The East Lansing City Council will discuss the necessity of all-trade inspections for rental houses and apartments in the city at its work session tonight.

Under city rules, each rental home is given an all-trade inspection every ten years, no matter the condition of the house.

The extensive inspections, which bring in plumbing, building, mechanical, electrical and fire inspectors to check the safety and efficiency of the house, are billed to the building's owner - often at a costly price.

"Most of the houses are in good shape, and I can't personally see why we should put an expense on a landlord that has good inspections every year," Councilmember Bill Sharp said.

Sharp estimated that an all-trade inspection could cost up to $3,000.

With the proposed changes, all-trade inspections only would be administered under certain conditions. Some of these conditions could include a history of poor maintenance and a yearly inspection that produces many small problems or a dangerous health issue. Regular yearly housing inspections will not be affected if the changes go into effect.

"If a place has tenants in it that beat the place up, it may trigger an all-trades," said Howard Asch, director of East Lansing Code Enforcement and Neighborhood Conservation.

The proposed changes come after the City Council commissioned all-trade inspections for 25 random East Lansing rental homes to see if there was a considerable problem in the city, Asch said.

There was very little difference in what was found in regular yearly housing inspections and what was found in all-trade inspections, he said.

"By not having all-trades, the quality of our rental housing will stay high," Asch said.

But Asch said, on many occasions, all-trade inspections are needed for certain rental homes.

"The properties that are at greatest risk are group housing," he said, referring to greek and co-op houses.

East Lansing Zoning Board of Appeals member Fred Bauries said the changes are long overdue. Bauries, a landlord, owns three rental properties.

Bauries said his properties have never had an all-trade inspection since he's owned them.

"It sounds as if where they are headed is where we thought they should be heading years ago," said Bauries, who previously served six years on the East Lansing Planning Commission. "We already have quality inspections."