Tempe, AZ Property Maintenance: Property Blight (2026)
Key Facts
- Response deadline
- 48 hours to accept/reject order
- Completion deadline
- 90 days from notice date
- Demolition trigger
- 2+ years of stalled repairs
- Cost recovery
- Assessed against the property
- Emergency authority
- Immediate vacate for imminent danger
Summary
Tempe's building official can order any structurally unsafe, unsanitary or fire-hazard building repaired or demolished under City Code Sec. 8-116. Owners get a written notice, must respond within 48 hours, and must finish repairs or demolition within 90 days or face City-ordered abatement billed back to the property.
116.9 Notice. ... if found to be an unsafe building as defined in this section, the building official shall serve on the owner, agent or person in control of the building or structure, a written notice that describes the condition deemed unsafe and specifies the required repairs or improvements to be made to abate the unsafe condition, or that requires the unsafe structure to be demolished within a stipulated time. Such notice shall require the person thus notified to declare immediately to the building official acceptance or rejection of the terms of the order. This notice may require the owner, agent or person in control of the building, within 48 hours, to commence either the required repairs or improvements or demolition and removal of the building or structure or portions thereof, and all such work shall be completed within 90 days from the date of notice, unless otherwise stipulated by the building official.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: City Code: Supplement 33 Update 4 | Zoning and Development Code: Supplement 11 Update 2).
Full Breakdown
Sec. 1 deems a building unsafe if it is structurally deficient, has inadequate egress, light or ventilation, poses a fire hazard, involves illegal occupancy, or is a vacant structure not secured against entry; deteriorated parapets, cornices, towers and similar appendages are separately declared public nuisances under Sec. 1. Where the building official finds imminent danger of collapse, explosive fumes or toxic gases, Sec. 2 authorizes an immediate order to vacate and a posted notice reading 'This Structure Is Unsafe and Its Occupancy Has Been Prohibited by the Code Official,' and Sec.
3 lets the official board up openings and take emergency action even before formal notice procedures finish. For non-emergency cases, Sec. 9 requires the building official to serve a written notice describing the unsafe condition and specifying repairs or demolition; the owner or agent must declare acceptance or rejection of the order, must commence repair or demolition within 48 hours, and must complete all work within 90 days of the notice unless the building official stipulates otherwise. Service can be personal, by certified mail, or posted at the structure under Sec.
10. Under Sec. 12, if construction repairs have stopped for more than two years the building official must order demolition, and Sec. 1 lets the City Council order the owner prosecuted as a code violator and direct the building official to carry out the demolition if the owner refuses. Emergency repair costs are paid by the City up front but Sec. 6 and Sec. 13 require the city's legal counsel to recover those costs from the owner, with the Finance Division collecting them as an assessment against the property.
Violations & Fines
Failing to comply with an unsafe-structure notice lets the City Council order prosecution of the owner as a code violator and direct the building official to demolish the structure at the owner's expense (Sec. 8-116.12.1). Abatement and emergency repair costs are charged to the owner and collected by the Finance Division as a property assessment (Sec. 8-116.13); general Chapter 8 civil sanctions of $400-$1,000 per day (capped at $2,000/day) or misdemeanor fines up to $2,500 also apply under Sec. 8-114.
Frequently Asked Questions
What makes a Tempe building legally 'unsafe'?
How much time does a Tempe owner get to fix an unsafe building?
Who pays for emergency repairs Tempe orders on an unsafe building?
Can Tempe force demolition of a stalled construction project?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Tempe
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