Beijing police launch crackdown on poor quality rental homes

Police in Beijing's Xicheng district have launched a crackdown regarding rental houses since April, handling 544 cases in an effort to provide a safe living environment for residents and maintain public order in the capital.

As a part of the city's safe action, the crackdown focused on cleaning up potential safety hazards in rental apartments, with tightened inspections on self-built buildings and rental courtyards at the same time, according to the public security department in the district.

It added that violators who did not report room information, implement safety responsibilities, or rectify safety problems promptly have all been given administrative punishments following the law.

In an inspection in May, for example, an apartment owner surnamed Wang in the district's Xizhimen area was fined after being discovered to have failed to register tenants' personal information as required by law.

To strengthen the management of rental housing and ensure a safe living environment in the district, the department said that the effort to inspect rental apartments will be continued, welcoming the public to report violation clues.