Newark, OH Rental Property Rules: Repairs & Habitability (2026)
Key Facts
- Bathrooms
- One per ten persons, or fraction thereof
- Single sleeper floor space
- At least seventy square feet
- Shared room floor space
- Forty square feet per occupant, or 110 square feet, whichever is greater
- Linen and towels
- Changed at least once each week and before a new occupant
- Responsible party
- The rooming house operator (Section 1446.15)
- Existing houses
- Excused from structural changes in Sections 1446.11, 1446.13, 1446.14 only
- Penalty
- Minor misdemeanor, fine up to $100.00; repeat is fourth degree
Summary
In the City of Newark, Ohio, the habitability standards printed in the Codified Ordinances for rented sleeping quarters are in the Rooming House Code: one bathroom per ten residents, seventy square feet of floor space for a single sleeper, and an operator responsible for sanitary conditions throughout. Other rentals fall under the separately attached Property Maintenance Code.
Every rooming house shall have one bathroom which affords privacy to a person using its facilities for each ten persons, or fraction thereof, residing within a rooming house, including members of the operator's family whenever they share the use of the facilities. The facilities of the bathroom shall include one flush water closet, lavatory basin and bathtub or shower, in good working condition and properly connected to a public water and sewer system or to a water and sewer system approved by the Health Commissioner, which provides at all times an adequate amount of heated and unheated running water. ... (a) Every room occupied for sleeping purposes by one person shall contain at least seventy square feet of floor space, and every room occupied for sleeping purposes by more than one person shall contain at least forty square feet of floor space for each occupant thereof, or 110 square feet, whichever is greater. ... The operator of every rooming house shall be responsible for the sanitary maintenance of all walls, floors and ceilings and for the maintenance of a sanitary condition in every part of the rooming house.
Full Breakdown
Chapter 1446 sets physical standards for any residential building, other than a hotel, offering sleeping accommodations for hire to three or more persons. The operator, not the tenant, carries the burden.
Bathrooms: Section 1446.11 requires one private bathroom for each ten persons, or fraction thereof, residing in the rooming house, counting the operator's family when they share the facilities. Each bathroom needs one flush water closet, lavatory basin and bathtub or shower in good working condition, connected to a public water and sewer system or one approved by the Health Commissioner, with an adequate amount of heated and unheated running water at all times. In a house where rooms are let only to males, flush urinals can replace not more than one-half of the required water closets.
Space: Section 1446.13(a) requires at least seventy square feet of floor space in a room slept in by one person, and at least forty square feet for each occupant of a room slept in by more than one person, or 110 square feet, whichever is greater. Section 1446.13(b) lets college dormitories, fraternities, sororities and qualifying religious, charitable and fraternal organizations use dormitory rooms for more than six persons, with beds not more than two decks high, clear three-foot aisles in front of fire exits and thirty inches along each long side of a bed.
Cleanliness and supplies: Section 1446.12 requires the operator to change supplied bed linen and towels at least once each week and before letting a room to a new occupant. Section 1446.15 makes the operator responsible for sanitary maintenance of walls, floors and ceilings and every part of the house.
Section 1446.19 requires functioning locks on unit doors and windows, and Section 1446.20 requires smoke detectors. Existing houses are excused only from the structural-change requirements of Sections 1446.11, 1446.13 and 1446.14 until the owner makes changes needing zoning or building permits (Section 1446.21).
Housing outside this chapter is governed by the Property Maintenance Code adopted by Section 1448.01, whose text is attached to Ordinance 07-3 and not printed in the Codified Ordinances.
Violations & Fines
Section 1446.99 makes any violation of the chapter a minor misdemeanor with a fine of not more than one hundred dollars ($100.00); a prior conviction raises it to a fourth degree misdemeanor with a fine of not more than two hundred fifty dollars or up to thirty days in jail, or both. The Inspector can also move to suspend the license under Section 1446.09, and a suspended operator must stop operating immediately under Section 1446.10.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many bathrooms must a Newark, Ohio rooming house have?
What is the minimum bedroom size in a Newark rooming house?
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Does Newark have habitability rules for ordinary rentals?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Newark
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