Augusta considers rental housing inspections and licensing, with $100 per unit yearly fee

This Augusta rental unit with a collapsed ceiling provides an example of the conditions that have the city considering requiring inspections of rental properties. Augusta’s code enforcement officer has reported finding numerous violations at rental properties, which are not currently subject to inspection by any public safety agency unless the housing is subsidized. Courtesy of the City of Augusta

AUGUSTA — City officials are fine-tuning a proposal to require all rental housing units in the city to be licensed and inspected, with a $100 yearly fee for each unit to pay for up to three new city employees to oversee the new program.

City staff proposed the licensing and inspection requirement out of concern the city’s rental housing stock is rife with unsafe units and dangerous living conditions, made worse by an ongoing housing shortage in which tenants are afraid to report hazards in their apartments for fear they won’t be able to find anywhere else to live.

Currently in the city, rental housing is only required to undergo an inspection when the tenant is receiving assistance, such as from the Augusta Housing Authority or general assistance funds. Once they are operating, market-rate apartments are not required to undergo regular inspections to ensure they meet safety codes.

Faulty wiring seen in the basement of an Augusta rental unit is an example of one of the issues prompting the city to consider requiring inspections of rental properties. The electrical system, which the city’s code enforcement officer said was worked on by unlicensed individuals, posed a fire hazard to tenants, who said they were reluctant to notify the city out of fear of becoming homeless. Courtesy of the City of Augusta

When city officials have reason to enter some apartment buildings, they’re finding life safety code violations that, just a few years ago, would have prompted them to close down entire apartment buildings. But Director of Code Enforcement Rob Overton told city councilors, who last week expressed support for a licensing and inspection program, that officials aren’t closing down some buildings even when unsafe conditions are found because they fear tenants won’t be able to find another place to live due to a housing shortage with few available units and inflated rents.

To make rental housing, including apartments, rooms, hotels, motels, and short-term rentals such as Airbnb, safer, the proposed new program would require all units to be inspected by the city to ensure they meet life safety codes.

To pay for the cost of creating and overseeing that program, a $100 per unit, per year, fee would be charged, though discounts would be offered as incentives to landlords whose units meet the code requirements and for landlords who live in their own rental buildings.

Matt Nazar, development director, said that would generate enough revenue to pay for two new full-time code enforcement officers and a support staff person to work with them, to oversee the licenses and conduct inspections.

“There really does need to be a licensing process in order to address the situation over the long term,” Nazar told city councilors last week. “And ensure we have safe rental housing in the city for tenants. This would be fully supported by the fees, so there would be no impact on the tax rate.”

Councilors expressed support for the proposal but also some concerns about the first draft, which was modeled after an existing program in Sanford.

Mayor Mark O’Brien voiced concern tenants could be put at risk of eviction if their landlord doesn’t comply with requirements.

“I’m really concerned about what happens with tenants,” O’Brien said. “I haven’t read this closely enough to know whether a landlord not getting a license ends up turning tenants out of buildings that don’t rise to the level of being dangerous enough to move someone out of at a moment’s notice.”

Nazar and Overton said city staff would not create a situation where tenants, if the building is fit for occupancy, would be forced out simply because a landlord fails to get a license. Overton said if a landlord decides to not go through the licensing process the city would take them to court and seek fines that would accrue if the landlord continued to not comply.

Overton noted landlords are already required to have their buildings meet life safety codes by state law.

“Our goal here is not to close down any apartment buildings,” Overton said. “Our goal is to get in there, work with landlords to point out what the requirements are and to come up with an acceptable plan of action so the building starts moving in the right direction.”

Nazar recommended the licensing system, if the proposed ordinance is approved by councilors this winter, be phased in during the next fiscal year. Staff would spend much of the first year notifying all landlords of the new requirements. That would also give landlords time to address any code violations in their units they may be aware of before being inspected.

The delayed implementation would also give the city time to find two new code enforcement officers, which Nazar and Overton said are in short supply.

Overton said the city would likely need to hire someone with little experience in the field, then spend the time to train them for the job.

Nazar and Overton, in a memo to city councilors, said the city has about 3,800 rental units, and the proposed $100-a-year fee per unit would amount to $8.33 per month per unit. The memo said rental rates have increased in the last few years, with studio apartments in Augusta going for between $800 and $1,000 a month, one bedrooms $1,200 to $1,500 a month and two- and three-bedroom units topping $2,000 a month.

Councilors agreed city staff should work to fine-tune the ordinance for Augusta and bring it back to councilors for review. O’Brien and Ward 2 City Councilor Kevin Judkins noted there should, and would, be public hearings to allow landlords and others to learn and comment about the proposal.