Rental Inspections Program

– City & County of Sacramento The City & County of Sacramento adopted a mandatory rental inspection ordinance that affects most rental properties.House To Home Inspections will provide the landlords with the ability to better manage the properties and remove the inspection confusion and follow up.

A scheduled program can be arranged with my office to
conduct the mandatory inspections and provide the
necessary information for proper maintenance and
needed repairs.
This will yield in better maintained properties, happier
tenants and improved property values. Of course a safer
atmosphere and improved buildings is the goal.
Services will be available to stay compliant with
registration and record keeping.
Inspections will be performed annually and every time a
tenant moves in to the dwelling.
Copies of the inspections will be provided to landlord
and/or property management of the dwellings as well as
copies stored for owners retrieval when needed.
  • Why should I not do the inspection myself?
  • It is a undesirable condition to report against your own property
    and will yield biased results that could render to be expensive in
    the long run.
  • The code enforcement will do it for free, why do I want to
    pay someone else?
  • Yes they will, but they only come out to inspect for free initially,
    when they find violations they will need to reinspect and there are
    fees for this that mound to $$$$$ see link to Sac county.
  • What will I do with the issues that are found during the
    inspection?
  • They can be easily corrected by your handyman or scheduled
    with appropriate contractor for immediate corrections. You can
    make notes and attach the work documentation to the inspection
    to provide satisfactory remediation immediately following the
    discovery of issue or defect.
  • Why do I need to keep the inspection documents on site?
  • In case there is a reported issue regarding the property to the
    code enforcement or they do a surprise inspection for good
    record keeping. Typically county officials will allow 72 hours for
    production of said inspection records.

Exemptions: Properties located in; Citrus Heights, Elk Grove, Folsom, Galt, Isleton, Rancho Cordova and City of Sacramento.
Also newly constructed properties of five years or newer and rental units subject to periodic government inspections
(Sacramento Housing  and Redevelopment Agency, Housing Choice Voucher Program and other governmental agencies)
are exempt from the inspection requirements but must continue to register and pay the fee.

General Information
Local jurisdictions across the nation have adopted ordinances requiring inspections of rental properties by government
officials with high fees to cover the costs of the program. These programs are designed to address health and safety issues,
although properties that operate in a professional manner subsidize the overall program. Local governments generate
millions of dollars each year by assessing a per unit annual fee, usually $30-$50 per unit, on rental owners to hire new
employees.
Rental owners with properties in the unincorporated areas of Sacramento County will not be subjected to a mandatory rental
inspection program run by local government. Instead, rental owners will have the option to conduct self-inspections, designate
another individual or have a county official conduct these inspections beginning January 2010.  As a result, rental owners will
save millions of dollars in fees that could have been paid to local government.
House To Home Inspections (HTHI) will provide guidance with appropriate forms to help owners with necessary inspections.
HTHI will be available to help rental owners and property managers comply with the new rental inspection ordinance.
Don’t let your property fall behind or worry about compliance, leave it to HTHI.
                                                           Points Of Interest
Fees
Every rental property owner must pay an annual Rental Housing Code Compliance Fee on each residential rental unit. The
existing fee is $12 per unit annually. The county mails all rental property owners a bill beginning in January of each year.
Registration
Every rental housing property must be registered with county, including owner and emergency contact information. Any
change of information must be reported to the county within 60 days. Your registration information will not be made available
to the general public.
Inspections
Starting January 2010 all residential rental units in the unincorporated areas of the County of Sacramento must undergo an
inspection. The inspection must be performed by the rental owner, property manager, county inspector or another qualified
individual.  To exercise the right of self-certification, the owner or manager must select the self-certification option on the
registration form. An inspection must be performed by the rental owner, property manager, another qualified individual or by a
county inspector. A rental owner who is entitled to self-certification can choose who will conduct the inspection. Inspections
must be done at the inception of every tenancy and at least once annually using a county approved checklist. Prior to
performing an inspection, the individual, other than the owner of record or county inspector, must be certified to conduct the
inspection by taking a county-approved training course on how to perform inspections.
Exemptions
Newly constructed properties of five years or newer and rental units subject to periodic government inspections are exempt
from the inspection requirements but must continue to register and pay the fee.
Resident Rights Information
Prior to the commencement of a tenancy, an owner, manager or agent of the owner must provide each resident with
information concerning their rights and responsibilities. The form must be approved by the county.
 Audits
County officials may conduct compliance audits of rental properties including a review of the inspection checklists and an
exterior inspection from the public right-of-way. County officials may conduct a physical inspection of the property if there are
problems with the documentation or visible code violations on the property exterior. 
Mandatory County Inspections and Education for Problem Properties
Any rental property subject to a Notice and Order more than once in any calendar year and where corrections are not made
within the time permitted is deemed a problem property. The owner of a problem property may not opt for self-certification
when the property is registered. Only county inspectors are authorized to perform inspections of problem properties. The
county may require an owner of a problem property to attend mandatory landlord education classes. A property is no longer
considered a problem property once it consecutively passes two County inspections.
 Changes to Policies and Procedures by the County of Sacramento
The policies and procedures for the Rental Housing Inspection Program are subject to change and interpretation by the
County of Sacramento. As a result, information provided by House To Home Inspections may not reflect recent changes.
When advised of any changes by the County of Sacramento, House To Home Inspections will post such information below:
House To Home Inspections will make every effort to inform its client base of changes to the policies and
procedures when they become public knowledge.