Farmington Hills, MI Rental Property Rules: Repairs & Habitability (2026)

Section 7-350 directs the department's director to maintain written inspection guidelines based on this article and the applicable codes, and requires that every single-family rental and the ground it sits on be kept to the standard of the Property Maintenance Code adopted and amended under Chapter 7, which is the 2015 International Property Maintenance Code adopted at § 7-226. Farmington Hills customized two of that code's seasonal triggers when it inserted local dates under § 7-227: screens for openable windows and doors are only required between April 1 and October 31, and the heating-season minimum indoor temperature requirements of Sections 602.3 and 602.4 run from September 1 through May 31.

Regular rental inspections under § 7-350(c) look only at the exterior of the dwelling and the surrounding premises. The code official can open up the interior only if one of five conditions applies: the structure is, or is part of, one that is unsafe, unfit for occupancy, unlawful or dangerous, or includes unsafe equipment under the Property Maintenance Code; it is a dangerous building as defined in Chapter 7; a Property Maintenance Code violation is letting rain, moisture, drainage or animals into the walls, structure or living space; the structure has some other unsafe condition under any code adopted by reference; or there have been multiple or recurring violations of the inspection guidelines.