> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # ‘Bootlegged’ units to be made legal - URL: https://www.smdp.com/bootlegged-units-to-be-made-legal/ - Published: 2003-12-20T16:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-23T03:21:12.000Z - Author: Guest Author - Tags: Real Estate & Housing, Santa Monica, #archive-import *Landlords must pay $8K to register each unit* *By Daily Press staff* An estimated 1,000 illegal housing units in Santa Monica now can be made legal under a new law adopted by the City Council this week. The law will bring in close to $8 million for City Hall, which will charge the property owners various fees to make the buildings meet code. However, officials said they will spend that money inspecting and permitting the units, many of which haven’t been official for 20 years or longer. The new law solves an “untenable” situation for property owners and City Hall, according to a document prepared by building department head Tim McCormick, City Attorney Marsha Moutrie and Barry Rosenbaum, a land use attorney in City Hall. Because people live in the units and are protected by rent control, the units can’t be demolished, according to the rent control charter. But they’re also illegal, according to City Hall’s codes. The new law allows property owners to register the units if they are deemed safe by inspectors. A smaller portion of the units are illegal for health and safety reasons. Officials said the majority of those units, which often lack heat and hot water, have bad wiring, a compromised water supply, improper waste and gas connections, or lack of proper exits, can be brought up to code. Those that can’t be fixed might be taken off the market. For years, bootlegged units came to the attention of City Hall only as complaints that trickled in. It wasn’t until records from the Rent Control Board, which oversees some 40,000 units, were compared to City Hall documents, showing officials how many units are not properly permitted. The estimated 1,000 bootlegged units are located on about 750 properties throughout Santa Monica. Under the new law, which is in effect for only 60 days as a temporary measure so officials can gauge its effectiveness, the landlord of any unit that was registered with the rent board before April 23, 2003, can permit their unit as “legal non-conforming,” which means the property is allowed to exist despite that it doesn’t meet current regulations. The cutoff date was made in April because that is when the City Council first discussed the law and therefore landlords who have created bootlegs since then would not be able to take advantage of the law. — John Wood Bringing it up to code... The estimated cost for a landlord to permit a bootlegged unit: Water meter — $3,405 Plan check — $2,269 Wastewater — $991 Building permit — $800 *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on December 20, 2003.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/122003.pdf?ref=smdp.com)