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City of Los Angeles
Notice of Order to Abate. Here is what happens next.
If the city has ordered you to abate a vacant structure, you have a compliance date and fees that grow after it. This page explains the order, the fees, and how we get the property ready for re-inspection.
What the city is asking you to do.
An Order to Abate a vacant structure comes from the Department of Building and Safety. It is sent to the owner of record, and it means an inspector has found the building vacant and open to entry, or a nuisance to the neighbourhood. Vacant, abandoned, foreclosed, probate, redevelopment and fire damaged properties are the usual cases, as are buildings taken over by squatters.
The order lists what has to be done and the compliance date it has to be done by. Read it line by line: it is the final word on what the city wants to see when the inspector comes back.
The work on a typical Los Angeles order includes:
- Removing squatters or homeless occupants, working with LAPD
- Removing debris and dumped trash
- Boarding up and barricading doors and windows
- Removing overgrown vegetation
- Fencing the property
- Posting the required signage
- Removing graffiti
What the order can cost if it sits.
These are the fees on the Department of Building and Safety sheet for orders authorized by the Los Angeles Municipal Code. They recover the city's costs of enforcement, and they are separate from the cost of the work itself.
| Fee | LAMC | When it applies | Amount on the sheet |
|---|---|---|---|
| Code Violation Inspection Fee | 98.0421 | Billed after an Order to Comply is issued. Late payment adds penalties that, with the fee, total more than $1,246. | $356.16 |
| Non-Compliance Fee | 98.0411 | If the order is not complied with within 15 days after the compliance date or an approved extension. Paid late, penalties total more than $2,310. | $660 |
| Investigation Fee | 98.0402 | Only when a permit is required for the work. Double the permit fee. | $400 min. |
| Modification Fee | 98.0403.1 | When a modification is requested. The amount varies and may be more. | $346.62 |
Amounts are as printed on the copy of the LADBS sheet published on this site in January 2023. The city updates its fees, so check the current sheet in Fees & Forms before relying on a figure. Unpaid fees can become a lien on the property.
From the notice to the re-inspection.
One crew handles the whole order, so nothing waits on a second contractor while the compliance date gets closer.
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01
Walk the property
We read the order with you and walk the site, so the quote covers every item the inspector listed.
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02
Make it safe
Occupants are removed with LAPD, then every opening is boarded and the lot is fenced so no one gets back in.
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03
Clear it
Debris, dumped items, overgrown vegetation and graffiti are removed, and the required signs go up.
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04
Document it
Before and after photos of every item on the order, ready for the re-inspection, the lender or the estate.
Eddie Zubia
Did you receive a Notice of Order to Abate a Vacant Structure from the City of Los Angeles? Call me for an assessment before the compliance date.
- 30+ years in LA real estate
- 16 years as a preservation contractor
- Lenders, servicers and LA cities
Go to the city direct.
The Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety issues vacant structure orders, runs code enforcement and publishes the current fee schedule. Its contact details are also printed on your order.
The Los Angeles City Attorney handles nuisance abatement cases that go beyond a building order, such as properties tied to repeated criminal activity.