Title 47a — Title 47a: Landlord and Tenant

Sec. 47a-50. Definitions. The following terms, when used in this chapter, are defined as follows: (1) A “tenement house” means any house or building, or portion thereof, which is rented, leased or hired out to be occupied, or is arranged or designed to be occupied, or is occupied…

Sec. 47a-51. (Formerly Sec. 19-343). Sanitary regulations. (a) Each tenement, lodging or boarding house, and each part thereof, shall be kept clean and free from any accumulation of dirt, filth, garbage or other matter, in or on the house or part thereof, or in the yards, courts,…

Sec. 47a-52. (Formerly Sec. 19-88). Abatement of conditions in rented dwelling other than tenement house constituting danger to life or health. (a) As used in this section, “rented dwelling” means any structure or portion thereof which is rented, leased, or hired out to be occupi…

Sec. 47a-53. (Formerly Sec. 19-344). Orders of enforcement agency. Municipal lien for expenses in executing order. (a) Whenever any tenement, lodging or boarding house or any building, structure, excavation, business pursuit, matter or thing in or about such house or the lot on w…

Sec. 47a-54. (Formerly Sec. 19-345). Communicable diseases; unfit for habitation; order to vacate. (a) Whenever it is certified by the board of health or other enforcing agency, that a tenement, lodging or boarding house, or any part thereof, is infected with communicable disease…

Sec. 47a-54a. (Formerly Sec. 19-346). Overcrowding in tenement and lodging houses. If a room in a tenement, lodging or boarding house is overcrowded, the board of health or other enforcing agency may order the number of persons sleeping or living in such room to be so reduced tha…

Sec. 47a-54b. Water in tenement and lodging houses. Water in sufficient quantity shall be provided on each floor, occupied by one or more families, in each tenement house which is located on premises abutting on a street or alley in which pipes for the distribution of water to th…

Sec. 47a-54c. Toilets and bathrooms. (a) Each building used as a tenement, lodging or boarding house shall be furnished with adequate and suitable privy vaults or water closets. There shall be at least one such water closet or vault for each two dwelling units or apartments of tw…

Sec. 47a-54d. Public halls. (a) Dark or poorly ventilated public halls in tenement, lodging or boarding houses shall be remedied in such manner as is deemed practicable and ordered by the board of health or enforcing agency. (b) The owner of each tenement house shall provide for …

Sec. 47a-54e. Bedrooms. A room in a tenement, lodging or boarding house shall not be used as a sleeping room unless it has an outside window or is provided with a sash window of at least eight square feet opening into an adjoining room, in the same apartment, having an outside wi…

Sec. 47a-54f. Paint. (a) In each tenement, lodging or boarding house the walls of any court, shaft, hall or room shall be whitewashed or painted a light color whenever, in the opinion of the board of health or enforcing agency, such whitewashing or painting is needed for the bett…

Sec. 47a-55. (Formerly Sec. 19-347). Enforcement. Penalties. (a) The board of health of each town, city or borough shall enforce the provisions of this part, and the board of health is given authority for such purpose. Any such town, city or borough may by ordinance duly adopted …

Sec. 47a-56. (Formerly Sec. 19-347a). Passage of ordinance for abatement of nuisances. Appointment of authority. The legislative body of any city, town or borough may by ordinance adopt the provisions of sections 47a-56 to 47a-56i, inclusive, and appoint a person or committee, kn…

Sec. 47a-56a. (Formerly Sec. 19-347b). Appointment of receiver of rents: Application. Whenever any order issued under the provisions of section 47a-53 or section 47a-55, or under the provisions of any municipal charter or special act or ordinance relating to the abatement of nuis…

Sec. 47a-56b. Appointment of receiver of rents: Service. (a) Such rule to show cause shall be returnable not less than five days after service is completed. (b) The rule to show cause shall provide for personal service of a copy thereof and the application on which it is based on…

Sec. 47a-56c. Appointment of receiver of rents: Determination by court. (a) On the return of said rule to show cause, its determination shall have precedence over every other business of the civil docket of the Superior Court. (b) If the court finds that the facts stated in such …

Sec. 47a-56d. (Formerly Sec. 19-347c). Receiver: Bond required. Powers and duties. (a) The receiver's appointment shall not be effective until the receiver furnishes a bond, with sufficient surety, in an amount to be determined by the court, and until the receiver provides eviden…

Sec. 47a-56e. (Formerly Sec. 19-347d). Liability of owner. Nothing in sections 47a-56 to 47a-56i, inclusive, shall be deemed to relieve the owner of such property of any civil or criminal liability incurred or any duty imposed by reason of acts or omissions of the owner prior to …

Sec. 47a-56f. (Formerly Sec. 19-347e). Payment of expenses. Liability of receiver. Assistance of municipal personnel. Costs and attorney's fees. (a) The receiver shall be entitled to his necessary expenses and to a reasonable fee, to be determined by the court. (b) The receiver s…

Sec. 47a-56g. (Formerly Sec. 19-347f). Discharge of receiver. The receiver shall be discharged upon rendering a complete accounting to the court when such condition has been removed and the cost thereof and all other costs authorized by sections 47a-56 to 47a-56i, inclusive, have…

Sec. 47a-56h. (Formerly Sec. 19-347g). Rights of mortgagee or lienor remedying nuisance and paying expenses. Any mortgagee or lienor who, at his expense, remedies or removes the nuisance to the satisfaction of the court shall have and be entitled to enforce a lien equivalent to t…

Sec. 47a-56i. (Formerly Sec. 19-347h). Housing Receivership Revolving Fund. Source of funds for expenses of a receiver in remedying certain tenement conditions. (a) The expenses incurred by a receiver in removing or remedying a condition pursuant to the provisions of sections 47a…

Sec. 47a-56j. (Formerly Sec. 19-347i). State financial assistance for rent receivership programs. The state, acting by and in the discretion of the Commissioner of Housing, may enter into a contract with a municipality for state financial assistance in an amount determined by the…

Sec. 47a-56k. Authorization of state bonds for purposes of the Housing Receivership Revolving Fund. (a) The State Bond Commission shall have power, in accordance with the provisions of this section, from time to time to authorize the issuance of bonds of the state in one or more …

Sec. 47a-57. (Formerly Sec. 19-347r). Certificate of occupancy required for lawful occupation. Penalty for allowing occupancy without certificate. (a) An apartment or dwelling unit in any structure containing three or more housing units in any municipality which adopts the provis…

Sec. 47a-58. (Formerly Sec. 19-347s). Notice of violation. Penalty. Injunctive relief. Municipal lien for unpaid penalty. (a) Any enforcing agency may issue a notice of violation to any person who violates any provision of this chapter or a provision of a local housing code. If a…

Sec. 47a-59. (Formerly Sec. 19-347t). Enforcement actions. Defenses. (a) The enforcing agency may bring an action in the Superior Court for the recovery of civil penalties, together with costs and disbursements. (b) It shall be a complete defense to any action brought pursuant to…

Sec. 47a-60. (Formerly Sec. 19-347u). Stay of penalty. Violation contested by owner. (a) In any action for penalties under sections 47a-53, 47a-55 and 47a-58 to 47a-61, inclusive, the defendant may move at any time before the trial of the case for an order to stay the further acc…

Sec. 47a-61. (Formerly Sec. 19-347v). Precedence in trial order. Any action for recovery of civil penalties under the provisions of sections 47a-53, 47a-55 and 47a-58 to 47a-61, inclusive, shall have precedence over all others in respect to order of trial, except actions brought …

Secs. 47a-62 to 47a-67. Reserved for future use.