Mahtomedi, Minn., City Code ch. 7 § 7.08 (2026) § 7.08

7.08   RENTAL DWELLING LICENSING.
1.   Definitions. For the purposes of this section, the following terms shall
            have the following meanings:

            A.     “Dwelling” means a building or one or more portions of a building
                    occupied or intended to be occupied for residential purposes.

            B.     “Dwelling Unit” means a habitable unit in a dwelling providing
                    sleeping, cooking, eating, living, and sanitation facilities designed
                    for and occupied by one family only for periods of occupancy
                    exceeding one (1) week.

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     C.     “Rent” means to permit possession or occupancy of a Dwelling or
             Rental Dwelling Unit by a person who is not the legal owner of
             record thereof, pursuant to a written or unwritten lease.

     D.     “Occupant” means any person living or sleeping in a Dwelling
             Unit or having possession of a space within a Dwelling Unit.

     E.     “Rental Dwelling” means any Dwelling used for residential
             occupancy by one or more persons who are not the owner or a
             member of the owner’s family.

     F.     “Rental Dwelling Unit” means any dwelling unit used for
             residential occupancy occupied by someone other than the owner
             or the owner’s family.

2.   Licensing of Rental Dwellings. All rental dwellings shall have a valid
     license issued by the City in order to be occupied. All Rental Dwelling
     licenses shall be valid for a period of two (2) years from the date of
     issuance, except as otherwise provided herein or in cases of suspension or
     revocation. Application and license fees for newly constructed or
     converted Rental Dwellings shall be due prior to the issuance of a
     Certificate of Occupancy.

     A.     Licensee Fees. At the time of application for a new or renewal
            Rental Dwelling license, the applicant shall submit a non-
            refundable license application fee and, if required, reinspection fee.

            In addition to the non-refundable license application fee, a non-
            refundable late fee for Rental Dwelling license renewals shall be
            charged.
     B.     Owner or Agent to Apply. New or renewal Rental Dwelling
            license applications shall be made by the owner of the Rental
            Dwelling or the owner’s legal agent. Application forms may be
            acquired from and subsequently filed with the City. The applicant
            shall completely and accurately supply all the information required
            on the license application.

     C.     Change in Information. Every person holding a Rental Dwelling
            license shall give notice, in writing, to the Building Official within
            five (5) business days after any change to any of the information
            provided in the Rental Dwelling license application or renewal
            form.

     D.     Resident Agent Required. No Rental Dwelling license shall be
            issued or renewed for a nonresident owner of a Rental Dwelling,
            defined as an owner who does not reside in any of the following

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                      Minnesota counties: Hennepin, Ramsey, Anoka, Carver, Dakota,
                      Scott or Washington; or Wisconsin counties: Polk, St. Croix, and
                      Pierce, unless such owner designates in writing to the City Clerk
                      the name, address, and phone number of his or her resident agent
                      (one who does reside in any of the following Minnesota counties:
                      Hennepin, Ramsey, Anoka, Carver, Dakota, Scott, or Washington;
                      or Wisconsin counties: Polk, St. Croix, and Pierce) who is
                      responsible for maintenance and upkeep of the Rental Dwelling
                      and who is empowered to receive service of notice of violations of
                      the provisions of the City Code, to receive orders, to institute
                      remedial action to effect such orders, and to accept all service or
                      process pursuant to law. The City Clerk shall be notified in
                      writing within five (5) days of any change in the owner’s resident
                      agent.

               E.     Application and Inspection.       Upon receipt of a completed
                      application for a Rental Dwelling license, an inspection shall be
                      made of the premises. Additional inspections shall occur every
                      two (2) years as part of the Rental Dwelling license renewal
                      process to ensure that the Rental Dwelling is in compliance with
                      all applicable City Code provisions.

                      i.      The Building Official shall mail notification to the Rental
                              Dwelling’s owner or agent at least ten (10) business days
                              prior to the proposed inspection date. It shall be the
                              responsibility of the owner or agent to inform tenants of the
                              scheduled inspection.

                      ii.     The number of units to be inspected by the Building
                              Official shall be determined by the following schedule:

Number of units within a building           Units to be inspected per building
1-5                                         All units
6 - 30                                      Five (5) units or twenty-five percent
                                            (25%) of the units, whichever is greater
31 - 60                                     Twenty-five percent (25%) of the units
61+                                         Fifteen (15) units

          3.   Conformance With Code Requirements. No Rental Dwelling license shall
               be issued or renewed unless the rental dwelling and its premises conform
               to all applicable City Code provisions.

