Avondale, AZ Rental Inspections: Inspection Programs (2026)

Section 14-360 of the Avondale City Code authorizes the code official or an authorized designee to conduct an interior inspection of a residential rental property to check compliance with Article IV, Residential Rental Property Maintenance Code. The inspection is tied directly to two state statutes: Ariz. Rev. § 9-1302 and Ariz. Rev. § 33-1904(A)(1), and any inspection warrant needed to enter must be issued the same way warrants are issued under section 14-150 of the same chapter. Inspectors do not get blanket authority to walk into a leased unit; the warrant process gives owners and tenants a check on when and how an interior look can happen.

Once an interior standard violation is documented, section 14-370 bars re-occupancy: if the unit becomes vacant while the violation is outstanding, the owner cannot lease, rent, or allow anyone back in until the code official has inspected and approved the correction. Section 14-380 extends the owner's exposure to tenant conduct: an owner is treated as having permitted an occupant's violation if, after the code official notifies the owner, the owner fails to take substantial action to stop the occupant from committing further violations of Chapter 14.

Together these three sections give Avondale's rental maintenance program its teeth: a warrant-gated inspection right, a re-occupancy freeze until the fix is verified, and owner accountability for what tenants do inside the unit. The program was adopted by Ord. No. 1589-1115 in 2015 and amended by Ord. No. 2025-0423 in 2023.