Financial Advisor · Issaquah, WA · Member since 2017 · 243 posts · 141 votes
All,
Just opening up our first long-term rental property in KCMO, and got a letter out-of-the-blue from the KC Health Department, saying they think the property is being used as a rental, and therefore needs a permit (plus fees and inspections, of course), per City Ordinance 180248:
Before anyone helpfully contributes with "don't be a slumlord"--I'm not and will not be, and our unit is freshly rehab'd and quite nice. I'm not worried about it actually passing inspections, but I'd rather not deal with the city bureaucracy, fees, and inspections unless necessary. I'm curious as to whether other investors are registering and dealing with the extra hoops and costs, or essentially ignoring it. Is this being enforced? Sec 34-863 & 34-864 covers not getting a permit in the first place:
@Pete M. I registered my new property there earlier this week. The fee was $40 for an SFR. Did the City already assess a fine on you for not having it registered?
Rentals have become a real mess in KCMO, there are now three different city departments with their hands in it and they don't interact or cooperate with each other, so yes, you literally have to register rentals with multiple departments, and each have their own (sometimes conflicting) rules. With the addition of the "KC Tenants" terror group, and the city council seemingly bowing to most of what they are asking for, long term rentals in KCMO has become very messy.
@Ryan Fox Have you already done an inspection? No fine in the letter they sent, I think this was their "warning shot" that I'm on their list. I've heard anecdotally that most investors are simply ignoring the permits because there's no enforcement, which is why I'm asking for input from others here.
@Jerry Cloe Which other KC gov't groups are you dealing with?
@Ryan Fox Ah, was wondering. The verbiage definitely makes it sound like they have the right to inspect (and will periodically), but that may go back to prioritizing "problematic" rentals vs blanket inspections everywhere.
Hello everyone—I recently bought 20 units and am under contract for another 34 more—all on the KCK side. This the first I’ve heard of needing a permit. Is it needed if a property manager in place holds the permit?
@Pete M. there are now 3 city departments armed with making life miserable for landlords all under the notion that they are looking out for tenants. We have the Healthy Homes Program. Then we have the Rental Registration stuff. And then a new one was just approved via a bill a few months ago that, though not funded yet, will have a $1m a year budget (to start with) to help tenants with a lot of stuff (look up KC Tenant Bill of Rights).
As for the registrations, THERE IS ENFORCEMENT but Kansas City, Missouri is a 318sq mile city with less than 20 inspectors doing all that enforcement. Their priority is for where there have been complaints first. So you're not seeing SUFFICIENT enforcement but make no mistake it is there. And yes they have the right to inspect anytime if invited by tenants due to complaints. Registration is a good idea but you can also just register after the initial "warning letter" as most investors I know do.
Similar programs exist in nearby cities (Grandview, MO has one too) and it is spreading like fire. KCMO is the largest city around and many cities follow its lead on stuff like this which will add to city coffers. Overland Park, KS does not have an inspection program yet but does have a rental registration program as well that is much more expensive to the tune of $120 (at least on a duplex).