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Updated 9/14/26: Asheville City Council unanimously adopted the “No Rent for Slumlords” ordinance requested by the Asheville Area Tenants Union. The ordinance makes it unlawful for a landlord to collect rent from a home that the City has found unsafe and unfit for human occupancy. This is a meaningful recognition that landlords should not profit while leaving tenants in life-threatening conditions, but it’s important to note that state law limits its practical reach. For example, tenants should not stop paying rent on their own and may withhold it only after an authorized City or court order. The ordinance’s impact will therefore depend on how clearly and assertively the City implements it, and on vulnerable residents understanding and advocating for their rights.

The ordinance applies to the most serious housing-code violations, including raw sewage, lack of potable water or adequate winter heat, unsafe electrical systems, missing smoke detectors, blocked exits, structural failures, and immediate danger of collapse. It also prohibits an owner from placing a new tenant in a dwelling the City has found unsafe. Council’s unanimous vote sends an important message: the obligation to provide a minimally safe home is not optional, and rent collection should not continue as usual when an owner fails that basic duty.

However, the new protection is not an automatic license for a tenant to stop paying rent after discovering dangerous conditions. North Carolina law says tenants may not unilaterally withhold rent before a judicial determination. City Attorney Brad Branham has said the City’s power to halt rent payments would take effect only through an order issued in compliance with state law. Tenants should therefore report dangerous conditions, request an inspection, and obtain legal advice rather than withholding rent independently; otherwise, they could still face eviction for nonpayment.

The ordinance is a powerful step in spite of this limitation. A formal City finding and order can strengthen a tenant’s position, create financial pressure for a negligent owner to repair dangerous conditions, and support a claim for rent abatement or other relief. But the protection will work only if tenants know how to invoke it and the City has a prompt, dependable process for inspections, notices, orders, follow-up, and complaints about continued rent collection or retaliation.

Council members also discussed mold, which is not itself included as a qualifying condition because City staff said there is no legally recognized federal or state standard that inspectors can apply to determine unsafe mold levels. That leaves a significant gap for residents facing serious moisture and mold problems. 

The City should now publish clear, multilingual guidance explaining what the ordinance covers, when rent may legally be withheld, where payments should go while a dispute is pending, how quickly inspections and orders will occur, and where tenants can obtain legal or relocation assistance. We will watch how the ordinance is implemented and whether it produces real repairs and relief for tenants living in dangerous homes.

Total GAP Supporter Actions Taken: 10

Recipients and Responses:

Asheville City Council

• Mayor Esther Manheimer: No response
• Vice Mayor Antanette Mosley: No response
• City Council Member Bo Hess: Responded, see below
• City Council Member Kim Roney: Responded, see below
• City Council Member Maggie Ullman:  No response
• City Council Member Sage Turner: No response
• City Council Member Sheneika Smith: No response

Email from Council Member Bo Hess

Absolutely!

Bo

Email from Council Member Kim Roney

Friends at GAP AVL, I appreciate the work of the Asheville Area Tenants Union, have supported the resolution throughout the process, and will vote in favor tonight.

Thank you for taking time to reach out!

With gratitude,

Kim

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: There is no further action suggested at this time. Last week, we invited you to email City Council to recommend that they approve the “No Rent for Slumlords” ordinance.