Youngstown, OH Rental Property Rules: Repairs & Habitability (2026)

Youngstown Codified Ordinances Section 546.11(a) lists seven specific obligations for the owner of a rental unit: maintain the interior, exterior property areas and exterior structure in accordance with the Property Maintenance Code; keep the interior, exterior property areas and exterior structure in good repair; keep all common areas in a clean and sanitary condition; provide all utilities, facilities, equipment and services required by the Code; provide for extermination of insects by means not injurious to human health; provide solid waste disposal facilities or containers for all dwelling units; and comply with all regulations and rules the Code Official designates to enforce this section.

Section 546.05 assigns responsibility: for owner-occupied or unoccupied property, and for occupied rental property that has not been registered, the owner is liable for all Code violations; for a properly registered occupied rental property, the owner is not liable for violations the occupants themselves create unless the owner was put on notice and failed to take adequate measures to fix them. Section 546.12 places matching duties on occupants, including keeping their occupied space clean and sanitary, disposing of solid waste per the City's Rules of Garbage Collection, hanging insect screens unless the owner has agreed to supply them, and giving the owner access at reasonable times, with twenty-four hours presumed reasonable notice, for inspections and repairs. Section 546.11(b) charges the Code Official with enforcing these owner obligations, including conducting inspections and issuing notices, orders and penalties.