The property owner who had been renting out a basement apartment that was deemed unsafe was issued a Notice of Violation by Montgomery County for leasing an accessory dwelling unit for which he never obtained the required permit.
The violation that was issued March 10 was in regards to a home in the Olney-Glenmont area of Rockville in which a family of four, including two young girls, were renting in the basement. Upon inspection, the county ruled that since there was not a second exit in case of emergency, it was not safe for the family to sleep there.
Nathan Feinberg was given 24 hours to remove all bedding from the basement apartment and to only be there during the day. Feinberg at first didn’t know where to go so he reached out to some members of the county council and media. Shortly after that, the county agreed to pay for the family to stay in a hotel in Silver Spring for at least a week.
The property owners did apply for a permit within the required 10 business days of receiving the notice of violation, according to Scott Peterson, manager of media relations for the county. However, according to Peterson, the application was incomplete, and the county’s rental licensing section has requested more information.
Once that information is received, a member of the code enforcement staff will inspect the unit, and let the owner know what modifications and permits are needed. Failure to follow through with the rental licensing process before renting the apartment out again would result in a $500 civil citation.
Short term rentals are registered with the county’s Health and Human Services Department, which monitors that program, Peterson said.
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