In This Section
Contact City of Aurora Customer Service at 630-256-INFO (4636) or go to the Customer Service Online Requests page to complete a request for service online. To assist our staff in completing a proper investigation, it is important to report accurate information such as an exact address, a clear description of what is wrong with the property, and any other important details you think our staff should know. Customer Service may need your name and contact information to get additional details and to properly follow up on the issue. Your name and contact information is kept confidential.
The Property Maintenance Code gives the City the ability to expeditiously remove junk and trash from these types of properties. There is a general notice that appears once a year in The Beacon-News informing owners and those in control of these vacant properties that if they fail to keep the premises clean of junk and trash, the City reserves the right to hire a hauling contractor who will clean the premises. The owner is then billed for this cost and if it is not paid, a lien may be placed against the property. The property can be inspected within 24 hours to verify the presence of junk and trash and the clean-up may occur as soon as three days after the violation is cited.
The Property Maintenance Code also gives the City the ability to expeditiously cut grass and weeds that exceed 8 inches in height at such properties. The process is much the same as that noted above. The tall grass and weeds must be verified by a site inspection.
The violations must first be verified by a field inspection. The Division of Property Standards makes every effort to actually speak to the owner of the property at the time of the inspection. Any violations are then made part of a formal violation notice, which is then mailed to the owner. Except in cases of severe life/safety violations, lack of proper heat, accumulations of junk and trash and similar instances, the City does not instantaneously require that the repairs be made. A time frame is developed that recognizes the amount of work to be completed, the effects of the weather, etc.
Re-inspections are completed to assure that the work is being completed in the agreed upon manner. Many times work on the interior is being completed until the proper weather arrives for the completion of exterior work such as scraping and painting.
Buildings are posted unfit due to serious violations of the Property Maintenance Code. Such violations may include no running water, no heat source during the winter, non-functioning toilets, excessive accumulations of filth and trash, and other severe circumstances that endanger the life, safety, or health of the occupants. The City will cite the owner of the building directing that the necessary repairs be made. To protect the safety and health of the occupants, the City may require that the occupants leave the building if the necessary repairs or actions are not taken. The City Inspector cannot physically remove the occupants. This may only be done by court order after the owner refuses to make the repairs and the occupants have not moved out.
The City of Aurora enforces limits on seasonal decorations, garage sales and more. For more information, download the Good Neighbor Guide (PDF).
Fill out a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request and email it to csdivision@aurora-il.org. Our Legal Department will contact you with the requested information.
Trash and recycling totes must be places in an area not visible from the public right-of-way. Behind your home, in a garage, or behind some kind of screening (such as a fence or very dense shrubs), are all acceptable places to store your trash and recycling totes.
All homes that are billed for water service in the City of Aurora are already included in the trash and recycling collection program. For more information on the trash and recycling program call the City’s contracted waste hauler, Groot Services, at 630-892-9294, or go to their website: Groot Services
Yes, all non-owner-occupied properties must be registered. Registration fees start at $90 per property and vary based on the number of rental units per property.
View a copy of the full fee schedule(PDF, 619KB).
All licenses renew on August 31 of each year.
All licenses renew on August 31 of each year. The rental licensing year runs from September 1 through August 31 of the following year, not on a calendar year. All renewal notices require a response.
Rental properties are inspected annually each licensing year. A waiver good for one to two years may be issued to properties of exceptional quality during inspections. If a property does not pass on the first inspection, it may be subject to further re-inspections along with applicable re-inspection fees and fines.
Landlords and agents need only attend the landlord training once. However, it is recommended that they attend the class every couple years so that they stay up-to-date on the Rental Licensing Program and other legal matters pertaining to owning rental properties.
If you have sold your property and still received a renewal form, please call the Property Standards office at 630-256-3770 to update your information.
Yes. Any property not occupied by the legal owner must be registered with the Property Standards Division. Once the property is registered, you will receive a renewal form annually to verify the status of the property. Criminal background checks must be run on all tenants 18 years or older, regardless of relationship to the property owner.
No. You are only required to run a criminal background check each time you have a new tenant 18 years or older. However, you are required to show proof of this background check at each inspection. Property Standards does not maintain any background check information because of the confidential nature of such information. Additionally, you are required to provide a City of Aurora Lease Addendum with your registration/renewal & at the time of inspection signed by all tenants 18 and older.
Download the New Lease Addendum(PDF, 409KB).
At the inspection, you are only required to show proof that a background inspection has been conducted on all tenants aged 18 or older. You do not need to show the actual background check. The background check must be a statewide or nationwide criminal background check.
An appointment letter with the date and time of the inspection will be sent by mail. If an agent is assigned, the appointment letter will be sent directly to the agent, not the owner.
A $150 no-show fee applies to missed initial inspections. Contact your inspector, or the Property Standards office at 630-256-3770, to reschedule the inspection as soon as possible. The no-show fee increases with each missed inspection. A second no-show is $250 and a third no-show is $500.
Contact the inspector listed on the appointment letter as soon as possible. Appointments must be rescheduled at least 48 hours in advance to avoid a fee.
The inspector will mail a violation notice by mail, enumerating each violation that will need to be correction before the re-inspection date. Re-inspection fees are: - First re-inspection: $80 - Second re-inspection: $150 - Third re-inspection: $250 - Fourth re-inspection: $500
Pass your inspection the first time. Download the pre-inspection checklist(PDF, 66KB).
Evictions are handled through the sheriff’s department of the county in which the property is located. For more information, please check out the Crime Free Multi-Housing Manual.(PDF, 254KB)