new jersey abandoned property list

The rationale for this is that the full amount of taxes, interest and penalties on some properties may be so large relative to the cost of rehabilitation and the subsequent value of the property that by adding those costs to the cost of rehabilitation, the financial feasibility of the proposed reuse may be jeopardized. In the absence of a municipal abandoned property list, the public officer is required to provide a tax lien holder with a certification that the property meets the abandoned property criteria of the Act for purposes of this section. If it will cost more to fix up an abandoned house than it will be worth after rehabilitation, incentives are likely to be needed to motivate families to invest their own money in the job. In addition to the right to accelerate the foreclosure, the tax lien holder also has the right, from the date that she purchased the tax sale certificate, to enter the property after written notice by certified mail to the owner, in order to make repairs or remedy harmful conditions (N.J.S.A. While this system can be a freestanding one, it can benefit from being integrated with a larger property information system, as discussed above on page ___. The communitys leadership must be willing to make an extended commitment to the strategy, in order to ensure that it leads to tangible and significant results. Having a regular schedule for adding properties to the list enables the public officer to be responsive to citizen requests, while avoiding placing undue burdens on that official. -Read Full Disclaimer. If resources do not permit a citywide inventory, but if the city contains neighborhoods that are either (a) known to have serious abandoned property problems; and/or (b) are the focus of particular neighborhood revitalization efforts, an inventory can focus on those neighborhoods. The ability to see abandoned properties in their spatial relationship to other properties such as proposed housing developments, new school or community facility sites, etc. One is the cost of the repairs, and whether they can be justified by the present or future value of the property. In order to be reinstated, the owner must: Demonstrate that it will carry out any remaining features of the receivers plan. (The length of time from the point an entity decides to bring an action for possession, and notifies the owner, until the order is likely to be issued, will vary widely, depending largely on whether the owner, and/or a lienholder, chooses to contest the action by proposing to carry out the rehabilitation themselves. 27 Termination of receivership The court may terminate the receivership on request of a party in interest if it finds that any of the following conditions apply: (a) the conditions have been corrected and the purposes of the receivership fulfilled; (b) a mortgagee or lienholder has petitioned for termination, and provide assurances that it will carry out the purposes of the receivership; (c) a new entity has taken title to the building as a result of foreclosure or grant of a deed in lieu of foreclosure, and provides assurances that it will carry out the purposes of the receivership; (d) the building has been sold and the proceeds distributed as provided in the act; (e) the receiver has been unable to carry out the plan, or otherwise cannot carry out the purposes of the receivership. The court must approve the terms of sale, which must be at fair market value, and, if the property is sold to a third party, the court must find that the sale will further the effective and timely rehabilitation and reuse of the property. The buyer should be an entity that is qualified to own and operate the property consistent with the reuse plan previously approved by the court. 54:5-19, take them off the regular tax sale and hold a special tax sale for those properties. The public officer must also file a copy of the notice with the county clerk or register of deeds and mortgages, as applicable, which has the effect of a filing of a notice of lis pendens. Step 5: If the owner fails to abate the nuisance in timely fashion, the public officer must determine whether to act; and if so, what action to take. Where properties are connected to one another, as in the case of row houses, abandoned properties often cause direct physical damage to attached occupied homes. The court may also impose additional requirements to protect the interests of the tenants and the residents of the neighborhood (N.J.S.A.2A:42-137 and 138). Nothing in the statutory provisions regarding possession affects the ability of local government to simultaneously pursue tax foreclosure of the property if the owner fails to make timely payment. The following pages describe the procedure required by the act step by step: Step 1: The appraiser must determine the full cost, including not only construction and site remediation, where necessary, but all relevant soft costs such as fees, permits, architectural or engineering costs, legal expenses and marketing expenses either (a) to rehabilitate the property or (b) to demolish the property