Jacksonville, NC Rental Property Rules: Repairs & Habitability (2026)

Section 5-95 states that every dwelling and dwelling unit used or held out for use as human habitation must comply with all of the minimum standards of fitness in Sections 5-96 through 5-101, and separately makes it unlawful for an owner-occupant to occupy, or an owner to let to another, any dwelling that fails those standards. The referenced sections cover structural condition (Section 5-96), basic plumbing, heating and electrical facilities (Section 5-97), ventilation and window area (Section 5-98), room size and ceiling height (Section 5-99), safe and sanitary maintenance of exteriors and interiors (Section 5-100), and insect and rodent control (Section 5-101).

On heating specifically, Section 5-97(b)(1) requires every central or electric heating system to be able to heat all habitable rooms, bathrooms and water closet compartments to a minimum of 70 degrees Fahrenheit, measured three feet above the floor, during ordinary winter conditions; where no central system exists, the dwelling must instead have fireplaces, flues, gas vents or similar facilities capable of the same 70-degree minimum. Section 5-97(a) additionally requires a connection to a potable water supply and public sewer, plus a working kitchen sink, lavatory, tub or shower and water closet with hot and cold water.

The city's building inspector, defined in Section 5-94, enforces the division and can inspect a unit under Section 5-105 with the occupant's or owner's cooperation.