LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge announced an investigation Monday into Bella Vista and Pleasant Ridge Apartments, two Little Rock complexes notorious for bad living conditions.
But they’re far from the only rental properties in the city where tenants live in unsafe environments.
On the state level, Arkansas has been deemed by many the “worst place to rent in America” because of a lack of renter’s rights that leaves tenants with little leverage to fight landlords on property issues.
On a city level, we know that Little Rock is not in compliance with its own rental inspection program. Some tenants advocates argue by cleaning up code enforcement, the city could clean up some of its most problematic properties.
Frances Carner is a very unhappy tenant at Holcombe Heights in Little Rock. She suffers from spine problems, but that hasn’t stopped her from going to back-breaking efforts to try and get her apartment repaired.
As we interviewed Carner, she pointed out problems like power outlets precariously handing out of sockets.
“I’m not going to try it,” she said referencing the outlet as we asked if it was functional.
She says she did a walk-through before moving in last fall but wasn’t able to tell that there was an electrical issue that affected the entire front of the apartment, or a foundation leak in the bedroom that ushered in moisture and mold.
Carner soon found her neighbors were facing similar issues. Sick of management not addressing concerns, and despite a fear their landlords might retaliate, they finally complained to Little Rock’s Codes Department a couple of weeks ago.
“Took them around the outside of the building, they seemed alarmed,” Carner explained about when inspectors came by. “And then I invited them in my apartment, and they seemed alarmed.”
City leaders revealed earlier this summer that the city is out of compliance with its own rental inspection program. The ordinance requires rental properties to be inspected every two years, but that doesn’t happen.
“It’s impossible,” said City Manager Bruce Moore at a Board of Directors meeting in June.
Part of it is a manpower issue, with only five code inspectors assigned to keep tabs on rental properties. But when codes officers were interviewed during a housing study earlier this year, they also pointed out broad rules that allow loopholes, weak notice requirements, and fines too low to incentivize landlords.
“These rental properties have not been inspected on a regular basis,” said Neil Sealy with Arkansas Community Organizations. “They have serious structural issues.”
Sealy is calling on the city to clean up its rental inspection program, saying efforts need to get moving.
Meanwhile, Frances Carner is moving out….because she’s sick of bending over backwards just for a safe and healthy apartment.
“The mental and physical health risks are just going to be less,” she explained.
The city said it cannot comment on the outcome of the Holcombe Heights inspection because it’s still under investigation, and inspectors need to have a chance to speak with complex management.
The Holcombe Heights property manager told us off camera the only recent codes violation she’s received was for a broken window lock, which she says was quickly repaired.
Code Enforcement did not want to comment on camera for this story but provided a statement saying the city is reviewing its rental inspection ordinance, looking for possible modifications.
