Rochester, MN Rental Inspections: Inspection Programs (2026)

Section 7-9-5(k) lists "the licensee or applicant allows the city to perform a rental inspection" among the mandatory standards for holding a registration certificate; refusing entry is grounds for denial, non-renewal, suspension or revocation under the same section. Section 7-9-7 directs the director of community development to investigate every application to confirm the dwelling, apartment or rooming unit complies with the Code, including the zoning, building, fire safety and health ordinances cross-referenced in sections 7-2-3 and 7-2-5. If that investigation finds a violation, section 7-9-9 requires written notice to the applicant under the procedures in sections 7-3-26 through 7-3-31; if the violations are severe enough that the unit can't realistically be brought into compliance, section 7-9-10 lets the director reject the application outright, with a right to a hearing before the board of appeals under section 7-9-11 and chapter 1-4.

The inspection program isn't a one-time event: section 7-9-13(a) places every registration certificate on a one-year, two-year, three-year or four-year renewal cycle, with the length set by how the property scored on its last inspection based on the number and priority of violations found. Properties that score poorly land back on the one-year cycle and face inspection again sooner. The section 7-3-6 fee schedule prices re-inspection at $75 to $125 depending on unit count, plus a $75 missed-appointment fee, and a late-compliance fee ladder of $100 to $500 tied to how many days a property runs past its correction deadline.