Summary: At the request of the Asheville Area Tenants Union, Asheville City Council will consider a “No Rent for Slumlords” ordinance on September 8. The proposal would empower tenants living in unsafe homes by prohibiting landlords from collecting rent while serious dangers remain uncorrected. Council should adopt it.

The Facts: The ordinance would make it unlawful for an owner to collect rent from a tenant occupying a dwelling that is unfit for human occupancy, unsafe, and a threat to life or property. It would also prohibit an owner from allowing a new tenant to move into such a dwelling.

Qualifying conditions include raw sewage, inadequate water or winter heat, unsafe electrical systems, missing smoke detectors, blocked exits, structural failures, and an immediate risk of collapse.

City code-enforcement officers would determine whether a dwelling meets the standard and prioritize enforcement on properties deemed unsafe. Charlotte, Pineville, Pittsboro, and Durham have adopted similar protections. The ordinance would take effect immediately upon adoption.

You can read the proposed ordinance here.

Our Assessment: We’re proud to stand with the Asheville Area Tenants Union, who requested this ordinance. Tenants should not have to keep paying a landlord who leaves them in dangerous living conditions. Yet renters often have far less power than property owners: they may fear retaliation or displacement, lack the money to move, and have few practical ways to compel a negligent landlord to act.

This ordinance would begin to correct that imbalance. If a landlord cannot collect rent while leaving a home unsafe, tenants gain meaningful leverage and owners gain a powerful financial incentive to make urgently needed repairs.

The proposal is also appropriately focused. It applies when a dwelling meets Asheville’s existing standard for being unsafe, unfit for human occupancy, and a threat to life or property, not whenever a tenant and landlord disagree about a repair.

Council should adopt the ordinance and direct staff to give tenants clear, accessible information about requesting an inspection, documenting unsafe conditions, receiving notice of a determination, reporting unlawful rent collection or retaliation, and finding legal or relocation assistance.

Things to do: Email City Council (AshevilleNCCouncil@ashevillenc.gov) to recommend that they approve the “No Rent for Slumlords” ordinance. You can write your own email or use this template developed by the Asheville Areas Tenants Union.