and construct a new building on the site, under existing planning and zoning regulations (N.J.S.A. If the owner fails to carry out any step in the approved plan, the public officer or the entity may apply to the court to have the bond forfeit and possession transferred to the entity with authority to use the bond proceeds for the rehabilitation of the building. If the decision is to remove the property from the abandoned property list, the property should be promptly removed from the list. The order must specify: The actions that the owner must take to abate the nuisance. The standard two year waiting period for foreclosure by a third party is eliminated with respect to abandoned properties. Removing a property from the abandoned property list Once a property has been placed on the list, the owner can get the property removed from the list by remedying the conditions that led it to being placed on the list. As noted above, the list does not have to include every abandoned property in the municipality. To facilitate neighborhood revitalization planning. The Department is charged with: Establishing a registry of qualified receivers, and defining the qualifications for listing on the registry. Modern computer systems make possible the creation of property information systems, which enable information on changes in property status abandonment, utility shut-offs, tax liens, code violation notices, etc. In reviewing the owner's plan, the court is likely to be guided by the statement provided by the entity as a part of its Notice of Completion (see Step 11 above). These sections do not represent a single cohesive and internally consistent statute, but rather a series of additions grafted onto a statute initially enacted in 1942. While the law does not provide a specific timeframe for the owner to act, it calls for the judge to impose specific time frames on the owner, in order to ensure the expeditious rehabilitation of the property (N.J.S.A.55:19-97(c)). Other governmental liens. The abandoned property list shall [PICK ONE] (a) apply to the [name of municipality] as a whole; (b) apply only to the following area [or areas] as set forth below: [IF ABANDONED PROPERTY LIST IS TO COVER ONLY PART OF MUNICIPALITY, INSERT HERE DEFINITION OR DESCRIPTION OF AREA OR AREAS TO BE INCLUDED] NOTE to Sec. Find a vaccine appointment near you and learn more about vaccine scheduling assistance. The statute reads no more than six monthsto the anticipated date, but does not set any minimum period, permitting some judgment to be exercised by the entity. The ability to go after an owners assets to recover nuisance abatement liens, for example, may be a powerful tool in a strategy focusing on motivating owners to improve their properties, but largely irrelevant to a strategy designed to reuse properties whose owners have long since walked away from them. Any remaining costs to complete rehabilitation and reuse of the property, as determined by the public officer. Properties that are coming up for tax sale, or are eligible for tax foreclosure, should also be evaluated with respect to their suitability for possession. If justified by the volume of boarding activity, the city may want to establish an in-house boarding crew to deal with the citys properties, while retaining a private contractor, who is available 24/7 to board privately owned properties and for emergencies. While a donation to a CDC that is also a nonprofit, 501(c)3 entity also entitles the owner to a charitable deduction, there are clear advantages to having the donation made to the municipality: The CDC is not in a position to obtain a waiver or forgiveness of any municipal liens that might be outstanding. Case by case determinations. Therefore, the owner must, in addition, post a bond equal to 125 percent of the amount determined by the public officer to be the projected cost of rehabilitation. These buildings may also be appropriate for priority treatment. A building that is in such disrepair that it must be vacated in order to permit total rehabilitation and replacement of all building systems may not be an appropriate candidate for receivership. Every city should establish a basic demolition protocol to guide all demolition activity, including the following elements: Which buildings will be demolished by the city. The tax lien holder can add any repair or nuisance abatement costs to the balance that the owner must pay in order to redeem the property (N.J.S.A.54:5-86(d)) by filing an affidavit with the municipal tax collector. h'u CJ Step 6 The owner is given the opportunity to submit a plan for rehabilitation and reuse of property. When you're tight on space, every square foot matters. As a result, the municipality and CDC should be prepared to use any available tool, choosing the particular tool to use for each property based on its particular features. Particularly in cities with large numbers of abandoned properties, the process of gaining control of them and turning them into productive assets is a long-term one, taking many years. The party must specify in writing the address and block