SALISBURY AREA PROPERTY OWNERS ASSOCIATION, INC P.O. BOX 527 Salisbury, Maryland 21803-0527
Landlord Licensing/ Rental Property Registration and Inspection
Landlord Licensing/Rental Property Registration and Inspection may not appear to be so bad at first, but when you examine it more closely you will see:
* Why it is unnecessary and not needed * Why it won't work and won't help resolve "people problems" * Why it is unfair * Why it would be very expensive to implement, and * What it would not do
Why is Landlord Licensing Unnecessary/Not Needed For "Building Type" Problems?
1. Its underlying requirements are already required and are nothing new. We don't need a new law which says obey the law. The present laws already require that.
2. The Codes which solve "building type" problems are already in place.
* New Housing Standards Code ($50 fine per day per violation) * Southern Standard Existing Housing Code * Southern Standard Gas Code * Southern Standard Mechanical Code * Southern Standard Plumbing Code * Southern Standard Electrical Code * Southern Standard Fire Safety Code * BOCA National Building Code * BOCA Mechanical Code * National Fire Protection Association Code * Life Safety Code * Zoning Code * Municipal Infraction Ordinance * Clean it or Lien it Ordinance * Right of Entry Ordinance (This ordinance eliminated the problem inspectors used to have about not being able to gain access to inspect.) * Garbage Ordinance * Weed Ordinance
3. The Fire Department has already been doing life safety inspections of all rental housing units in Salisbury for the last two years. (The Salisbury Area Property Owners Association purchases and donates smoke detectors to Fire Department to be given away in conjunction with these inspections.)
4. City officials say 95% of Rental Properties are no problem and the voluntary inspection compliance rate is quite high at 90-95% as well. So why spend 95% of proposed enforcement money and effort on inspecting properties that are already in compliance and inspected upon request? Why not spend lOO% of our enforcement efforts on the 5% which are the problem and leave the law abiding tenants and property owners alone?
Why Landlord Licensing Won't Work and Won't Help Resolve "People Problems".
* Licensing is seen by some as a method to control tenants' behavior.
* The idea is to register the landlord and provide him/her a license.
* If the tenant misbehaves or refuses inspection, the landlord's license can be revoked.
* The logic is, it's easier to hold the landlord responsible than the tenant.
* The problem is, the Courts won't go along with that logic.
* The Courts say the person violating the law must be held responsible.
* So, licensing landlords will not be an effective method of controlling tenant behavior.
* Licensing will also do nothing to help the City's problems of crime and drugs.
Landlord licensing has been studied before, in 1987 by the Blue Ribbon City appointed Housing Task Force and in 1990 by the Salisbury Neighbor Associations/Salisbury Area Property Owners Association Joint Committee. Neither recommended landlord licensing in their final report.
Why Landlord Licensing Would be Unfair
* Not only would landlord licensing attempt to punish the owner for a tenant's misbehavior, it would provide a bad tenant with another avenue to injure the owner by causing damages to the property causing the owner to lose the license. Ultimately, it also places an additional cost on tenants, most of whom can least afford it.
Why Landlord Licensing Would be Very Expensive.
* Salisbury has 6,300+ rental units.
* One person working a 5 day week 50 weeks per year would have to handle over 25 inspections per day, as well as their reports, follow-up inspections and license applications and issuances for annual license inspection - this is obviously impossible. One person probably could not do more than six inspections per day including reports and follow-up.
* So, how many more inspectors, complete with additional automobiles, support staff, desks, computers and office space would be required?
* Are we talking about $200,000 or $300,000 per year or more? It won't be cheap, and that's a permanent additional cost each year in the City's budget.
* And who's going to have to pay for this? Landlord? Tenant? All Taxpayers?
* And what does this do to the cost of housing - make it more affordable? Not hardly. Such figures don't even include the extra cost which the property owners will incur in additional paperwork, staffing, and attending inspections.
* $200,000 - $300,00 is a lot of money to spend on disciplining a handful of landlords in Salisbury.
So, What Would Landlord Licensing Give Us We Don't Already Have Now?
* Nothing - except for creating a lot of additional cost and ruining the good cooperative relationship the City currently has with 95% of the rental property owners.
* Tenants won't get anything out of the new law which they can't already get with a call to their landlord or the Department of Building, Housing and Zoning.
* If a tenant wants an additional inspection, all they need to do is ask for it - it's free - and no landlord permission is needed.
* The only time the City's inspectors can't enter a rental unit "at will" is if the tenant (occupant) doesn't want them there.
* Even if the tenant objects, the City can still ask for a warrant to enter and inspect the property anytime it wants (with probable cause).
O Constitutional Question
* A tenant has no less right of privacy than an owner occupied individual.
Is There a Better Solution?
Yes, several.
They include:
* Strict enforcement of existing codes governing housing.
* Strict enforcement of existing ordinances governing behavior.
* More fully and consistency staffing neighborhood police substations.
* More police bicycle and foot patrols in neighborhoods.
* Promotion of the partnership between landlords, tenants, homeowners and Neighborhood Associations.
November 12, 1995 Salisbury Area Property Owners Association, Inc.
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