Building Safety in Cleveland, OH (2026)
8 verified building safety rules for Cleveland, Ohio, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Lead Paint
Anyone selling or leasing Cleveland housing built before 1978 must hand over an EPA lead hazard pamphlet, disclose in writing any known lead-based paint or hazards, share the most recent clearance exam, and give purchasers a 10-day window to test for lead before the deal is binding, per Codified Ordinances § 240.06.
Cleveland Lead Paint Disclosure for Sellers and Landlords
Some RestrictionsCleveland Codified Ordinances § 240.06
A seller or lessor of target housing must disclose information concerning lead upon the transfer of any target housing pursuant to the Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act of 1992, 42 U.S.C. 4852d... Before a purchaser or tenant is obligated under a contract to purchase target housing or a rental agreement to lease target housing, the seller or lessor shall perform the activities a...
Elevator Maintenance
Elevators in Cleveland are regulated under the Ohio Department of Commerce Division of Industrial Compliance and ASME A17.1, with annual state inspections plus Cleveland Department of Building and Housing certificate of occupancy review.
Cleveland Elevator Inspection Standards
Some RestrictionsOhio Revised Code Section 4105.10
Section 4105.10 | Frequency of inspection. Effective: April 3, 2023 Latest Legislation: House Bill 107 - 134th General Assembly PDF: Download Authenticated PDF (A) Except as provided in division (B) of this section, elevators shall be inspected in accordance with the following: (1) Every passenger elevator, escalator, moving walk, and freight elevator, including gravity elevators, shall be insp...
Childcare Center Rules
Cleveland requires every licensed day care center to meet fixed building-safety standards: rooms must be above ground level unless the Fire Division signs off, spaces need at least 35 square feet per child, and heat must hold 68°F under Codified Ordinances Ch. 227.
Cleveland Day Care Center Building Safety Rules
Some RestrictionsCleveland Codified Ordinances §§ 227.11, 227.12, 227.13 (Day Care Centers)
§ 227.13 Rooms Above Ground Level. No room shall be used for day care center purposes unless the floor is above ground level, except if the Commissioner of Health and the Division of Fire shall upon a full examination of such room pronounce the same safe, healthful and sanitary. ... § 227.12 Floor Space. (a) The day care center shall have, for each child for whom the center is licensed, at leas...
Carbon Monoxide Detectors
Cleveland requires owners of rental dwellings with fuel-fired appliances to install a UL-2034 carbon monoxide alarm outside every sleeping area, plus visual/vibratile alarms on request for deaf or hearing-impaired occupants. Owners must test, maintain, and replace failed units within 72 hours.
Cleveland Carbon Monoxide Alarm Rules
Some RestrictionsCleveland Codified Ordinances § 392.021 (Ord. No. 1528-15, passed 5-9-16)
It shall be the responsibility of the owner of each new and existing dwelling unit intended for rental purposes, within which fuel-fired appliances exist, to install a carbon monoxide alarm in each residential dwelling unit. The carbon monoxide alarm shall be installed outside of each separate sleeping area in the immediate vicinity of the bedrooms in each residential dwelling unit. When sleepi...
Building Permits
Cleveland requires every vacant building to be registered and inspected, producing a report of known code violations. A certificate of correction, issued only once all listed violations are fixed, is required before the building may be occupied again.
Cleveland Vacant Building Inspection Rules
Significant RestrictionsCleveland Codified Ordinances § 3106.04 (Vacant Building Inspection, Obligation to Correct Violations, and Issuance of Certificate of Correction)
(a) The Director may cause vacant building inspections to occur upon the first registration of the building as a vacant building. Inspections may also occur upon request by the Responsible Party; as warranted in the determination of the Director based on exterior conditions; and/or the results of past inspections; and/or from time to time at the discretion of the Director. An application for ...
Electrical Permits
Cleveland Codified Ordinances § 3137.05 requires a permit from the Commissioner of Building and Housing before any electrical wiring or equipment is installed, altered, or repaired, with narrow exceptions for minor repairs and maintenance. Section 3137.11 adopts NFPA 70, the National Electrical Code as listed in OAC Chapter 4101:2-46, as the governing technical standard for wiring citywide.
Cleveland Electrical Permit Requirements
Some RestrictionsCleveland Codified Ordinances §§ 3137.05, 3137.11
§ 3137.05 Permit Required (a) Except as provided in Section 3137.01 (b) and subsection (b) hereof, and except for minor repairs and maintenance as herein defined, no electrical wiring or equipment shall be installed, altered, or repaired without a permit from the Commissioner. All work for which a permit is required shall be done by installers licensed or authorized to do such work under the ap...
Plumbing Permits
Cleveland Codified Ordinances § 3133.02 requires a permit from the Commissioner of Building and Housing before any drainage, plumbing, or water-supply system is installed, altered, removed, replaced, or repaired. Only narrowly defined "minor repairs", faucet swaps, stoppage clearing, frozen-pipe thawing, skip the permit. All plumbing must follow the Ohio Plumbing Code (OAC Chapter 4101:2-51) under § 3133.04, and only licensed Chapter 3107 installers may do permitted work.
Cleveland Plumbing Permit Requirements
Some RestrictionsCleveland Codified Ordinances § 3133.02
(a) Except as provided in division (b) of Section 3133.01, no drainage system, plumbing system, water supply system, or part of one, shall be installed, altered, removed, replaced, or repaired without a permit from the Commissioner, except that "minor repairs", shall not require a permit. "Minor repairs" means the repairing of an existing fixture; the replacement of faucets or valves or parts t...
Building Inspections
Cleveland's Commissioner of Building and Housing inspects existing premises before permits issue, inspects work at the job site while construction proceeds and upon completion, and can inspect materials at the point of manufacture. Each inspection type is set out in § 3103.06.
Cleveland Building Inspection Process
Some RestrictionsCleveland Codified Ordinances § 3103.06 (Inspections; Type and Procedure)
(a) Existing Premises. (1) When deemed necessary to ascertain existing conditions, the Commissioner shall examine or cause to be examined all buildings or other structures or premises for which an application has been received for a permit to enlarge, alter, repair, move, demolish or change the occupancy or use classification thereof, before a permit or Certificate of Occupancy therefor is ...
Looking for Cuyahoga County county-wide rules?
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Cleveland city rules.
Building Safety in Cuyahoga County →