Property Maintenance in Yakima County, WA (2026)
3 county-level rules, plus city-specific rules for 1 city in Yakima County, Washington.
Verified from official government sources
Property Blight
Yakima County's Property Maintenance Code lets the code official declare a structure unsafe when fire hazards, structural damage or faulty construction threaten collapse, then order repair or demolition. If fixing the damage would cost more than 50% of the building's assessed value, the county can require demolition and removal instead of repair.
Yakima County Dangerous Building Abatement Rules
Significant RestrictionsYakima County Code § 13.11.020 (IPMC §§ 108.1.1, 108.6.1)
108.1.1 Unsafe buildings and structures. An unsafe building or structure is one that is found to be dangerous to the life, health, property or safety of the public or the occupants of the structure by not providing minimum safeguards to protect or warn occupants in the event of fire, or because such structure contains unsafe equipment or is so damaged, decayed, dilapidated, structurally unsafe ...
Vacant Lot Maintenance
Vacant land and vacant structures in unincorporated Yakima County must be kept clean, safe, secure and sanitary so they don't create a blighting problem, under the county's Property Maintenance Code. Owners must also grade the land to stop erosion and standing water, and clear accumulated trash, junk or unrecycled scrap and building materials within 30 days.
Yakima County Vacant Land Maintenance Rules
Some RestrictionsYakima County Code §§ 13.11.020, 13.11.030 (IPMC § 302 subsections (i),(iv); §§ 401.3, 402.2)
401.3 Vacant structures and land. All vacant structures and premises thereof or vacant land shall be maintained in a clean, safe, secure and sanitary condition as provided herein so as not to cause a blighting problem or adversely affect the public health or safety. 402.2 Grading and drainage. All premises shall be graded and maintained to prevent the erosion of soil and to prevent the accumula...
Snow & Sidewalk Clearing
Property owners along local access roads in unincorporated Yakima County must clear snow and ice from sidewalks themselves under Yakima County Code Section 19.23.045(1)(b)(iii). The Unified Land Development Code puts the maintenance and repair burden on the owner rather than the county, and violations funnel into the county's Title 21 civil infraction process, which can reach district court within 48 hours of a citation.
Yakima County Sidewalk Snow and Ice Duty
Light RestrictionsYakima County Code § 19.23.045(1)(b)(iii)
A note shall be placed on the final document indicating that developers shall replace all cracked or damaged sidewalks during construction of buildings and road improvements in a timely fashion at no cost to the public. The property owner is responsible for snow and ice removal, maintenance and repair of sidewalks in such fashion on local access roads. (iv) Yakima County has a tiered sidewal...
Property Maintenance by City in Yakima County
1 cities in Yakima County have their own property maintenance rules. Each link goes to that city's dedicated page with code citations.
All Yakima County ordinances
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