Santa Cruz County, CA Rental Property Rules: Repairs & Habitability (2026)
Key Facts
- Habitability code adopted
- 1997 Uniform Housing Code, SCCC § 12.10.252
- Dangerous-building code
- 1997 UCADB, SCCC § 12.10.251
- Enforcement process
- SCCC § 12.10.425 notice-and-order
- Appeal deadline
- 30 days to Hearing Officer
- Default penalty
- Up to $1,000 fine / 6 months jail
- Repeat-violation penalty
- Treble abatement costs, SCCC § 1.12.050(B)
Summary
Unincorporated Santa Cruz County rentals must meet the 1997 Uniform Housing Code, adopted at County Code § 12.10.252, and any dwelling the Building Official finds dangerous is abated under the 1997 Uniform Code for the Abatement of Dangerous Buildings, County Code § 12.10.251, using the notice-and-hearing process in § 12.10.425.
§ 12.10.251. 1997 Uniform Code for the Abatement of Dangerous Buildings adopted. The 1997 Uniform Code for the Abatement of Dangerous Buildings is hereby adopted with amendments, as noted in SCCC § 12.10.425. ... § 12.10.252. 1997 Uniform Housing Code adopted. The 1997 Uniform Housing Code, published by the International Conference of Building Officials, is hereby adopted with the following amendments: (A) Section 203 is hereby deleted. (B) Chapter 12 is hereby deleted. (C) Chapter 13 is hereby deleted. ... § 12.10.425. Abatement of structural and geologic hazards. General. Pursuant to Section 1.1.8.1 of the 2025 California Building Code, the County of Santa Cruz hereby adopts the 1997 Uniform Code for the Abatement of Dangerous Buildings to regulate hazardous buildings and geologic hazards in the County.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 5004302; v11 updated 2026-05-19; through 05-19-2026).
Full Breakdown
The county does not write its own habitability checklist; instead it incorporates the model codes wholesale. 252 adopts the 1997 Uniform Housing Code published by the International Conference of Building Officials as the minimum standard for every dwelling in the unincorporated area, deleting only Section 203 and Chapters 12 and 13 of that model code. 425 as the Uniform Code for the Abatement of Structural and Geologic Hazards, to deal with a rental that has already fallen below that standard. 425(B)-(D), the Building Official decides whether a structure is dangerous and unsafe, the County Geologist rules on geologic hazards, and the Director or a designee can open abatement proceedings once a building is found dangerous and a public nuisance.
1 lets the Director commence proceedings to repair, vacate, or demolish; the owner then gets 30 days from service of the notice and order to file a written appeal with the Hearing Officer under Section 501, or the right to a hearing is waived. If the corrections are not made and no appeal is filed, § 402 lets the County record a certificate against the property with the County Recorder describing the dangerous condition, a filing that stays on title until a second certificate documents that repairs or demolition are complete.
Violations & Fines
A code violation with no specific penalty listed is a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in County jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both, under SCCC § 1.12.030; building and safety infractions are instead capped at the amounts set in Government Code § 25132(c). Every day a violation continues is a separate offense under § 1.12.010. Any condition violating the code is also a public nuisance under § 1.12.050(A), and if a court enters a second civil or criminal judgment against the same owner for the same condition within two years, the court can order the owner to pay three times the County's abatement costs.
Frequently Asked Questions
What habitability code covers rentals in unincorporated Santa Cruz County?
What happens if the county finds a rental dangerous or substandard?
Can a landlord appeal a dangerous-building notice?
What are the penalties for violating the county's housing standards?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Santa Cruz County
California rules heatmap·Compare Santa Cruz County to another location·View the California rental property rules overview
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