Selling a House With Code Violations in St. Louis City
The envelope from the City does not explain itself. Some papers are Housing Conservation punch lists. Some are vacant-building registrations. Some post the building as unsafe or condemned. Sellers call all of them “code violations.” The Building Division does not.
I am David Dodge, Senior Buyer at House Sold Easy. This post is the City-notice explainer, not the condemned-house money page, that is sell a condemned house in St. Louis. It is not a catalog of every code section or fine. Those numbers live on the notice and the department website printed on it.
We buy as-is, including houses with code issues. Typical close is about two weeks when title is ready. We typically cover our standard closing costs. Call 636-525-1566 with the paper in front of you.
Read the notice before you call anyone
The first useful move is not a contractor bid. It is reading the letterhead.
The City of St. Louis Building Division is the department most City housing papers come from. Phone on the City site: (314) 622-3313. City Hall, 1200 Market Street. If the notice names a different desk (Housing Conservation, a vacant-building unit, a problem-property section) call that desk. Do not call County Public Works about a City door tag, and do not call the City about a Ferguson or Kirkwood tag.
Photograph the posting on the door. Keep the envelope. Write down the complaint or case number if there is one. When you call us, that is what we want to see. A neighbor’s summary of “they said it’s condemned” is not a document.
If you are not even sure you are in the City, stop and check. Selling in St. Louis City vs County is the government map. Occupancy in a County municipality is a different clerk. Occupancy permits by municipality is the inspection explainer.
Occupancy punch list versus condemned or vacant-building paper
Housing Conservation / occupancy. The City’s residential occupancy and Housing Conservation pages describe a basic code inspection for minimal interior building-code issues and minimum exterior standards under the International Property Maintenance Code. The City states that 100% of property in St. Louis is in a Housing Conservation District and that Ordinance 71835 requires that inspection for property in the district.
The inspection is not a warranty of the house or its systems. Water and electric must be operable at the inspection. If a certificate is issued with violations, the owner has 30 days to make the necessary repairs. The City says extensions may be granted for weather or other specific causes. A certificate is valid for 12 months. The City requires a certificate before occupancy in the situations it lists, including the sale of an occupied structure if no certificate was issued in the last 12 months.
Application fees on that page are $120, or $200 if a resident is occupying without a current certificate. Those fees can change. Use the City page.
A punch list from that visit is a repair list tied to a certificate. It is serious. It is not the same as a building posted unsafe.
Condemned / vacant-building / unsafe. Those orders can restrict entry, require board-up, or start a path that is not “fix the rail and reinspect in 30 days.” The money page for that file is sell a condemned house. Bring the actual order. We cannot promise the City will withdraw it because you requested a cash offer.
Do not collapse these papers. A seller who tells a listing agent “it’s just occupancy” when the door is posted closed is describing the wrong file. A seller who treats a porch-rail punch list as condemnation is describing the wrong file the other way.
What the occupancy inspection is checking
The City says Housing Conservation inspections look for minimal interior building-code violations and minimum exterior standards under the International Property Maintenance Code. That is a published standard, not a secret list we are going to reprint section by section. If you want the code book, ask the Building Division which edition the City has adopted and read the notice you were given.
Inspectors examine the exterior, interior, and interior common areas, and they set a dwelling’s occupancy load. The City’s occupancy page also notes that a family is one or more persons living as a single housekeeping unit and that no more than three unrelated persons may live in the same dwelling.
Selling as-is with an open City file
Sell your house as-is in St. Louis means current condition. Do I need repairs to sell? is no. Too many repairs is the situation page when the list is long. As-is does not mean hide the notice. Show us the notice.
Missouri disclosure rules still apply. As-is is not a way to skip a known meth lab, a contamination report, or a federal lead-paint packet on a pre-1978 house. Read Missouri seller disclosure rules. This post stays on City paper.
A cash buyer can close while an occupancy file is open. Who clears the remaining items is a contract question. A retail buyer’s lender often will not take that risk, which is why listed houses with open City files sit.
We do not need you to hire three contractors before the walkthrough. We do need access. If the house is boarded, tell us who has the key. Do not pull boards off a posted building to “help.” If the City said stay out, stay out and send photos of the posting.
Title, bills, and what closing can pay
City bills, special tax bills, and recorded liens show up on vacant and problem-property files. The title company pays recorded amounts from proceeds when the file supports it. If the stack is larger than the house, we will say so before you sign. Sell with a lien or back taxes is the lien page.
If you inherited the house and the notices started arriving after the funeral, authority to sell still comes first. Probate / inherited and can I sell a house in probate?. A Building Division letter does not appoint a personal representative.
How we work a City code file
House Sold Easy has been buying houses here since 2016. Michael Slane and I have closed 1,000+ of them. About 90% are Missouri. Our office is at 1750 S Brentwood Blvd, Suite 503, Brentwood, MO 63144. We buy within about 75 miles of St. Louis, west to Wentzville, south to Festus, plus Metro East.
- Call 636-525-1566. Read us the letterhead and the case number.
- One of us walks the house about 30 minutes if it is safe to enter. No cleaning required.
- You get a written offer that prices the work and the City file as we understand them.
- You pick a closing date when title is ready. Typical close is about two weeks.
How it works is the same three steps. The extra input is the notice. People find us on Google at 4.7 from 65+ reviews because we say what we can buy and what we cannot fix at City Hall.
We cannot:
- Promise the Building Division will issue a certificate.
- Retract a condemnation.
- Tell you a fine is “usually” a certain amount.
- Treat a County municipal notice as a City Housing Conservation inspection.
We can buy the house as-is when title and the numbers work.
What you should not do while the notice is open
Do not ignore a posted order and rent the house anyway. The City occupancy page charges a higher application fee when someone is occupying without a current certificate. Occupying against a vacant or unsafe order is a different problem. Ask the department on the notice.
Do not start unpermitted work because a cousin “knows code.” If the notice says pull a permit, pull a permit or sell the house to someone who will.
Do not assume a cash contract cancels the City’s 30-day clock on a certificate issued with violations. The City’s clock is the City’s. The contract says who is responsible for the work. Those can be the same person. They are not automatically.
Do not list the house as “move-in ready” while Housing Conservation has an open punch list. If the list is short and you want a retail sale, compare cash offer vs listing. We will say so if that is what we see.
County and municipal notices are not this post
A University City, Webster Groves, Ferguson, or Florissant occupancy failure is not a City Building Division file. Call the city on that notice. Occupancy permits by municipality tells you how to find the clerk. Unincorporated County occupancy is County Public Works, (314) 615-5184.
We buy those houses too. The paper is just a different letterhead.
Common questions
Can I sell a City house with open code violations?
Yes, to a buyer who will take the house in that condition. We buy as-is. The City’s occupancy and building rules still apply to whoever owns it next. We cannot promise a certificate.
Is an occupancy failure the same as condemned?
No. Read the notice. Occupancy is a Housing Conservation / certificate file. Condemned or vacant-building paper is a different order. See sell a condemned house.
Do I have to finish the 30-day punch list before closing?
Not always. The City gives 30 days when a certificate is issued with violations, and it may grant extensions. Who does the work is a contract question. A cash buyer can close with the file open.
Where do I find the official rules?
Building Division and Housing Conservation / residential occupancy. Fees and procedures change. Use those pages.
Who should I call at House Sold Easy?
David Dodge or Michael Slane at 636-525-1566. Have the notice with you.