§ 7-38. Licensing of rental units.

(a)

License required.

(1)

No person shall operate a rental dwelling without first having obtained a license to do so from the City of Faribault. A license shall be granted pursuant to the provisions of this article by the compliance official or designee(s).

Exceptions:

a.

An owner whose only rental dwelling is a single-family dwelling homesteaded by a relative is exempted. Compliance of this exemption may require written proof from the county.

b.

A residential property owned by a "snowbird" where the property is rented to another person for a period of less than one hundred twenty (120) consecutive days while the owner is residing out of the State of Minnesota. The owner must occupy the property during the remainder of the year.

c.

Unoccupied dwelling units that have been issued a vacant building registration.

(2)

When more than one building containing rental dwelling units exists on one property, a separate license shall be required for each building.

(3)

Licenses shall be issued for a single rental dwelling unit in the case of a freestanding dwelling, a condominium, a townhouse, a dwelling in a cooperative, or a dwelling in a nonresidential structure; for a two-unit rental dwelling; or for an apartment building.

(b)

License term. Except for a provisional license as identified herein, a rental license issued by the city under this article will be valid for a two-year time period. All licenses may be reviewed at any time by the compliance official or designee(s) after the commencement of the license term to determine whether the rental dwelling continues to be in compliance with this article.

(c)

License application and renewal. The license application or renewal shall be made by the owner or agent. Application forms are available from the city and must be completed in full and accompanied by the appropriate license fee as established by the city council. Every licensee shall give notice in writing to the city within ten (10) business days after any change of information on the application or if the licensed premises is sold or otherwise conveyed in any way. Depending on the nature of changes, the city may require a new inspection of the licensed premises. Each license issued by the city under this article will expire two (2) years after the date of issuance unless otherwise suspended or revoked. An application for renewal of a license and the appropriate fee must be filed with the issuing authority at least thirty (30) days prior to the expiration date of an existing license. Any renewal license application and fee not received before the expiration date shall be assessed a late fee as established by the city council for processing of the application.

Within thirty (30) days of receipt of a completed application and of the license fee required by this article, the inspector shall schedule an inspection. No license shall be granted or renewed until the inspector has determined that all life, health safety violations, or application inconsistencies have been corrected. In cases where a weather deferral for repairs has been granted by the inspector, the license may be granted on conditions of the repairs being completed before a specific date in the future. If the license application is incomplete, or the applicant does not meet the requirements of this section during the term of a provisional license issued under section 7-39, the application shall be canceled.

(d)

License and inspection fees. License fees, as set forth by city council resolution, shall be due thirty (30) days prior to the license expiration date; in the cases of new unlicensed units, license fees shall be due at time of application.

(1)

License fees, delinquent payments. A delinquency penalty of fifteen (15) percent of the amount of the license fee may be charged to the operators of the dwelling unit. Once issued, a license is nontransferable and the licensee shall not be entitled to a refund of any license fee. Upon revocation or modification of a license, or if the applicant withdraws an application, or in the case of an incomplete application or process, or if an application is canceled, the fee shall be nonrefundable.

(2)

Inspection/reinspection fees. Fees for annual inspections of a rental dwelling are part of paid license fees. Reinspection fees will only be charged for subsequent inspections after failure to comply with official orders or when the owner or agent fails to keep a scheduled inspection without prior notice to the inspector. All reinspection fees are set by city council resolution. If the reinspection is being performed as part of the licensing process, fees must be paid prior to the time of license issuance or renewal. If a reinspection fee of any portion is not paid within thirty (30) days after billing, or within thirty (30) days after any appeal becomes final, the city council may certify the unpaid cost against the rental dwelling.

(e)

Minimum licensing standards. The following minimum standards and conditions must be met in order for an owner to hold or be granted a rental dwelling license under this article. Failure to comply with any of these standards or conditions shall be adequate grounds for denial, nonrenewal, suspension or revocation of an owner's rental dwelling license.

(1)

The licensee or applicant must have a current, complete, and accurate rental dwelling application on file with the city.

(2)

The licensee or applicant shall have paid the required license fee and any other fees required by this article.

(3)

The licensee or applicant must be current on the payment of all utility fees, taxes, assessments, fines, penalties, or other financial claims due to the city on the licensed premises and any other rental dwelling in the city owned by the licensee or the applicant. In the event a suit has been commenced under Minnesota Statutes, Sections 278.01—278.03, questioning the amount or validity of taxes, the city may upon request the licensee or applicant waive strict compliance with this provision; no waiver may be granted, however, for taxes or any portion thereof that remain unpaid for a period exceeding one year after becoming due.

(4)

The rental dwelling must be in compliance with all federal, state and local laws, including but not limited to all provisions of this article, the Uniform Housing Code as adopted in section 7-21 of the city Code, and all applicable zoning laws.

(Ord. No. 2017-13, § 2, 9-26-17)