Mount Vernon, NY Fire Regulations: Smoke Detectors (2026)

Section 267-98J requires one functioning smoke detector inside each sleeping room of a short-term rental and a second functioning smoke detector on the ceiling or wall in the immediate vicinity just outside each separate sleeping room, with the Building Inspector approving the placement and type. This is a short-term-rental-specific standard found in Article XV of the Zoning Code, distinct from the citywide fuel-oil-equipment smoke-alarm rule in Chapter 81, and it applies to every unit that obtains a short-term rental permit under Section 267-97, whether the rental covers an entire dwelling or a single room.

Compliance is checked directly: Section 267-100 requires the Building Department and Fire Department to inspect the property both at initial application and again before every permit renewal, and either department may conduct periodic reinspections at any time to confirm the unit still meets the Section 267-98 standards. If an inspector finds the smoke detectors, or any other required safety item, out of compliance, the owner or tenant must cease renting the unit as a short-term rental until the deficiency is corrected and pay a reinspection fee under the City Fee Schedule before renting resumes (Section 267-100).

Smoke detectors sit alongside the article's other life-safety requirements for short-term rentals, including a required carbon monoxide detector (Section 267-98K) and at least one functioning, inspected fire extinguisher in the dwelling unit (Section 267-98L).