JACKSON — New state legislation has prompted the Township Council to schedule the introduction of an ordinance on July 8 that will provide more options in dealing with abandoned and foreclosed properties.
The state legislation, which will go into effect on July 14, states that if a bank sends a homeowner a notice of foreclosure, it must also send a notice to the municipal clerk.
Township Attorney Jean Cipriani said the legislation will give Jackson officials the ability to work more directly with banks.
“We have had a lot of trouble with abandoned properties, not just in Jackson, but throughout the state, and one of the difficulties has been that the banks will begin foreclosure proceedings but will not complete them,” Cipriani said. “So without the change in title, we have not been able to go after the banks as effectively as we would have liked.”
Generally, abandoned or foreclosed properties are owned by banks that take on the properties after homeowners can no longer pay their mortgage or loan or choose not to make the payments.
In addition to the notice requirement, banks will have to provide municipalities with notice of any currently foreclosed properties within 60 days.
“At that point, if there are certain standards met regarding the property being vacant and it not being in accordance with the property maintenance code, then notice can be served on the bank and they are given 30 days to [address the issue],” Cipriani said.
If the bank fails to address the issues that have been noted by the municipality regarding the property, officials could take the bank to municipal court, she said.
If the matter goes that far, the municipality can also move ahead with conducting any maintenance or repair work that is needed to bring an abandoned property up to code.
In many cases, officials are prohibited from authorizing the performance of maintenance work on abandoned properties because the municipality does not own the land.
In some cases where the situation at a vacant property poses a health or safety hazard (i.e., excessively high grass blocking motorists’ view of a road), a municipality may have work performed and then place a property tax lien on the land. The tax lien must be paid before the property can be sold.
Any costs incurred by the municipality, according to officials, could be placed as a lien against the property and the bank.
According to Cipriani, taking a bank to municipal court would be more effective against banks holding the title to any foreclosed or abandoned properties, as opposed to using the same tactic against cashstrapped homeowners.
“The reason why that is often ineffective [against homeowners] and we really end up relying on the lien is because the people who cannot pay their mortgage do not have money, so we cannot get money from them,” Cipriani said. “That is probably different with the banks.”
The ordinance that is expected to be introduced on July 8 does not represent the first time the council has begun looking to address vacant and abandoned properties.
Earlier this year, officials outlined what they said were the best practices for the township to take when it came to vacant, deteriorating properties.
First, any abandoned commercial or residential property would need to be registered with the municipality. The registration could include a fee.
The second option would involve the creation of a list of all vacant and abandoned properties. The list would be generated by the township.
Only properties that fit certain criteria would end up on the list.
In both instances, Cipriani said, the title owner of an abandoned property would be more inclined to regularly maintain the property and to look for a potential buyer.
Municipal officials in Howell and Plumsted, among other towns, have taken similar steps to address the issue through changes in local laws.
Business Administrator Helene Schlegel said taking such measures in Jackson was imperative in order to make sure the municipality was financially covered in any actions it takes against abandoned, foreclosed or vacant properties.
“Any new legislation that comes out, we need to take it to the fullest because we cannot expend taxpayer money on private property without recouping those monies. I think this is a move in the right direction and, hopefully, we will get more action from the Legislature,” Schlegel said.