Lexington, KY Fire Regulations: Smoke Detectors (2026)
Key Facts
- Placement
- outside each sleeping area, every story (PM-704.6.1.5)
- Applies to
- 1-2 family dwellings & Group R occupancies
- Includes
- basements and cellars (not crawl spaces/attics)
- Short-term rentals
- same standard required for licensing
- Fine
- $100–$2,500 per offense, per day
- Enforced by
- Division of Code Enforcement
Summary
Every one- and two-family dwelling and Group R rental in Lexington must have smoke alarms outside each sleeping area and on every story, including basements, under the locally adopted Property Maintenance Code. Short-term rentals must keep the same alarms working as a licensing condition, and the Division of Code Enforcement can fine a noncompliant owner up to $2,500 per offense.
PM-704.6 Single- and multiple-station smoke alarms: Single- and multiple-station smoke alarms shall be installed in existing one-and-two family dwellings and Group 1-1 and R occupancies in accordance with Sections 704.6.1 through 704.6.3. ... PM-704.6.1.5 Single- or multiple-station smoke alarms: Single-station smoke alarms shall be installed and maintained in all one-and-two-family dwellings and dwelling units regardless of occupant load at all of the following locations: On the ceiling or wall outside of each separate sleeping area in the immediate vicinity of bedrooms. In each story within a dwelling unit, including basements and cellars but not including crawl spaces and uninhabitable attics.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Republication | Zoning Ordinance: Republication).
Full Breakdown
5. ' Split-level units get a partial exception: where there's no door between adjacent levels and the lower level is less than one full story below, a single alarm on the upper level can cover both. A dwelling unit built with alarms in every sleeping room must keep them there too. The requirement isn't limited to long-term rentals, the short-term rental licensing chapter cross-references the same standard, requiring a unit to contain 'sufficient smoke detectors installed and in working order as required in section 12-1 of the Code of Ordinances' as a condition of keeping a short-term rental license.
1 penalty schedule applying to owners who let alarms go missing or non-functional: $100 to $2,500 per offense, each day a separate offense, or civil fines up to $10,000 per parcel.
Violations & Fines
Missing or nonworking smoke alarms are cited under the Section 12-1 penalty schedule, $100 to $2,500 per offense with each day of noncompliance a separate offense, or civil fines up to $10,000 per parcel plus a $250 inspection cost, and, for short-term rentals, can also support suspension or revocation of the rental license for failing the smoke-detector condition.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where must smoke alarms be installed in a Lexington home?
Do short-term rentals like Airbnbs need smoke alarms too?
What's the penalty for a landlord who doesn't maintain smoke alarms?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Lexington
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