Royal Oak, MI Short-Term Rentals: Repeat Violator Strikes (2026)

Section 104.8 of the Property Maintenance Code, at § 556-4.A(7) of the Royal Oak City Code, defines 'cause' for suspending or revoking a rental registration to include fraudulent information on the application, action beyond the scope of the registration, conduct forbidden by City or state law applicable to housing, and, at § 556-4.A(7)(d), a nuisance on the registered property. That subsection states that three or more issued violations of state law, the Royal Oak Code of Ordinances, or the Zoning Ordinance arising from the use or occupancy of a registered property within a single registration period constitute a nuisance for purposes of suspension or revocation.

Under § 556-4.A(6), the Code Official may suspend a registration for cause, and the owner has five days after receiving notice to file a written request for a hearing before the City Manager; the City Manager confirms, revokes or reinstates the registration by written opinion, forwards a copy to the City Commission, and that decision is final. A registration fee is never refunded once a registration is suspended or revoked, and § 556-4.A(7) bars an owner whose registration was revoked from applying for a new one for one full year.

Because the three-strike count runs against the property rather than a specific tenant, a short-term rental host who racks up repeated noise, nuisance or zoning citations in one registration cycle risks losing the registration even if no single violation alone would justify revocation.