Providence does not impose a true vacancy tax but charges escalating registration and inspection fees for vacant and abandoned buildings under Code chapter 6, with steeper amounts for repeat-listed properties.
Rhode Island has not authorized a city vacancy tax, so Providence relies on its vacant-and-abandoned property registry. Owners must register a building once it sits empty, secure all openings, post emergency contact signage, and pay annual fees that grow each year a property remains vacant. Inspectional Services and the Department of Public Property administer enforcement. The list feeds into nuisance-property tracking, receivership petitions, and tax-sale prioritization. Providence supplements this with a Tax Stabilization program designed to incentivize redevelopment.
Failing to register a vacant property, ignoring escalating fees, or skipping repairs leads to liens, receivership actions, and inclusion on the city's nuisance-properties list.
See how Providence's vacancy tax rules stack up against other locations.
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