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Updated: 12/8/9
The Bellingham City Council is currently considering a licensing program for landlords. A related inspection program is also under consideration. On 12/7/9 the City Council approved a motion 5-2 in favor of "doing more research." Terry Bornemann is in favor of licensing and inspections for rental property. Gene Knutson is open minded to licensing but adamantly opposed to inspections. Louse Bjornson spoke out at length against landlord licensing.
At the public hearing on 12/7/9, landlords, renters, and property managers spoke out against this idea.
The primary reason for the consideration of landlord licensing is "problem houses." Although we don't want problem houses in Bellingham, owner occupied homes can be problems just as easily as rentals.
A view shared by several Council members is that landlords should be licensed like any other business.
For many landlords, additional fees would be passed on to tenants. This seems contradictory to the city's efforts to improve housing affordability.
At BREIN we will keep this page updated with any new information.
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