Leslie and I attended a workshop yesterday afternoon at City Hall concerning the City of Ventura’s new, proposed “Rental Housing Preservation Program”. Some of the provisions are: 1) A landlord must now have a City issued rental permit (and pay the annual fees of course!); 2) Must include that permit number in all advertising for your rentals; 3) and if you don’t have a permit, violations will “constitute a misdemeanor punishable in the manner provided for by Division 1 of this Code”.

Proposed Section 12.315.090 (Violations) states:

Any of the following acts or omissions arising out of the operation and use of a rental dwelling unit are unlawful and constitute a misdemeanor punishable in the manner provided for by division 1 of this Code:

1. Rental, offering for rental, or advertising for rental of a dwelling unit located on any property within the City without making a complete application for permit and, within 180 days of application, receiving a permit issued in the manner required by this chapter;
2. Failure of the owner, or the owner’s designated agent, issued a permit in the manner required by this Chapter to maintain the rental dwelling unit in accordance with the City’s most current Property Maintenance Code or the State’s minimum rental dwelling unit standards.

Proposed Section 12.315.050 (Advertising Shall Include Permit Number)

No person shall offer to rent or advertise for rent a rental dwelling unit without including in the offer or advertisement either the city busines license or permit number applicable to the perperty in the form “Ventura Business License/Permit No. ___________.” The number shall be printed in the same size type as the largest type used in the offer or advertisement.

Much of the spirited debate centered on the annual exterior inspections that a City inspector would make (and the fee to the landlord) and the potential (and under what circumstances) the City inspector would make an interior inspection of the rental unit. Other asked questions: would this apply to someone renting a room out of their home?  Definitions used by the City such as what is a “dwelling unit”?

The point person at the City of Ventura is Andrew Stuffler, Chief Building Official (654-7837; email: astuffler@ci.ventura.ca.us).

It would appear the proposed ordinance will go before the City Council at the end of November.