and lot number of the property, and the reasons why it should be added to the list. If the lienholder does not commence foreclosure, however, within six months from the date the property initially appeared on the list, the property is automatically restored to the list, and once restored to the list, remains there. The public officer must schedule a hearing on any timely appeal within 30 days of receipt of the appeal. Targeting resources to abandoned property strategies may require taking them away from other politically attractive efforts, while aggressive actions to take control of properties, particularly those using eminent domain, may trigger vocal opposition. Any party in interest may present evidence to support or contest the complaint at the hearing. Other claims are possible, but likely to be rare. Within the framework of the initial order, the public officer has broad discretion to determine what action to take. Note to Sec. In contrast to the all comers approach of the general tax sale, the special tax sale is designed to ensure that tax liens on abandoned properties end up in the hands of entities that are actively committed to taking title to the properties and reusing them in ways consistent with the public interest. The court may remove the receiver on a showing that the receiver is not carrying out its responsibilities under the law. The remedies are available for that property even if other properties on the list are still going through the appeal process (N.J.S.A.55:19-102.h.). 54:5-1 et seq. A strategy to press property owners to restore their properties, for example, requires sustained, repeated follow-up from a well-trained inspection staff, as well as the involvement of capable attorneys. The public officer shall provide a report to the mayor and governing body every six months, with respect to the number and location of properties on the abandoned property list, the status of those properties, and any actions taken by the municipality or by any qualified rehabilitation entity designated pursuant to the authority granted the public officer with respect to any property on the list or any other abandoned property within the [name of municipality]. in order to gain control of vacant lots or take other actions against those properties. The special tax sale can be held on the same day as the municipality is holding its regular tax sale. Managing a vacant property inventory Any municipality or CDC that acquires substantial numbers of abandoned properties will inevitably find itself holding an inventory of such properties during the period after they have been acquired and before they are either reused or conveyed to another party for reuse. Under New Jersey law, a municipality can take title to a property through eminent domain by depositing what it considers to be fair market value with the court, even if the owner disputes the valuation of the property. By assembling a pool of financial resources and capable crews, contractors or agents, the city can carry out efficient nuisance abatement on a substantial number of properties within a short period, thereby permitting a strategic approach. Sec. If the purchaser has already foreclosed on the lien, then title to the property reverts to the municipality. The second part of this section also includes an overview and discussion of the provisions of the new rental receivership law. APPENDIX 4 ABANDONED PROPERTY REPORTING FORM This form can be used by local officials, or by community organizations and individuals to flag abandoned properties in their communities. If the owner fails to bring a timely petition for reinstatement, if the owner's petition is denied, or if the owner's petition is granted but subsequently revoked by the court for failure to meet one or more conditions, the entity in possession may seek the court's approval either to take title to the property or sell it to a third party. Any interested party may submit in writing a request to the public officer that a property be included on the abandoned property list prepared pursuant to section 36 of P.L.1996, c.62 (C.55:19-55), specifying the street address and block and lot number of the property to be included, and the grounds for its inclusion. The entity files the Notice of Completion with the court at such time as [it] has determined that no more than six months remain to the anticipated date on which rehabilitation will be complete (N.J.S.A.55:19-91(e)). To paraphrase the urban systems pioneer Jay Forrester in Urban Dynamics (1969), complex systems (such as the dynamics of properties in the urban environment) are counterintuitive; in other words, what an observer intuitively believes to be true is not necessarily the case. Since every urban municipality or CDC is financially constrained, they should target their resources to accomplish the communitys goals in the most cost-effective manner, and to leverage private money wherever possible. Post a bond in an amount determined by the court but not in excess of 50% of the fair market value of the property, which is forfeit in the event of future code violations. Creation of abandoned property list; initiative procedure . For further information, go to HYPERLINK "http://www.nhi.org" www.nhi.org. Common forms of unclaimed property are savings and checking accounts, traveler's checks, unredeemed money orders or gift certificates, insurance . Some other manner The sale must be at market value. 