Rental Licensing

Sugar Land City Council passed an ordinance in November 2007 requiring all owner-occupied residences used as rental properties in the City of Sugar Land to be licensed and inspected by the city. In July 2009, the City Council amended the ordinance to include multifamily rental properties. The City of Sugar Land ’s primary concern is to gain compliance with our regulations relating to the safe occupancy of property and ensure that rental properties are conforming to the same property maintenance standards as owner-occupied homes within the city.

If you own any rental property in Sugar Land, as the property owner you will have to meet a few requirements under the city’s rental program including:

Maintaining your property in compliance with all city codes relating to health, sanitation, and property maintenance
Remedying any violation of city codes found on your property
Not renting your unit to a registered sex offender if the unit is within 2500 feet of an area designated as a child area under Article XI, Chapter 3 of the Sugar Land Code of Ordinances

You will need to submit an application and pay the fee as soon as possible. Applications should be submitted using the Citizen Self Service Portal. If you are unable to locate your license in the portal, please contact us by phone or email.

Owners of unlicensed rental properties can be fined up to $500 a day for each day that the unit is rented without a license.

The Citizen Self Service Portal is now available.

Access the portal at: www.sugarlandtx.gov/CSS
More information on CSS including user guides is available at: www.sugarlandtx.gov/CSSLive

The Citizen Self Service portal moves permits, license, and plan submittal processes to convenient online intake only.

What you need to know

New Applications

In order to be able to start any new application, you will have to register in the new CSS portal.
New submittals (except for liquor licensing) will only be accepted online through the CSS portal. No hardcopy/paper documentation or USB flash drives will be accepted at City Hall or any other location.

Accessing an existing application, permit, or plan

Registration on the CSS portal is required. Please follow the registration process.
Once you have registered, your existing application(s) will need to be linked to your account
- Send a request via email that includes name, email, phone number, company name (if applicable), and permit or plan number(s).
  - For building permits - Permits@sugarlandtx.gov
  - For plan review - PlanReview@sugarlandtx.gov
  - For fire permits – Fire@sugarlandtx.gov
  - For Code Enforcement – codeenforcement@sugarlandtx.gov
  - For Rental Registration - rentalprogram@sugarlandtx.gov
- After your existing application(s) are linked, you will be able to pay invoices, schedule inspections, check the status of permit and plan reviews, resubmit to address review comments and receive your permit through the CSS Portal.

Payment of Invoices/Fees

Invoice payments for any new submittals will only be accepted through the CSS portal.
- American Express, Discover, Mastercard, and Visa credit/debit cards are acceptable forms of payment.

Check your email spam/junk folder!

Please be sure to check your spam or junk email folder for emails regarding your account and submittal.

We want to hear from you!

Share with us your experience with the new Citizen Self Service Portal.

Participate in our customer experience survey!

Getting started

Watch the introductory video

Register

Go to www.sugarlandtx.gov/CSS and click on the "Login or Register" button.

User Guides

Questions

See our knowledge base, FAQs, and contact information.

As soon as the city receives your application, we will conduct an inspection of the exterior and grounds of your property to ensure that it is in compliance with all of the city’s health, sanitation, and property maintenance codes. If no violations are found, the city will issue a license to continue operating your property as a rental unit. If violations are discovered, the city will work with you to establish a schedule for the remediation of the violations and the issuance of a rental license.

In order to avoid any potential disruption of water service, it is imperative that the property owner submit an application for a Rental License prior to a tenant moving in. Tenants will not be able to obtain water service if a Rental License application has not been submitted by the property owner.

The city is committed to working with you to ensure that your property complies with all applicable standards. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact the rental program at rentalprogram@sugarlandtx.gov or 281-275-2170.

Renting Property in Sugar Land?

If you are looking to rent a residential property in the City of Sugar Land, here are a few things you should know:

A rental license is required. You should verify with your landlord that there is a valid license.
An inspection of the property should be conducted prior to your move-in date.
If the property is not licensed as required by City ordinances, you will be unable to activate water service under your name.
Tenants are able to submit complaints to the City of Sugar Land should a property owner fail to maintain the property at any point (ex. plumbing failures, electrical issues, HVAC defects etc.)