Landlords sue over rental property licenses

LISBON -- Members of the East Liverpool Landlords Association Inc. want to eliminate the city's annual license for rental properties.
The association filed a lawsuit Wednesday in Columbiana County Common Pleas Court that said the city has increased its annual rates but it doesn't inspect rental properties on a regular basis.
East Liverpool began collecting a $10 annual fee from every person who rents living quarters in 1990.
The fee was raised in 2004 and again in 2006. Landlords each year now must pay $40 for properties with up to 25 housing units and $30 for properties with more than 26 units.
But the lawsuit says the city has no written rules, inspectors do not uniformly apply standards, rental properties are not inspected regularly, and not all rental properties are required to pay the fee.
The lawsuit says the city is supposed to use the fees to support the inspection program and the city's planning department, but the money instead goes into the city's general fund.