NORWICH – As the current rental registry agreement between the city and rental property owners draws nearer to expiration, the Common Council will have to make a decision regarding the fate of the current agreement and what changes, if any, should be made.
The rental registry was adopted by the council in 2007 in an effort to protect tenants and landlords from excessively damaged or unsafe residences within the city. Now reaching the end of the agreement’s three-year term, possible changes including increased penalty and violation costs and a mandatory enrollment for owners of all rented residential properties in the city could take effect in the coming year.
According to Mayor Joseph Maiurano, any of the changes would be a step in the right direction for the renters and landlords in the city. He described it as a “win-win” between tenants and landlords. By gathering property and contact information, he said, the city can assure that everything is up to code and offer more protection for city residents who rent.
“Most of the landlords in our community are very good,” Maiurano said, “but we have had houses illegally converted into apartments in the past ... The registry agreement helps make sure everyone is in a safe environment.”
“Everything is still undecided and it’s pending on what the council says,” said City Code Enforcement Officer Jason Lawrence. “It’s a quality of life issue ... Our intentions are to make sure there is a good, quality place in a clean community. We want to build on the agreement to make it better for everyone.”
As it stands, the rental registry provides the city with needed information should there be an emergency and it allows a city inspection of a residence prior to new tenants, although state law mandates inspection of a rented three-family property only once every three years.
“Information is great for us to have. It can get outside landlords to become more involved and it provides the needed information so we can remedy a problem quickly,” Lawrence said. “We have been able to contact people right away in the event of a fire or other emergency.”
Currently, the rental registry maintains a relatively low registration fee and property inspection fee, and it’s mandatory for properties housing three or more family units but optional for all other rental property owners; these are some of the factors subject to change, said Maiurano. Any changes made to the current agreement may impact tenants, landlords and the surrounding residents, he added, but it’s an ongoing process that is still up in the air.
If the council decides to make registry changes in Monday night’s city council and joint committees meeting, it would then be addressed by the city attorney before returning to the council and becoming open to a public forum.
Regarding the possible changes, Maiurano said “putting an ordinance on the books does not change the way some landlords do business ... just like laws for speeding that only affect people who speed, these laws only affect landlords who are not doing their job.”