(a) After an inspection of rental housing and based on the inspection findings, the Department shall calculate two scores to be assigned to each rental property based on the following criteria:
(1) The severity of the violations found in the rental housing (the Severity of Violations Score, or “SV Score”);
(2) The total number of violations found in the rental housing (the Total Number of Violations Score, or “TV Score”).
(b) Severity of Violations (“SV”) Score.
(1) The Severity of Violations score shall be based on the following point system:
(i) Five (5) points for each Health and Safety Violation found;
(ii) Three (3) points for each Higher Priority Violation found;
(iii) Two (2) points for each Medium Priority Violation found;
(iv) One (1) point for each Lower Priority Violation found.
(2) The Department will assign the appropriate point value to each violation based on its severity and will add the points together to calculate the total number of points. The Department will then divide this total number of points by the total number of violations found in the Multifamily Dwelling Units inspected to determine an average number representing the Severity of Violations (“SV”) Score for that rental housing.
(c) Total Number of Violations (“TV”) Score. The Department will divide the total number of violations found in the rental housing by the total number of Multifamily Dwelling Units inspected to determine an average number of violations per unit which will be the Total Violations (“TV”) Score for that rental housing.
(d) On or about July 1, 2019, the Department shall analyze the results of inspections of rental properties that were conducted on or after January 15, 2017 according to the method described below. Thereafter, the Department will conduct this analysis annually for those rental properties inspected within the preceding 12-month period.
(e) The SV Score and the TV Score for each rental property shall be plotted as two coordinates on an “X-Y scatter graph” where the X-axis (horizontal) represents the property’s SV Score, and the Y-axis (vertical) represents the property’s TV Score (an illustration of such a graph is provided below).
(f) The coordinates for all rental properties shall be plotted on this graph to show the relative position of each rental property in relation to every other rental property based on the quantity and severity of its violations.
(g) Additionally, the Department shall calculate the mean TV Score and the mean SV Score for all rental properties. These mean values shall be plotted as points on the X-axis (representing the average severity of all violations across all properties) and the Y-axis (representing the average number of total violations across all properties), respectively.
(h) The graph shall then be divided into four quadrants by drawing a line perpendicular to each axis (the “mean line”), beginning at the mean score on each axis and ending at a point parallel to the endpoint of each axis. Each quadrant contains the coordinates of properties with certain characteristics:
(1) The northwest quadrant (upper left) represents rental properties with a higher than average number of violations, and violations of a relatively lower level of severity;
(2) The northeast quadrant (upper right) represents rental properties with a higher than average number of violations, and violations of a relatively higher level of severity;
(3) The southeast quadrant (lower right) represents rental properties with a lower than average number of violations, and violations of a relatively higher level of severity; and,
(4) The southwest quadrant (lower left) represents rental properties with a lower than average number of violations, and violations of a relatively lower level of severity (please refer to the illustration below).
(i) Those rental properties whose coordinates are located within or touching any boundary of the northeast quadrant shall be designated as Troubled Properties.
(j) Those rental properties whose coordinates are located within the northwest or southeast quadrant shall be considered “at-risk” properties commensurate with their coordinates proximity to the northeast quadrant containing Troubled Properties. The Director shall exercise his or her discretion to inspect these properties more frequently than once every three years to monitor the properties and encourage the Landlords to avoid Troubled Properties designation.
(k) Within 30 days of the Department’s designation of a rental property as a Troubled Property, the Department shall provide written notice of such designation to the Landlord. The Department may include any supporting documentation deemed necessary to support or explain that designation. The written notice should also include:
(1) The date established by the Department of the upcoming annual inspection of all dwelling units in the rental property;
(2) The requirement for, and description of, a corrective action plan which must be submitted to the Department prior to the date of the above annual inspection;
(3) The requirements of Section 29-22(e), including the requirement to submit quarterly maintenance logs to the Department, effective as of the date of the written notice;
(4) The remedies available under Section 29-25 and Section 26-16 of the Code if the Landlord fails to comply with the requirements of all applicable laws.
(l) Beginning on or about July 1, 2019, the Department will inspect every Troubled Property at least once within the succeeding 12-month period, as measured from the date all previously identified violations from the most recent inspection of the rental housing complex have been corrected and the case file for that property is closed. So long as a rental housing remains a Troubled Property, the Department will inspect the complex at least once within each succeeding 12-month period until the rental housing is no longer designated as a Troubled Property.
(m) Rental housing designated as a Troubled Property may have that designation removed at such time as the Director determines that the corrective action plan for the rental housing has been successfully completed and the property’s SV and TV scores are no longer located in the upper northeast quadrant of the X-Y scatter graph.
(Administrative History: Reg. No. 5-17AM (Method 2); Orig. Dept.: Housing and Community Affairs)
See also COMCOR 29.22.01 Repair and Deduct