          4.   Inspection Condition. No Rental Dwelling license shall be issued or
               renewed unless the owner of the Rental Dwelling agrees in his or her
               application to permit inspections. If the Building Official or the Building
               Official’s designee has reason to believe that the circumstances of

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     occupancy following the issuance of the Rental Dwelling license involve
     possible City Code violations, substandard maintenance or abnormal wear
     and tear, the Building Official or Building Official’s designee may
     reinspect the premises upon five (5) business’ days notice at any time
     during the term of the license.

5.   Issuance of Rental Dwelling License. If the Rental Dwelling is in
     compliance with all applicable City Code provisions, a Rental Dwelling
     license shall be issued to the present owner or his or her designated agent,
     which shall state that the property has been inspected by the City.

6.   Posting of License. Every owner of a Rental Dwelling with more than
     one (1) unit shall post the Rental Dwelling license in the main entry way
     or other conspicuous location therein. The license shall contain a
     statement that tenants of the dwelling units may contact the attorney
     general for information regarding the rights and obligations of owners and
     tenants under State law. The statement shall include the telephone number
     and address of the attorney general.

7.   License Transferability. A Rental Dwelling license may not be transferred
     to another Rental Dwelling. No Rental Dwelling license shall be
     transferable to another person without prior written approval of the
     Building Official. A Rental Dwelling license is transferable to a new
     owner provided that the new owner submits a License Transfer Form
     along with the License Transfer Fee to the City Clerk within five (5)
     business days after legally acquiring ownership of the licensed Rental
     Dwelling(s). Failure to submit the license transfer form and the transfer
     fee in a timely manner may result in the termination of the Rental
     Dwelling license.

8.   Occupancy Register Required. Every owner of a licensed rental dwelling
     shall keep a current register of occupancy for each dwelling unit of the
     Rental Dwelling containing the following information:

     A.     Rental dwelling address.

     B.     Number of bedrooms in each dwelling unit.

     C.     Number of adults and children (under 18 years of age) currently
            occupying each dwelling unit.

     Such register shall be made available for viewing or copying by the
     Building Official or Building Official’s designee upon request.

9.   License Suspension or Revocation. Every Rental Dwelling license issued
     under the provisions of this Section is subject to suspension or revocation

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      by the City Council if the licensee or his or her duly authorized resident
      agent fails to operate or maintain the licensed rental dwelling(s) and
      dwelling units therein in compliance with all applicable City Code
      provisions. Suspension or revocation of a Rental Dwelling license shall
      occur pursuant to the procedures set forth in Section 7.01. In the event a
      Rental Dwelling license is suspended or revoked by the City Council, it
      shall be unlawful for the owner or his or her duly authorized agent to
      thereafter permit any new occupancies of vacant, or thereafter vacated
      rental units, until such time as a valid Rental Dwelling license is issued for
      the Rental Dwelling. Issuance of a new Rental Dwelling license after
      suspension or revocation shall be made in the manner provided for
      obtaining an initial license. The license application shall be accompanied
      by a license fee equal to one hundred and fifty (150) percent of the
      original license fee.

10    A Rental Dwelling license may be suspended or revoked for any of the
      following reasons:

      A.     The license was procured by misrepresentation of material facts,
             by fraud, by deceit, or by bad faith.

      B.     The applicant or one acting on his or her behalf made oral or
             written misstatements or misrepresentations of material facts in or
             accompanying the application.

      C.     The licensee or applicant has failed to comply with any condition
             set forth in any other permits granted by the City of Mahtomedi.

      D.     The activities of the licensee in the licensed activity create or have
             created a serious danger to the public health, safety, or welfare.

      E.     The rental dwelling constitutes a public nuisance.

11.   Posted to Prevent Occupancy. Whenever the owner of any Rental
      Dwelling has not obtained the required license, has been denied a Rental
      Dwelling license, or has had its Rental Dwelling license suspended or
      revoked, or the Rental Dwelling is unfit for human habitation, it shall be
      posted with a placard by the Building Official to prevent further
      occupancy.

      No person, other than the Building Official or the Building Official’s
      designee, shall remove or tamper with any placard used for posting. The
      Building Official shall post on the placard the date that the prohibition on
      occupancy shall become effective. On or after the posted vacancy date, no
      person shall reside in, occupy, or cause to be occupied any Rental
      Dwelling or any unit thereof which has been posted to prevent occupancy.

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       12.   Re-inspection Fees. At the time that a third inspection of a Rental
             Dwelling or dwelling unit is needed, a re-inspection fee shall be charged
             to the owner for each re-inspection needed after the initial inspection and
             the second inspection has been done. No Rental Dwelling license will be
             issued until all outstanding re-inspection fees have been paid. A Rental
             Dwelling license shall expire twenty (20) days after the licensee or his or
             her agent is notified of the re-inspection fees that must be paid to maintain
             such license in good standing, unless the re-inspection fees are paid prior
             to the expiration of the twenty (20) day period.