Inspection program would crack down on subpar rentals in Cape

Bricks, loosened by time and neglect. Stripped wires, electricity coursing through them. A steep stairwell that's missing a step. A busted window, a broken railing.

In some of Cape Girardeau's worst rental properties, the picture can be pretty bleak.

That's why city officials are working on a rental inspection program that they say would make renters safer in their homes and would improve property values by making sure minimum property standards are met.

"Like a lot of cities, we run the gamut," assistant city manager Ken Eftink said. "We have some excellent landlords who do a great job managing their properties. In the other extreme, we have people who don't take care of their properties, and that's our goal -- to get these properties brought up to a minimum standard."

Eftink and other city planners are now seeking input from the city's 600 or so landlords at a meeting at 7 p.m. today at the Osage Centre. The city will implement some of the suggestions and address concerns before the matter is considered by the Cape Girardeau City Council.

Many landlords said they intended to go to the meeting, but it's largely to express concerns about the program or to voice outright opposition.

"I feel like it's ridiculous to do this for such a few bad apples," said local landlord Doris Wunderlich, who owns eight apartments and two rental houses. "Good landlords already keep up their properties and are being punished for the few bad apples we have in this town."

Eftink said he's already gotten some feedback about the program, saying it has been about evenly split. He hopes landlords who oppose the program will be swayed after getting more information.

The program, as proposed, would create a certificate of compliance that would be issued to each of the city's 5,000 to 6,000 rental units at a charge of $25 to $35 per unit each year. To keep the certificate, the units would be subjected to inspection at the outset -- done over a three-year period -- and then inspections would be performed every three years. If a landlord doesn't receive complaints during the three-year period following the first inspection, a follow-up inspection may not have to happen to reward landlords who take care of their properties, Eftink said.

Landlords who receive repeated complaints would lose their certificate of compliance and be unable to rent that unit until repairs are made and it meets minimum property standards.

The revenue generated by the fees, at most $120,000 a year, would pay for a new full-time inspector and a clerk. The inspector would evaluate about 2,000 units a year to ensure that minimum property standards are met. Minimum property standards are geared toward health, sanitation and safety -- specifically faulty electrical, plumbing or heating problems; properties open to the elements; excessive trash or debris; or ones that are in a state of dilapidation, deterioration or decay.

Meeting the standards is good for landlord and tenant, Eftink said.

"There is certainly a benefit to maintaining the properties and seeing to it that properties around you are maintained," he said. "If you have a nice rental unit but it's right across the street from a dump, it hurts the value of your property."

The city identified 107 properties that don't meet minimum property standards, Eftink said. Of those, 20 had issues that were resolved quickly and the rest are in various stages of discussions with the city to bring them up to code. Of that number, Eftink estimated that 25 to 30 will end up being cited and sent to municipal court.

"It's a problem that's really spread out all over town," Eftink said. "Older units tend to have more problems than newer units, and it's generally east of West End Boulevard."

But landlords worried that such a program is simply another layer of needless governmental interference. They also said now is not the time to add fees, which would simply be passed on to tenants, raising rents throughout the city.

Soto Properties Solutions manages a large number of rental properties for landlords, and owner David Soto said most of his clients are opposed to the program.

"There are a lot of concerns and a lot of questions," Soto said. "My personal belief is we don't need another bureaucracy in this city. If there's a problem property, why implement a new program just to work on a few properties? It's such a small percentage of all the properties out there that have problems."

Eftink said he's eager to hear such concerns. But inspections historically have been complaint-based and tenants are reluctant to gripe about their own landlords for fear of increased rents or outright evictions. The program would create routine inspections that could also help landlords more easily get rid of troublesome tenants, he said.

"If a tenant is tearing up a property, the landlord could lose his certificate of compliance for that property and then the tenant would have to leave," Eftink said. "Then the landlord could bring the property back up to code and rent to a new tenant. I think it's a worthwhile program that works on a couple different levels."

The goal, Eftink said, is to get the program up and running by Jan. 1. The program is intended to raise the quality of neighborhoods and to provide safer housing for the city's renters.

"It just gives us a better tool to deal with the problem," Eftink said.

smoyers@semissourian.com

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1625 N. Kingshighway, Cape Girardeau, MO