40:48-2.3 through 2.12. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Enter any additional information relevant to the status of the abandoned property that does not appear above (attach additional sheets if necessary): __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ APPENDIX 6 MODEL AFFIDAVIT FOR PUBLIC OFFICER ON BEHALF OF TAX LIEN PURCHASER OF ABANDONED PROPERTY CAPTION I, [NAME OF PUBLIC OFFICER], of full age, being duly sworn, upon my oath deposes and states: 1. As soon as the receiver posts bond or other surety, it is authorized to exercise all of the powers of receivership, except that it shall not undertake major non-emergent repairs until the court has approved the receivers plan. This applies only to neighborhood revitalization plans approved by the Department of Community Affairs under the provisions of the Neighborhood Revitalization State Tax Credit Act, N.J.S.a.52:27D-490 et seq., not to any document that might be called a neighborhood revitalization plan. 17:18 et seq. L.2003,c.210,s.30. Local officials and community leaders need to understand the dynamics of abandonment, and the particular triggers at work in their own community. Sec. TABLE 2.1 STATUTORY DEFINITION OF ABANDONED PROPERTY [Based on N.J.S.A.55:19-81 through 83] DEFINITIONPART 1: THRESHOLD CRITERIA Property must not have been legally occupied for six months* and must meet any ONE of the Secondary Criteria in Part 2 [but also see Part 4: Exceptions below]. Lienholders must submit their plan within 60 days after the court has rejected the owners plan. Other non-economic factors, such as lack of information on the part of landlords or homeowners, the complexities of tax and estate situations, and the poor functioning of the real estate market in many inner city areas, also add to abandonment risk. Since placing a property on an abandoned property list triggers significant municipal powers with respect to that property, the law sets forth a series of procedures that must be followed closely to ensure that properties are not mistakenly entered onto that list, and that property owners are given a full opportunity to present evidence that the property is indeed not abandoned. The user is on notice that neither the State of NJ site nor its operators review any of the services, information and/or content from anything that may be linked to the State of NJ site for any reason. (If the public officer receives a petition signed by at least five residents of the municipality charging nuisance conditions in a particular building, she must conduct a preliminary investigation, and if the investigation discloses a basis for the charges, must issue and serve a complaint on the owner of the property (N.J.S.A.40:48-2.5(b). In practice, far fewer people object to eminent domain being used against vacant properties than when it involves displacing the residents of occupied buildings. Increased demand means that more owners are paying their taxes, while more third party investors are buying tax sale certificates at tax sales. If the holder of a tax sale certificate seeks to have a property removed from the list, they must show that they have paid all municipal taxes and liens due on the property within 30 days after the property was placed on the list. Local governments as well as non-governmental entities such as CDCs have two other ways to acquire property, through voluntary purchase and through gift. The provisions for notice and appeal, while strict, are not unduly onerous. In addition to traditional nuisance definitions, including fire risk, health and safety hazards, physical deterioration, and the presence of vermin or debris, the law provides that a property is a nuisance if its dilapidated appearance affects the welfare, including the economic welfare of residents in close proximity to the property. (a) Authorization process. Information systems should include: The location and salient characteristics of each property in the vacant property inventory. This information is in many respects the most important, particularly in a community with a large number of abandoned properties. The law does not give the public officer the right to dismiss a timely appeal without a redetermination hearing, even if it may be obvious that the appeal is without foundation. Bringing Buildings Back: From Abandoned Properties to Community Assets, a detailed guidebook to addressing abandoned property issues from abandonment prevention to reuse planning, written by the author of this guide will be published in late spring 2006 by the National Housing Institute and Rutgers University Press. 