To protect renters and ensure safe and quality living conditions, the City assigns a tier to every rental building. We explain the three tiers and how they affect your license fee.
Find out:
Rental license tiers
We categorize rental properties to set license fees and support safe housing.
Overview
What each tier means
Our three tiers
The tier is based on code violations we found at a property over the past two years. The tier determines how often a property has its rental license inspection. You can find the date of the last inspection on the rental license.
| Tiers | What it means | Routine inspection |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 | Well-maintained; meets housing code. Or, has not had an inspection in over five years. | Every eight years |
| Tier 1D | We designate properties that have not had a routine inspection in over five years as Tier 1D. D stands for by default. | Every eight years |
| Tier 2 | Well-maintained; one or more documented issues may have an urgent impact on renter safety and habitability. | Every five years |
| Tier 3 | Not well-maintained; several documented issues may have an urgent impact on renter safety and habitability. | Every year |
How we decide tiers and fees
Our scoring system
We look at the building's condition and property management to score 11 items. Each item has a point value. A property with no issues will be Tier 1.
| Tiers | Total score |
|---|---|
| Tier 1 | 0 to 19 |
| Tier 2 | 20 to 39 |
| Tier 3 | 40 and over |
Property condition
We review the last two years of records of issues reported to the City and what we find during inspections. Because we want to protect renters, we assign more points to violations that affect them the most.
Property management
We look at how long it takes the owner to meet standards. Because we want to protect City resources, we assign more points for:
- Repeat inspections
- Late payments
- Citations
The property owner score counts toward deciding the fee level, but not the inspection cycle. If we spend more time addressing issues, your fee level may be higher than your tier level.
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How to avoid violations and citations
We explain how to avoid a higher rental tier and the higher license fee that comes with it.
How to appeal a tier
Administrative review
An owner who thinks a score is wrong can appeal. Owners can contact Regulatory Services to ask for an administrative review. You must pay the rental license before a review can begin.
Owners must say what they think is wrong with their score. The tier will change only if a mistake was made.
Contact us
Jordan Hooks
Rental Licenses Operations Analyst
Regulatory Services
Address
Public Service Building
505 Fourth Ave. S., Room 510
Minneapolis, MN 55415