that property registrations follow the calendar year and sets clear registration deadlines.
  • Housing Standards: Makes it clear that minimum housing standards apply to all residential properties, including short-term and long-term rentals—not just multi-family housing.
  • Maintenance Categories and Timelines: Creates different categories of maintenance issues based on how serious they are. Life and safety issues—like exposed live wires, no running water, or broken A/C in hot weather must be fixed (or addressed) within 24 hours. Other problems must be addressed within either 72 hours or 30 days, depending on how severe they are. The ordinance outlines each category.
  • Tenant Information Posting: Requires property owners to post important information where tenants can easily see it. This includes how to report violations, the annual property maintenance score, tenant rights under state law (such as protections against retaliation), and what to expect if given a notice to vacate for non-payment.
  • Crime Prevention Addendum: Adds a new requirement that helps improve safety. All leaseholders must sign an agreement saying they won’t commit crimes on the property. If they do, and depending on the severity, this document gives the property the ability to evict them. The ordinance also sets standards for lighting, access gates, and the upkeep of vacant units.
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