Bristol, PA Rental Property Rules: Rental Registration (2026)

Chapter 11, Part 1, Rental or Rentable Units, is Bristol Borough's landlord registration scheme. Section 11-102 defines a landlord as a lessor, or person acting as agent for the lessor, of any parcel of real estate, improvements or building located in the Borough of Bristol. A dwelling unit is one or more rooms used for living and sleeping purposes arranged for occupancy by one family or by one or more persons, and a tenant is a person who has the use of a dwelling unit owned by someone else for a period exceeding 30 days.

The core duty is the report in § 11-103. Each landlord submits to the Building Code Official a report form supplied by that official covering five items: the dwelling units owned within the Borough limits, whether occupied or not; the address of each unit; a brief description including the square footage of each unit; whether the unit is inhabited or utilized by tenants; and the names of the tenants. Vacant units are listed too.

Timing runs on three clocks. The original filing was due within 30 days of the Part's effective date. A person who becomes a landlord by agreement of sale, by deed or by any other means reports the same information within 30 days under § 11-104. Under § 11-105, every landlord reports any change in the use or occupancy of a unit, including the new tenants' names, the date of the change and the old tenant's forwarding address if known, within 10 days of learning of the change or of the unit becoming vacant. A landlord of a hotel or inn house is not required to report a person as a tenant.

The Building Code Official keeps the landlord and tenant list on file at the Borough office, supplies the forms, and notifies the Chief of Police and the Fire Chief of the address and description of any unit that is vacant, unoccupied and not in use (§ 11-106). Registration is paired with inspection: § 11-107 requires a registration and inspection fee for each unit to accompany the § 11-103 report, in an amount set by resolution of Borough Council, and the official then issues a certificate of registration and inspection for units meeting ordinance requirements.

Registration can be taken away. Under § 11-203 a third instance of disorderly behavior at a rental unit within six months lets the Borough Manager revoke, suspend or not renew the registration, after the owner receives at least 10 days' written notice of a hearing under § 11-205. Until the registration is reissued or reinstated, the unit cannot be rented or occupied.