New Britain, CT Rental Inspections: Inspection Programs (2026)

Sec. 13-37 of the Code of Ordinances requires the chief building inspector to develop and adopt formal plans for inspecting dwelling units subject to the housing code, and names two tracks: a plan for periodic inspection of multiple dwellings and rooming houses that are licensed under division 9 of the chapter, and a plan for systematic inspection of other dwelling units the chief building inspector designates from time to time. Before running inspections under either plan, Sec. 13-37(b) requires the chief building inspector to advise the public of the plan to inspect.

This program-based inspection track is distinct from the complaint-driven inspections authorized under Sec. 13-41: a routine inspection carried out under an adopted plan counts as "planned" rather than complaint-based, and Sec. 13-43 requires the owner of record, operator and occupant to be notified in writing at least seven days before that planned inspection, with the owner notified at his last known address. Sec. 13-38 lets the chief building inspector adopt written rules and regulations to carry out these inspection plans after a public hearing, and files certified copies with the town clerk; those rules carry the same enforcement weight and penalties as the housing code itself.

Multiple dwellings and rooming houses face a further layer of oversight because their licensing under division 9 depends on passing the periodic inspections Sec. 13-37(a)(1) requires, giving the city a recurring check on larger rental buildings beyond the seven-day-notice routine inspections used citywide.