San Marino Municipal Code Art. 02 Residential Compliance Certificate

No person, owner or agent shall sell any residential building which is vacated by the occupant thereof to be reoccupied until the owner has filed an application for a residential compliance certificate, caused an inspection required by section 24.02.04 of this article to be performed and submitted a report of said inspection to the planning and building director.

Nothing herein shall require an owner or agent to apply for a residential compliance certificate or cause the inspection to be performed prior to offering property for sale. (Ord. 0-08-1203, 5-14-2008)

The owner shall file an application for a residential compliance certificate with the city, prior to the sale of a residential building on a form to be provided by the planning and building director. The certificate application shall contain not less than the following:

A. The street address of the property.

B. A listing of the number of structures on the property and whether the garage is attached or detached.

C. A listing of all rooms on each floor of the residential building.

D. The owner's statement that he/she will cause an inspection of the property to be performed within thirty (30) days as required by section 24.02.04 of this article.

E. The signature of the owner and the date.

F. A "required notification form" signed by both the selling agent and buyer. (An additional 45 days after the filing of the application shall be granted to submit this form. The failure to do so shall void any previous issuance of a residential compliance certificate.) (Ord. 0-08-1203, 5-14-2008)

An owner filing a certificate application pursuant to this article shall submit a plot plan of the parcel showing the placement of all buildings on the property. The owner shall also submit floor plans showing the approximate dimensions, and the name of each room, on each floor of all buildings. Said drawings shall be original drawings and not copies or duplications of any previous plan(s).

The submittal of said drawings shall be a requirement for filing the residential compliance certificate application. All drawings so submitted shall not become public records. (Ord. 0-08-1203, 5-14-2008)

An inspection of the residential property shall be required prior to the issuance of a residential compliance certificate. Said inspection shall be performed by an inspector selected by the owner or the owner's agent from the list provided for in section 24.02.05 of this article.

Said inspection shall be limited to determination of the following:

A. Conversion of a garage to a use other than storage of vehicles without having provided other legal garage space.

B. Existence of more kitchens or bedrooms than permitted by code.

C. Visible violations of those sections of health, plumbing, electrical or building codes set forth by resolution of the council 1 .

The inspector shall issue a written and signed inspection report to the planning and building director indicating evidence of any aforementioned items. (Ord. 944, 1-10-1990; amd. 1994 Code)

The city shall make available a list of persons authorized to conduct the compliance inspection required in section 24.02.04 of this article.

Any person may make application to the city to be included on the list of authorized inspectors. Said application shall be on a form provided by the city. The planning and building director shall approve those persons to be included on the list based on criteria developed by the planning and building director. (Ord. 0-08-1203, 5-14-2008)

The city planning and building director shall determine if any of the items identified on the inspection report provided for in section 24.02.04 of this article are violations of this code. The planning and building director shall submit all violations and the required corrective actions to the owner in writing. (Ord. 944, 1-10-1990)

The owner shall cause all violations identified in section 24.02.06 of this article to be corrected within six (6) months of receiving notification from the planning and building director or which may be extended by the city for good cause. The owner shall pay for and obtain all necessary permits and comply with any other city procedures and pay any fines required by this code prior to taking action to correct the violations.

Should the property be sold prior to correction of the violations and issuance of the residential compliance certificate, the owner of record at the time of the inspection and the owner's agent shall provide the new owner with a copy of the notice of violations prior to said sale. The new owner shall correct the violations in the time required herein.

Should an owner sell property without filing an application causing the inspection to be performed or providing a copy of the notice of violations to the new owner, the city shall inform the new owner of the prior owner's failure to comply with this article. The new owner shall file an application for a residential compliance certificate within thirty (30) days of receipt of the notice and cause the inspection to be performed within the time limit provided for in the application. If the new owner fails to submit the application or cause the inspection to be performed, the city shall obtain an inspection warrant pursuant to section 1822.50 et seq., of the California Code of Civil Procedures and perform the inspection required by section 24.02.04 of this article. The new owner shall correct the violations, if any, within six (6) months of receipt from the city of a report of violations. The city would thereupon issue a residential compliance certificate. (Ord. 0-08-1203, 5-14-2008)

The planning and building director shall issue a residential compliance certificate if no violations were found pursuant to section 24.02.04 of this article, or if required corrections were performed pursuant to section 24.02.07 of this article. Said certificate shall contain the following:

A. The street address of the property.

B. The date on which the certificate is issued.

C. The signature of the planning and building director.

Certificates issued by the city shall be valid for a period of two (2) years from the date of issue or until the property is sold, provided, that no changes have been made to the property. (Ord. 944, 1-10-1990)

An application fee shall be paid at the time of application submittal. The fee amount shall be established by city council resolution. (Ord. 0-08-1203, 5-14-2008)

Any person violating any provision of this article shall be guilty of a misdemeanor unless the violation is prosecuted as an infraction, as determined by the city prosecutor.

Any inspector on the list provided for in section 24.02.05 of this article who fails to report violations of the items contained in section 24.02.04 of this article shall be removed from said list and shall be ineligible for consideration to be reinstated to said list for a period of three (3) years. (Ord. 944, 1-10-1990; amd. 1994 Code; Ord. 097-1114, 10-8-1997)

Issuance of a residential compliance certificate shall not be used or relied upon by any person including, but not limited to, any owner, tenant, buyer, agent or occupant, for any of the following:

A. As evidence or proof that the improvements or any portion thereof comply with any building, safety, zoning or other laws or ordinances.

B. To meet any of the disclosure obligations of the laws of the state with respect to the construction, use, occupancy or transfer of real property, including, but not limited to, the provisions of article 1.5, chapter 2, title 4, part 4 of division 2 of the California Civil Code (section 1102 et seq.).

C. As evidence or proof that the property or structures are safe or free from hazards or code violations.

D. As evidence or proof in connection with any claims or actions against the city for failure to identify violations.

E. As a defense to a challenge by the city or any person to the legality of any construction or use of property.

F. To prevent enforcement of other provisions of this code or state law. (Ord. 944, 1-10-1990; amd. Ord. 097-1114, 10-8-1997)