Every Davenport rental must hold a city rental license and pass a housing inspection under Property Maintenance Code Chapter 8.15. Licenses run $30–$60 per year; units sit on a default two-year inspection cycle that shortens to annual for properties with high violation-point scores.
Davenport requires a rental license for any dwelling occupied by someone other than the owner or a first-degree relative, whether or not rent is collected — Chapter 8.15 adopts the 2015 International Property Maintenance Code. Owners get at least 30 days' notice before an inspection. Units that pass receive a Certificate of Compliance, valid until the next inspection and transferable to a new owner, but revocable for repeated violations, a serious life-safety hazard, or missed inspections. A Violation Point Matrix (§8.15.145(G)) sets the inspection cycle. State law still limits the city: Iowa Code §414.1(1)(b) bars occupancy rules based on family relationship, and §414.1(1)(d) bars rental-permit caps on single-family homes and duplexes.
Renting without a license draws a $500 fine, a citation, and a mandatory annual inspection. Other Chapter 8.15 violations are municipal infractions: $100 first offense, $200 second, $500 for each thereafter. Uncorrected hazards can force a unit vacant.
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See how Davenport's rental registration rules stack up against other locations.
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