(A) Every owner remains liable for violations of duties imposed upon him by this code even though an obligation is also imposed on the occupants of his building, and even though the owner has, by agreement, imposed on the occupant the duty of complying with this code.
(B) Every owner or responsible party shall be responsible for maintaining the property in a sound structural condition, clean, sanitary and safe, including the common areas.
(C) Every owner of a rental property found to be violating any of the provisions of this Housing Code and failing or neglecting to comply with any orders issued pursuant to any section thereof shall register the property and pay a one-time $25 registration fee. Such registration shall be made on a form provided by the Department and verified by the owner or responsible party. Any changes to the information listed below will require an updated registration with a $25 registration fee. Excluded from this requirement are single-family residences in which the owner permanently resides and rents out less than half of square footage of the residence to no more than two adult tenants who share a single lease. The following information shall be kept current:
(1) Name, address, telephone number and email of the property owner and/or responsible party;
(2) Name, address, telephone number and email of a local agent for the owner, if the owner is not a resident of Bernalillo County;
(3) Name, local address and telephone number and email of a property manager, if any;
(4) Street address, parcel number and legal description of the property;
(5) Any known fines and/or liabilities being assessed against the property;
(6) A 24-hours emergency telephone number where the owner, agent, property manager or responsible party can be reached.
(D) An owner of a residential rental property who fails to comply with any provision of this subsection is responsible for a civil infraction and shall be assessed a civil penalty of $500, plus an additional $100 for each month after the date of the original violation until compliance occurs. The city shall serve notice of any assessed civil penalty upon the owner by mailing such notice to the address of record maintained by the County Clerk or otherwise known to the Department. Any person served with a notice may appeal such notice to the City Clerk in writing within 15 days pursuant to the procedures contained in § 14-3-5-3.
(E) Notwithstanding subsection (E) of this section, if the owner or responsible party complies within ten days after receiving the complaint that notices the violation, the Hearing Officer shall not impose a civil penalty unless the city can demonstrate that the person has a history of noncompliance with the registration requirements set forth in this section.
('74 Code, § 7-24-3A.4) (Ord. 34-1986; Am. Ord. 2018-025; Am. Ord. 2023-015)