Rental Inspections in Virginia (2026)
16 rules on the books across Virginia, 10 cities and counties. Select a rule to read the full details.
Severity: Few Restrictions · Light Restrictions · Some Restrictions · Significant Restrictions · Heavy Restrictions
Inspection Programs
Proactive rental inspection programs, registration requirements, systematic and periodic inspection cycles, what inspectors check, and the fees landlords pay to fund them.
Alexandria
Significant RestrictionsAlexandria requires periodic building-code inspections of residential rental units inside designated East and West…
Read full rule →Hampton
Significant RestrictionsHampton designates specific neighborhoods as rental inspection districts, where landlords must obtain a Community…
Read full rule →Henrico County
Significant RestrictionsHenrico County Code Sec. 6-175 through 6-181 lets the building official designate rental inspection districts and…
Read full rule →Lynchburg
Significant RestrictionsLynchburg runs a mandatory Residential Rental Property Inspection Program in six designated census-tract districts…
Read full rule →Portsmouth
Significant RestrictionsPortsmouth runs mandatory rental inspections in three council-designated rental inspection districts, checking dwelling…
Read full rule →Roanoke
Significant RestrictionsRoanoke inspects rental housing through five designated rental inspection districts: Southwest, Northwest, Southeast…
Read full rule →Chesapeake
Some RestrictionsInside Chesapeake's designated rental inspection districts, every rented dwelling unit gets a periodic safety…
Read full rule →Hanover County
Some RestrictionsHanover County applies the Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code's maintenance provisions to every residential…
Read full rule →Newport News
Some RestrictionsNewport News must inspect a rental unit within 120 days of an owner's request, then issues 12-month certificates, or…
Read full rule →Norfolk
Some RestrictionsNorfolk's Chapter 36.1 lets city council designate residential rental inspection districts where the codes compliance…
Read full rule →Tenant Complaint Process
How tenants can file complaints about code violations, what triggers a city inspection, and protections against landlord retaliation for reporting issues.
Chesapeake
Some RestrictionsChesapeake polices rental housing conditions by mapping specific census-tract rental inspection districts, not by…
Read full rule →Hanover County
Some RestrictionsOutside the Town of Ashland, the county's building official enforces the Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code's…
Read full rule →Lynchburg
Some RestrictionsA Lynchburg tenant can trigger a rental inspection outside the normal once-a-year cycle by filing a complaint; Sec…
Read full rule →Portsmouth
Some RestrictionsPortsmouth requires any occupant who discovers a code violation to report it immediately to the health director, and…
Read full rule →Alexandria
Light RestrictionsAlexandria tenants and landlords with an unresolved dispute must first file a written grievance with the city's citizen…
Read full rule →Newport News
Light RestrictionsAnyone can call the Newport News codes compliance department by telephone to request a rental unit inspection, but the…
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