An ordinance designed to require business licenses for residential landlords will be introduced to and considered by the Aberdeen City Council on Wednesday.
Currently, the city does not require a license for landlords to rent homes to tenants, however, the state requires cities to inspect rental housing and furnish reports if a request is made by a tenant. The city hopes the ordinance will put staff ahead of tenant requests. The finance committee and Finance Director Kathryn Skolrood are bringing the ordinance forward.
The fee will be set at $25 annually. If landlords have more than one rental, those can be included with the same license, but an additional fee of $1 will be charged for each additional property.
City officials hope the fee will serve as a possible inventory of rentals.
“We have no idea how many residential properties are being rented,” Skolrood said last week. “That’s part of the reason we wanted to obtain this inventory of what is being rented.”
Because the city doesn’t know how many residential property owners are renting to tenants, the city is not sure how much the fee will generate in terms of revenue.
“I can tell you that it will cost us more in time than the nominal fee being assessed for the licenses,” Skolrood said.
Though unsure how many homes are being rented, the city does have concerns about the condition of the rentals.
“Unfortunately, our very aged housing stock coupled with absentee owners, foreclosures and such lead to the potential for substandard housing,” Skolrood said.
Though the ordinance states the requirement will take immediate effect, Skolrood said there will be a 90-day grace period for landlords to acquire a business license. If the ordinance passes, landlords will be notified via an insert included in their utility bill, and additional forms and information will be available on the city’s website (www.aberdeenwa.gov).
Tenants are not required to take any action.
“The tenant bears no responsibility in this. It is the property owner who must comply,” Skolrood said.
Any violation of the ordinance would result in a gross misdemeanor including a fine not exceeding $5,000 and/or up to 364 days imprisonment.
Exceptions to the ordinance are owner-occupied rental units, units unavailable for rent, accommodations in hotels, motels, inns or tourist homes, retirement or nursing homes, any hospital or state-licensed community care facility, convent, monastery and any facility housing a religious order or extended medical care facility or accommodations owned by a government, agency or authority.
The first reading will be held on Wednesday, and a second reading and public hearing will be held on Jan. 28.
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