Students preparing to sign a lease for next year can check on whether their potential rental property has been certified by the city. Or, once students are moved into their rental property, they can request a rental inspection if they believe a problem exists with the residence.

Jeff Finley, city planner, said Charleston has had an inspection program for 18 years and last year added a voluntary program for landlords to get their rental properties inspected and certified by the city.

So far, 100 to 120 units have had this voluntary inspection and are placed on a list students can obtain by contacting Charleston City Hall at 345-5650.

No matter what the problem may be, it is important to get it checked out to make sure things are fine, Finley said.

“Don’t take anything as too trivial,” he said.

It is more important to get a house or apartment checked out and make sure nothing is wrong than having a potentially dangerous problem further down the road, Finley said.

Inspectors use the International Property Maintenance Code, which sets minimum standards for any aspect of a building. Students can make a call about a specific issue of the property, but inspectors will check everything.

Students are encouraged to contact landlords first, but if they don’t get anywhere, Finley said they could call 345-6123 or 345-8461 with their name, address and a description of the problem. Inspectors will be at the site within 24 hours, Finley said, and can arrive within a few minutes if the problem is life-threatening.

There is no charge for the inspection, Finley said.

The inspections examine every aspect of the building but are fairly brief. All aspects of the building are checked, as worse problems are often found.

“It doesn’t take a long time to get through,” Finley said.

A big house may take about 45 minutes, he said.

Following inspection, action will be taken to correct any problems.

“We make contact with the landlord,” Finley said.

Depending on the results, officials may send a certified letter listing violations and giving a time limit for fixing them. If the problem is life threatening, they will contact the landlord by phone or in person.

If the problem is not life-threatening, a time limit for repairs is set and a number of actions can be taken if the work is not done by the deadline.

If progress is made, but the repair is not finished, the landlord may get more time, Finley said. If nothing is done, a complaint will be signed and the landlord taken to court, asking the landlord be fined every day the problem is not corrected.

Sometimes, an inspector will find a problem so bad city officials will find the tenants another place to live, Finley said. However, that problem rarely happens.

“We never throw anybody out on the street,” Finley said.