{"id":403696,"date":"2026-09-18T16:26:09","date_gmt":"2026-09-18T16:26:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/403696\/"},"modified":"2026-09-18T16:26:09","modified_gmt":"2026-09-18T16:26:09","slug":"new-registry-helps-jacksonville-renters-scope-out-housing-violations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/403696\/","title":{"rendered":"New registry helps Jacksonville renters scope out housing violations"},"content":{"rendered":"

Jacksonville renters can now search for reported housing code violations before signing a lease under a new online rental registry<\/a> developed by Jacksonville Area Legal Aid.<\/p>\n

The tool, available at\u00a0JaxStableHousing.org<\/a>, allows current and prospective tenants to search rental properties by address and view reported Jacksonville code enforcement issues. The registry uses three years of city code enforcement records and includes a map and search function.<\/p>\n

Jacksonville Area Legal Aid CEO and President Jim Kowalski said the tool is intended to make public records easier for renters to find and understand.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can\u2019t make landlords register for anything in Florida, but we can help bring some transparency to the rental process by helping you learn more about where you are renting or, in particular, where you want to rent,\u201d Kowalski said.<\/p>\n

The registry was unveiled Friday with support from Jacksonville City Council members Jimmy Peluso and Michael Boylan, as well as other housing advocates and officials.<\/p>\n

Peluso said renters frequently ask what they can do when a landlord fails to address serious problems, including unsafe living conditions.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt the very least, we can give people information,\u201d Peluso said. \u201cAnd with that information, we expect them to say, \u2018Oh wow, there were cockroaches here two weeks ago. You know what? I\u2019m going to rent somewhere else.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

The launch comes amid recent reports questioning living conditions at Calloway Cove, where a woman\u2019s ceiling collapsed<\/a> despite her warning to management.<\/p>\n

READ MORE: $20M fund established to spark affordable rental housing in Jacksonville<\/a><\/p>\n

The registry does not force landlords to participate and does not include every issue that could affect a tenant\u2019s housing. Officials said the tool is tied to municipal code enforcement records, meaning problems that are not code violations \u2014 such as a landlord failing to provide a promised amenity \u2014 may not appear.<\/p>\n

The records also do not replace the legal process tenants must follow when a rental property has unsafe conditions. Kowalski said tenants generally cannot simply stop paying rent because of a problem. Under Florida law, tenants must notify their landlord and allow time for repairs while also engaging with city code enforcement.<\/p>\n

Jacksonville Area Legal Aid operates a clinic that helps tenants provide the required notice and can represent them in court, Kowalski said. More information is available at\u00a0JaxLegalAid.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Officials said code enforcement records for a property will remain on the registry but will be marked as closed after an issue is resolved. The goal is to provide information about landlords who respond to violations, as well as those who take too long to address them.<\/p>\n

\u201cGood landlords<\/a> don\u2019t have anything to fear from us,\u201d Kowalski said. \u201cIf you have a landlord that\u2019s being responsive, that has a good local manager that\u2019s turning over a violation \u2014 trees fall through roofs, it happens to be raining today \u2014 so they fix it, we want that to be reflected as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

The registry\u2019s developers said future updates could include more information about property managers and the entities responsible for maintaining rental properties. Officials said it can be difficult to determine who manages a property when ownership is held through multiple limited liability companies.<\/p>\n

The registry also could eventually incorporate additional housing data, but officials said those features are not yet available.<\/p>\n

Former state Sen. Jose Javier Rodriguez, who also spoke at the launch, called the registry a way to help renters identify landlords who repeatedly fail to meet minimum housing standards.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is a simple idea, but it is a powerful one: transparency,\u201d Rodriguez said. \u201cBefore you sign a lease, you should know which landlords are violating code.\u201d<\/p>\n

The launch follows Jacksonville\u2019s eviction diversion program, which is in its second year. Kowalski said more than half of local renters are cost-burdened, meaning they spend more than one-third of their income on rent.<\/p>\n

The registry is part of a broader effort by Jacksonville officials and housing advocates to provide renters with more information in a state where local governments have limited authority to regulate landlords.<\/p>\n

This story was published as part of the\u00a0Northeast Florida News Collaborative<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Jacksonville renters can now search for reported housing code violations before signing a lease under a new online…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":403697,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[116,118,117],"class_list":["post-403696","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-jacksonville","tag-jacksonville","tag-jacksonville-headlines","tag-jacksonville-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/403696","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=403696"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/403696\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/403697"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=403696"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=403696"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=403696"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}