24 Petition by owner for termination of receivership The owner may petition at any time for termination of the receivership and reinstatement of its rights, unless the court has established a minimum period for the receivership to remain in effect, which may not be more than one year. Prior to gaining lien priority for the new loan, the entity must show that it sought to obtain either the necessary financing or a voluntary subordination from the senior lienholder on the property without success. What conditions can trigger a receivership action? The number of legal voters in the municipality who sign the petition must equal at least five percent of the total votes cast in the last municipal election, but may not be fewer than 100 signers in any municipality with a population of 1,000 or more (N.J.S.A.55:19-104). A right of reverter provides that if the purchaser fails to carry out any of the commitments required as a condition of sale or misrepresents any of the qualifications required to be eligible to bid (see (a) above), the properties come back (revert) to the municipality. b.A property which is used on a seasonal basis shall be deemed to be abandoned only if the property meets any two of the additional criteria set forth in section 4 of P.L.2003, c.210 (C.55:19-81). Sec. It is usually better to assemble a number of additional properties, which can then be added as a body to the list. Issues that should be addressed by any local official or CDC considering using possession as a tool to preserve abandoned buildings are discussed in detail beginning on page ___ below. They include apartment buildings in Jersey City and East Orange, row houses in Trenton or Camden, farmhouses in Cumberland and Salem County, and old industrial and commercial buildings in nearly every corner of the state. A consultative process to review and prioritize non-emergency demolitions. The decision to repair rather than vacate or demolish is based on financial considerations, in two respects. Step 2: The public officer must hold a hearing on the complaint no less than 7 and no more than 30 days after serving the complaint, at which the owners and parties in interest can contest the findings in the complaint. Most states participate in MissingMoney.coma free website, sponsored by NAUPA, from which you can search participating state's databases for unclaimed property. Abandoned properties affect everything else a CDC may be doing in a neighborhood As CDCs move their focus away from individual projects toward comprehensive neighborhood revitalization, addressing abandoned properties becomes a key part of any overall revitalization strategy. Defining abandoned properties The Abandoned Properties Rehabilitation Act, P.L.2003, c.210, defines in detail what constitutes an abandoned property for purposes of a number of different legal remedies. Depending on the circumstances, the public officers actions may include: Repair, alteration or improvement of the structure to render it suitable for human habitation or use, or to eliminate the nuisance conditions. From a practical standpoint, there is no downside to making the list municipality-wide. Step 1 The municipality or other entity identifies a building that is appropriate for possession. 18 Fees The receiver is entitled to reasonable fees. (e) Procedure for holding a special tax sale. While the owner's rights are well protected, the obligations placed upon the owner to exercise its rights are also substantial. A sample certification is provided as Appendix 5. Defining abandoned property and creating the abandoned property list 10 2.1 Defining abandoned properties 10 2.2 Procedures for creating and maintaining an abandoned property list 14 Step 1: Authorizing the list 15 (a) Authorization process (b) Geographic scope of the ordinance Step 2: Creating the list 17 Creating the initial list Adding properties to the list Step 3: Notice and appeal 18 Removing a property from the abandoned property list 21 2.3 Using the abandoned property list 22 Legal remedies associated with an abandoned property list 22 Creating a property information system 23 3. L . From this point onward, when the text refers to the "entity", the term should be read as "the municipality or the qualified rehabilitation entity, as the case may be". Measures to minimize the problem of rodents and other pests, as well as dust, debris or damage to adjacent properties, from the demolition. 6 Exceptions Properties on which an entity other than the municipality holds a tax lien and is not in arrears, and where that entity moves to foreclose within six months after the property is eligible for foreclosure and diligently pursues foreclosure thereafter; and properties held for seasonal use, are not considered abandoned property. While New Jersey has had laws permitting receivership on the books for many years, they were inadequate in many respects, and as a result, were rarely used. A property that is placed on an abandoned property list has special status with respect to New Jerseys tax sale and eminent domain laws. 33 Effective date Except for Sec. In such cases, donation in return for the tax deduction can be an attractive proposition for the owner.
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