Dallas, TX Code Violation Reporting: Common Violations (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing chapter
- Dallas City Code Chapter 27, Minimum Property Standards
- Enforcing agency
- Director of Code Compliance (code enforcement official)
- First-offense minimum fine
- $150 or $500, depending on the section violated
- Maximum criminal fine
- $2,000 per day per violation
- Repeat offense
- fine doubles at 2nd conviction, triples at 3rd (24 months)
- Civil penalty option
- up to $1,000 per day under Local Gov't Code Ch. 54
- Interior inspection
- requires occupant consent or an administrative search warrant
Summary
Dallas Code Compliance enforces Chapter 27 minimum property standards, the source of the maintenance violations cited most on residential and rental property: standing water, hazardous dead trees, unsecured vacant structures, peeling paint, broken fencing, and heat or air conditioning that cannot hold code temperatures. Fines start at $150 and climb to $2,000 per day.
(c) Property standards. An owner shall: (1) maintain his or her premises in operating condition without any holes, excavations, or sharp protrusions, and without any other object or condition that exists on the land and is reasonably capable of causing injury to a person; (2) securely cover or close any wells, cesspools, or cisterns; (3) provide solid waste receptacles or containers when required by Chapter 18 of this code, as amended; (4) provide drainage to prevent standing water and flooding on the land; (5) remove dead trees and tree limbs that are reasonably capable of causing injury to a person; (6) keep the doors and windows of a vacant structure or vacant portion of a structure securely closed to prevent unauthorized entry; and (7) protect, by periodic application of paint or other weather-coating materials, any exposed metal or wood surfaces from the elements and against decay or rust.
Full Breakdown
Chapter 27 of the Dallas City Code, the Minimum Property Standards ordinance, sets the maintenance rules Code Compliance officers cite most on residential and rental property. Section 27-11 requires owners to keep premises free of holes, excavations and sharp hazards, cover wells and cisterns, provide required Chapter 18 solid-waste containers, grade for drainage, remove hazardous dead trees and limbs, secure vacant structures against entry, and refresh exposed wood and metal with paint or weather coating. The same section extends to structural elements (roofs, foundations, floors, stairways, handrails, fences), utility systems (air conditioning capable of holding at least 15 degrees below the outside temperature and never above 85 F, heat holding at least 15 degrees above outside temperature and never below 68 F), plumbing, electrical wiring, and multitenant exterior lighting and pest control. An owner who fails to fix a heating or cooling breakdown within 72 hours of a citation, during a stretch of extreme temperatures, must relocate the tenant to alternative housing meeting these same standards.
Enforcement runs through the director of Code Compliance, serving as the code enforcement official under Section 27-3.1, who can inspect any exterior at a reasonable time but needs the occupant's permission, or an administrative search warrant, to enter the interior under Section 27-5. Violations are prosecuted in municipal court, with Section 27-4 penalties scaled by subsection: a $150 minimum for many cosmetic and drainage items, $500 for more serious structural, mechanical or security failures, and a $2,000 statutory ceiling, doubling and tripling for repeat convictions of the same offense inside 24 months. The city can pursue a parallel civil suit for up to $1,000 per day of violation, or, under Section 27-5.1, let a judge dismiss citations if the owner donates the property to a city-selected nonprofit that restores and resells or re-rents it within 120 days.
Violations & Fines
An offense under Chapter 27 is a separate violation each day it continues. Most conditions carry a first-offense fine of $150 or $500 depending on the subsection violated, rising to a $2,000 statutory maximum. Section 27-4(b)(3) doubles the minimum fine for a second conviction within 24 months and triples it for a third. The city may also sue for a civil penalty up to $1,000 per day under Local Government Code Chapter 54, and can obtain search or seizure warrants to investigate violations.
Frequently Asked Questions
What kinds of property conditions count as violations under Dallas Chapter 27?
Can a Dallas code inspector enter my home to check for violations?
How much is the fine for a Chapter 27 violation in Dallas?
Can an owner avoid prosecution by giving away a noncompliant property?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Dallas
Texas rules heatmap·Compare Dallas to another location·View the Texas code violation reporting overview
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