Q. I live in the City of Sacramento and my neighbor's house was tagged as a Dangerous Building and all the doors and windows have been boarded. What is going to happen to this home?

Bruce M.

A. Building owners are legally required to maintain their property to the standards set forth in the City Housing and Dangerous Building Codes (Sacramento City Code Title 8 Chapter 8.100)

According to the City's website common code violations are:
• Ceilings, roofs, vertical supports or other horizontal support that sag, split or buckle.
• Plumbing, electrical or mechanical hazards creating a danger to human health.
• Excessive infestations of rodents, cockroaches or other vector violations.
• Unsafe electrical outlets which present a clear and present danger of fire or electrocution.
• Un-inhabitable buildings due to a lack of care, cleanliness, or sanitary conditions.
• Defective or inadequate weather protection of exterior walls.

When a building official has inspected a home and determined that the building is substandard, the building official commences proceedings to require the repair, rehabilitation, vacation, or demolition of the building. (Sacramento City Code 8.100.700)
The owner has 30 days to start the repair or rehabilitation. At this website you can search by address and review the list of violations and the case history.

Failure to comply can result in civil and criminal penalties and even result in the building being demolished.

Do you have a question for the County Law Librarian? Just email sacpress@saclaw.org. If your question is selected your answer will appear in next Thursday's column. Even if your question isn't selected, though, I will still respond within two weeks.

Coral Henning, Director
@coralh & @saclawlibrarian
www.saclaw.org