Stockton, CA Property Maintenance: Property Blight (2026)
Key Facts
- Cure period
- 10 days after notice
- City entry hours
- 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
- Unpaid cost becomes
- Lien on next tax bill
- Appeal path
- Administrative Hearing, Ch. 1.44
- Related trigger
- Vacancy over 180 days, § 15.32.030
Summary
Stockton declares any unsecured, unoccupied building, one with a broken or unboarded window, door or other opening that allows free entry, a public nuisance under Municipal Code § 15.24.050. The owner, agent or lessee has 10 days after notice to secure it under § 15.24.060, or the City secures it and bills the property.
It is hereby found and expressly declared that the existence of an unsecured building within the City is a public nuisance and dangerous to the health and safety of the inhabitants of said City. An unsecured building is hereby defined and when so designated by the code official as any unoccupied house, garage, building or any other structure which is unoccupied and into which free entry may be made through the existence of any unsecured opening, including broken and unboarded windows and doorways. ... It is unlawful for any owner, agent, lessee or person having charge or control of any unsecured building within the City of Stockton to refuse or neglect to secure said building hereinbefore declared to be a public nuisance within a period of 10 days after such owner, agent, lessee or other person above described has been given notice as provided in Stockton Municipal Code, Title 1, Chapter 1.24 et seq., or Chapter 1.28 et seq., or Chapter 1.32 et seq., which shall order that the building be secured and the public nuisance thereby abated.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4970744; v11 updated 2026-07-07).
Full Breakdown
The nuisance declaration in § 15.24.050 covers any unoccupied house, garage, building or other structure with an unsecured opening, including broken and unboarded windows and doorways. Once the code official designates a structure unsecured, § 15.24.060 gives the owner, agent, lessee, or anyone with charge or control 10 days from notice, served under Title 1 Chapters 1.24, 1.28, or 1.32, to secure it under the standards in § 15.32.050: reglazing or boarding broken windows and openings, fencing pools and spas, and posting an 18-by-24-inch weatherproof sign with a 24-hour contact number.
A person served can appeal the securing order itself through an Administrative Hearing under Chapter 1.44. If the 10 days pass without action, § 15.24.070 lets the City secure the building itself and bill the cost to whoever owned, leased, or controlled it at the time the work was done (§ 15.24.080). The Building Official or designated agent then computes the cost, sends notice, and holds an Administrative Hearing where the property owner or any other interested party can object (§ 15.24.090); the cost decision is separately appealable under § 15.24.100.
If unpaid five days after the hearing officer confirms the cost, it becomes a special assessment lien on the parcel that the Assessor and Tax Collector add to the next regular property tax bill, collected the same way, and subject to the same delinquency penalties and foreclosure-sale procedure, as ordinary municipal taxes (§§ 15.24.120, 15.24.130). Recovered money goes back into the City's Repair and Demolition Fund (§§ 15.24.040, 15.24.160). Representatives of the City may enter the property to inspect or secure it between 6:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m.; refusing entry is itself unlawful (§ 15.24.150).
The related vacant-property chapter, § 15.32.030, separately makes any building left vacant more than 180 days a nuisance per se unless it's under an active repair permit, pending a permit application, actively for sale or rent in code-compliant condition, or being maintained and secured under § 15.32.040.
Violations & Fines
Refusing to secure an unsecured building within 10 days of notice is a violation of § 15.24.060, and refusing City representatives access to inspect or secure the property is a separate violation of § 15.24.150. If the City performs the securing work itself, the cost becomes a real property lien collected with the owner's regular tax bill, carrying the same interest, penalties, and foreclosure exposure as delinquent property taxes.
Frequently Asked Questions
What makes a building 'unsecured' under Stockton's nuisance code?
How long does a Stockton property owner have to secure a nuisance building?
What happens if a Stockton owner doesn't pay for City-performed securing work?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Stockton
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