housing focus
HOUSING FOCUS Offices of Corporation Counsel & Code Enforcement City Council Meeting – April 26, 2018
RENTAL REGISTRY Protecting and Preserving Auburn’s Rental Housing Stock
Overview • Approximately 51% of the dwellings in the City are one,
two or multi-unit rentals • While many owners of rental property are responsive in
emergency situations and diligent in complying with the Municipal Code, others are not.
Consequences of Inaction • Deterioration of rental housing stock • Emergency situations escalate
What Does the Rental Registry Require? • Owners of single family, two family or multi-unit dwellings
must register each property they own. • Owners must supply emergency contact information, or if
out-of-area, must utilize a property manager.
Listed as Owner-Occupied, Not Registered
Registry Requirements, Continued • Corporate Owners must provide utilize property manager
as well. • Name and contact information for the insurance company
which holds the liability and property damage policy on the property and associated policy number.
Registry Requirements, Continued • Owner must be current on all taxes and water bills for the
property being registered. • Have no open cases with the Office of Code Enforcement
on the property being registered. • Allow for an exterior inspection and make any necessary
repairs so that the property registered will pass an inspection conducted by employees of the Office of Code Enforcement.
Registry Administration • Owner must register every property owned • Registration valid for two years • $150 Administration and Processing fee • Fee may be waived if Owner is “Compliant Owner”
Registry Administration, Cont. • To better assist ease of
administration and compliance registration requirements are staggered every other year, based on property’s location within the City • Think Streamline Map
Registry Administration, Cont. • Two quadrants would be required to register odd years,
two in even years • Registration staggered within each year • Registration Certificates would issue six months after
registration window for the quadrant opened.
Enforcement Provisions • Fine of up to $500 for each and every day a violation
persists • Injunctive relief available to compel compliance
Compliant Landlord • Recognition that many if not most of the landlords in the
City want to do the right thing • If an Owner qualifies as a Compliant Landlord, the $150
Application and Processing fee will be waived. • City may publish a list of Compliant Landlords
Compliant Landlord, Cont. • To be deemed a Compliant Landlord an owner must on
all properties owned:
• Be up to date on Tax and Water bills, • Have no outstanding code violations, • Consent to an interior inspection of the property being registered.
Rental Registry Conclusion • Canandaigua, Binghamton, Jamestown, Ithaca,
Schenectady and Syracuse are among the Upstate NY Cities with Rental Registries • Not a cure-all for a city’s housing issues, but another tool
in our municipal toolbox.
VACANT & ZOMBIE PROPERTIES
LISC Grant: Four Main Initiatives 1.
Connect homeowners at risk of foreclosure to foreclosure prevention services and foreclosure counseling
2.
Develop a relationship with banks by hosting a bank summit
3.
Increase capacity within the City Code Enforcement Office with the addition of a Code Enforcement Officer to focus on vacant and zombie properties
4.
Increase capacity within the City Corporation Counsel’s Office specific to vacant and zombie properties
Foreclosure Prevention Homsite & Home HeadQuarters Foreclosure Prevention Program • Step 1: Understanding & Preventing Foreclosure Workshop • Step 2: Foreclosure Prevention Counseling
Foreclosure Prevention
Zombie Property Overview • The foreclosure process in NYS takes about 3 years. • Many homeowners walk away from property before
process is complete. • Vacant and Abandoned homes = blight on neighborhood.
Unsanitary
Unsightly
Unsafe
RPAPL §1310 • Requires Mortgage Lenders/Servicers to register pre-
foreclosure properties which become vacant and abandoned with the NYS Department of Financial Services • Authorizes DFS to provide a list of properties to a
municipality
• Currently 70 properties on the Department of Financial
Services (DFS) promulgated “Zombie” List • Properties get added to list when the foreclosure process is
initiated • Properties get taken off the list when the bank takes the property
through foreclosure.
RPAPL§1308 • Enforcement Provision • Imposes a duty to maintain pre-foreclosure vacant and
abandoned properties. • Allows for a municipality to sue mortgage
lenders/servicers who fail to maintain property and impose a penalty of up to $500 for each day the violation persists.
Top Down Effect • Zombie Property Laws simply being in effect seem to
have put pressure on servicers/lenders to better maintain properties. • 10 properties remediated after Codes has issued violations directly
to lender/servicer
25 Peacock St
Assistance From DFS • RPAPL § 1308 requires that a municipality provide notice
of intent to file a suit to DFS and the Lender/Servicer as a precondition of filing. • Upon receipt of notice, DFS transmits photos and
violations regarding the property to the lender servicer • 5 properties have been remediated post-notice filing
Doing it Ourselves • Five §1308 lawsuits have been filed since September. • Two settled, each with a civil penalty of $2,000 and prompt
remediation. • Three default judgments of $15,000 each.
What’s Next?
NYS UNIFORM FIRE PREVENTION & BUILDING CODE
NYS Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code • 2015 Edition • International Residential, Building, Plumbing, Mechanical, Fuel
Gas, Fire, Property Maintenance, Existing Building Codes
• 2017 Uniform Code Supplement • Local Law Providing for the Administration and
Enforcement of the NYS Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code
ORDINANCE UPDATES
Certificate of Occupancy • Section 125-27, Multiple Dwellings and Mixed Uses • Require a Certificate of Occupancy for all two unit, three
unit and all mixed commercial / residential uses •
Owner Occupied two-unit properties currently exempt
Vacant Building Registry •
Section 183, Vacant Building Registry
•
Close loophole on change of ownership
3 Hoffman St
In Summary • City of Auburn is uniquely positioned to succeed in the
fight against blight. • Proposed Rental Registry, Zombie Property Laws and Vacant
Building Registry, are complementary and each address a stage in a property’s decline where we can intervene to preserve or rehabilitate housing stock and neighborhoods.
