City to start rental inspections this month under new program

The city of Cape Girardeau will start inspecting rental units this month under a new program designed to ensure such housing meets health and safety codes.

The city council in July approved the new program that will allow city staff to inspect some rental units of every landlord in the community annually.

Cape Girardeau has nearly 800 landlords, about 2,900 rental buildings and nearly 7,000 licensed rental units, according to the city’s development services office.

The city’s latest inspection effort comes two years after the council approved a residential rental-licensing program that requires landlords to provide 24 “housing essentials,” city officials said.

Those essentials include everything from a working toilet to smoke detectors and even a kitchen sink. In the past, not all rental units complied with such essentials, officials noted on the city’s blog.

Scheduled compliance inspections of rental units start this month.

“Our focus is on the health and safety of our residents,” said city building and code enforcement manager Anna Kangas. “All of our residents should have the essentials in their homes such as safe electrical, heat, sanitary systems and access to clean water for bathing and cooking.”

There will be no charge to the tenants from the city, and no charge to the property owner for the initial compliance inspection of a rental unit. The city hopes to have its two inspectors check 3,000 rental properties in the city over a three-year period.

Landlords who have compliance issues will be charged for subsequent inspections, city officials said.

The Cape Area Landlords Association worked with the city to revamp the inspection program. Landlord Jason Coalter said the goal is “to hold landlords accountable for people who trust them and rent from them.”

According to Coalter, this new inspection program puts the financial burden of inspections on landlords who don’t keep their rental units up to city code.

Coalter said it is not about how many properties can be inspected annually, but ensuring all landlords comply with the city regulations.

“We are holding our landlords accountable to keep our city safe,” said Coalter, a leading member of the landlords association.

The majority of landlords provide quality rental housing to their tenants, he said. The city should crack down on those landlords who own and operate unhealthy and unsafe rental units, Coalter said.

Under this new inspection, Coalter said he hopes the city can “clean up” noncompliant rental units at “a rapid pace.”

City officials said inspections will be limited to the items on a 24-point check list of “housing essentials.”

As part of the requirements, rental units must have proper-functioning smoke alarms in every bedroom, in the common hallway outside of bedrooms and on each floor, including the basement.

Rental units must be free of pest infestation. All faucets, sinks, drains and toilets must be in good condition and function property, officials said.

The city prohibits exposed electrical wiring connections in rental units. All steps with four or more risers must be outfitted with a securely fastened handrail.

All rental units must have properly functioning heating systems.

Under the new program, the city will notify landlords 30 days in advance of an inspection. Landlords can reschedule the appointment, but only once for that inspection. The rescheduled appointment must be held within two weeks of the original appointment, city officials said.

As a landlord, Coalter said he welcomes the city’s efforts to spell out the requirements, not just to landlords, but to the public as well.

mbliss@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3641

Pertinent address:

401 Independence St., Cape Girardeau, Mo.