News & Issues: Rental Property Inspections

Rental Property Inspections and Licensing

REALTORS® believe that rental property owners offer a much needed service by providing housing to citizens who, either by choice or other circumstances, may not want or be able to purchase a home.

We oppose regulations that subject property owners to onerous governmental inspection, registration or licensure requirements which hinder affordable housing opportunities by discouraging investment in rental properties in a community.

We believe that the overwhelming majority of investment property owners provide safe, quality, and affordable housing options, and maintain their properties in a responsible manner.

We believe rental property owners who do not maintain their property in accordance with existing regulations should be held accountable and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, just as owner-occupied homeowners should be held accountable to existing regulations.

REALTORS® believe that if rental unit inspections are to be required, they should be conducted for all properties on a systematic basis utilizing criteria that are standardized, well-publicized and limited to true health and safety issues only. Rental inspection ordinances that are enforced solely at the point of transfer, or re-renting, do little to promote health, safety and welfare of all citizens.

Rental Inspection and Licencing Fees

Under Pennsylvania law, the amount of a licensing fee must be commensurate with the expense incurred by the municipality in connection with the issuance and supervision of the licensee and privilege. If a licensee fee collects more than the amount necessary to administer the license, it is no longer a valid licensing fee, but a tax revenue in violation of Article 8, Section 1 of the Pennsylvania Constitution. Property owners who feel that they are subjected to excessive fees for the right to rent property may successfully challenge such fees upon a showing that the amount of the fees exceeds the costs to enforce the regulation.

 

 
 

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Municipal Database: As an added service to our shareholders, local governments and consumers of real estate, the Suburban REALTORS Alliance has created a municipal database that provides a comprehensive snapshot of the real estate-related regulations and ordinances that have been enacted by the 238 municipalities in the Alliance's four county territory. The database is frequently updated by staff, in cooperation with municipal authorities.