RENTAL REGISTRY Protecting and Preserving Auburn’s Rental Housing Stock
Overview • Approximately 51% of the dwellings in the City are one,
two or multi-unit rentals • While many owners of rental property are responsive in
emergency situations and diligent in complying with the Municipal Code, others are not.
Consequences of Inaction • Deterioration of rental housing stock • Emergency situations escalate
What Does the Rental Registry Require? • Owners of single family, two family or multi-unit dwellings
must register each property they own. • Owners must supply emergency contact information, or if
out-of-area, must utilize a property manager.
Listed as Owner-Occupied, Not Registered
Registry Requirements, Continued • Corporate Owners must provide utilize property manager
as well. • Name and contact information for the insurance company
which holds the liability and property damage policy on the property and associated policy number.
Registry Requirements, Continued • Owner must be current on all taxes and water bills for the
property being registered. • Have no open cases with the Office of Code Enforcement
on the property being registered. • Allow for an exterior inspection and make any necessary
repairs so that the property registered will pass an inspection conducted by employees of the Office of Code Enforcement.
Registry Administration • Owner must register every property owned • Registration valid for two years • $150 Administration and Processing fee • Fee may be waived if Owner is “Compliant Owner”
Registry Administration, Cont. • To better assist ease of
administration and compliance registration requirements are staggered every other year, based on property’s location within the City • Think Streamline Map
Registry Administration, Cont. • Two quadrants would be required to register odd years,
two in even years • Registration staggered within each year • Registration Certificates would issue six months after
registration window for the quadrant opened.
Enforcement Provisions • Fine of up to $500 for each and every day a violation
persists • Injunctive relief available to compel compliance
Compliant Landlord • Recognition that many if not most of the landlords in the
City want to do the right thing • If an Owner qualifies as a Compliant Landlord, the $150
Application and Processing fee will be waived. • City may publish a list of Compliant Landlords
Compliant Landlord, Cont. • To be deemed a Compliant Landlord an owner must on
all properties owned:
• Be up to date on Tax and Water bills, • Have no outstanding code violations, • Consent to an interior inspection of the property being registered.
Rental Registry Conclusion • Canandaigua, Binghamton, Jamestown, Ithaca,
Schenectady and Syracuse are among the Upstate NY Cities with Rental Registries • Not a cure-all for a city’s housing issues, but another tool
in our municipal toolbox.
VACANT & ZOMBIE PROPERTIES
LISC Grant: Four Main Initiatives 1.
Connect homeowners at risk of foreclosure to foreclosure prevention services and foreclosure counseling
2.
Develop a relationship with banks by hosting a bank summit
3.
Increase capacity within the City Code Enforcement Office with the addition of a Code Enforcement Officer to focus on vacant and zombie properties
4.
Increase capacity within the City Corporation Counsel’s Office specific to vacant and zombie properties
Foreclosure Prevention Homsite & Home HeadQuarters Foreclosure Prevention Program • Step 1: Understanding & Preventing Foreclosure Workshop • Step 2: Foreclosure Prevention Counseling
Foreclosure Prevention
Zombie Property Overview • The foreclosure process in NYS takes about 3 years. • Many homeowners walk away from property before
process is complete. • Vacant and Abandoned homes = blight on neighborhood.
Unsanitary
Unsightly
Unsafe
RPAPL §1310 • Requires Mortgage Lenders/Servicers to register pre-
foreclosure properties which become vacant and abandoned with the NYS Department of Financial Services • Authorizes DFS to provide a list of properties to a
municipality
• Currently 70 properties on the Department of Financial
Services (DFS) promulgated “Zombie” List • Properties get added to list when the foreclosure process is
initiated • Properties get taken off the list when the bank takes the property
through foreclosure.
RPAPL§1308 • Enforcement Provision • Imposes a duty to maintain pre-foreclosure vacant and
abandoned properties. • Allows for a municipality to sue mortgage
lenders/servicers who fail to maintain property and impose a penalty of up to $500 for each day the violation persists.
Top Down Effect • Zombie Property Laws simply being in effect seem to
have put pressure on servicers/lenders to better maintain properties. • 10 properties remediated after Codes has issued violations directly
to lender/servicer
25 Peacock St
Assistance From DFS • RPAPL § 1308 requires that a municipality provide notice
of intent to file a suit to DFS and the Lender/Servicer as a precondition of filing. • Upon receipt of notice, DFS transmits photos and
violations regarding the property to the lender servicer • 5 properties have been remediated post-notice filing
Doing it Ourselves • Five §1308 lawsuits have been filed since September. • Two settled, each with a civil penalty of $2,000 and prompt
remediation. • Three default judgments of $15,000 each.
What’s Next?
NYS UNIFORM FIRE PREVENTION & BUILDING CODE
NYS Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code • 2015 Edition • International Residential, Building, Plumbing, Mechanical, Fuel
Gas, Fire, Property Maintenance, Existing Building Codes
• 2017 Uniform Code Supplement • Local Law Providing for the Administration and
Enforcement of the NYS Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code
ORDINANCE UPDATES
Certificate of Occupancy • Section 125-27, Multiple Dwellings and Mixed Uses • Require a Certificate of Occupancy for all two unit, three
unit and all mixed commercial / residential uses •
Owner Occupied two-unit properties currently exempt
Vacant Building Registry •
Section 183, Vacant Building Registry
•
Close loophole on change of ownership
3 Hoffman St
In Summary • City of Auburn is uniquely positioned to succeed in the
fight against blight. • Proposed Rental Registry, Zombie Property Laws and Vacant
Building Registry, are complementary and each address a stage in a property’s decline where we can intervene to preserve or rehabilitate housing stock and neighborhoods.
