AI-assisted research summary: A vacant property ordinance can require new qualifying owners to take over the prior owner’s obligations, require registration and maintenance steps, give owners notice and appeal rights, allow inspections with notice, set fines and fee collection methods, and let the municipality place liens or take action to bring property into compliance.
(a) A vacant property registration ordinance shall: (1) Provide that a subsequent owner or owners of property who are not related by blood or marriage to the prior owner and who purchase in good faith for value or who foreclose on the property or acquire the property by deed in lieu of foreclosure shall assume the obligations of the previous owner or owners; (2) Provide for removal of the property from the vacant property registration database when the property is no longer vacant; (3) Require submission of an owner plan for restoration and occupancy of the property; (4) Provide that owners have the right to prior notice and to appeal adverse decisions of the municipality or the program administrator or to appeal the interpretations or application of the ordinance, including its consistency with this chapter. Prior notice shall be sent by certified mail to the registered owner at the address maintained in the probate office or according to the records of the tax assessor or revenue commissioner, if different, at least 10 days prior to the adverse decision; and (5) Provide that any appeal of a violation or fine issued pursuant to this chapter shall be filed with the division of the municipal court in the Class 1 municipality which handles all code violations. Any adverse decision from the municipal court may be appealed, within 30 days, to the applicable circuit court. The costs of appeal shall be paid by the non-prevailing party. (b) To determine compliance with the ordinance and any applicable building codes, a vacant property registration ordinance may allow the program administrator or his or her designee to inspect the interior and exterior of a vacant property upon at least 10 days’ prior notice to the owner after registration is effected or otherwise required, and at oneyear intervals thereafter for so long as the property remains on the vacant property registration database. (c) A vacant property registration ordinance may provide for municipal fines not to exceed one thousand dollars ($1,000) per violation for failure to comply with ordinance requirements. A municipality may enforce the collection of vacant property registration fees by civil action in any court of competent jurisdiction. Unpaid vacant property registration fees and unpaid fines for any violation of a vacant property registration ordinance shall become a lien on the applicable real property, but only upon the recording of a notice of the lien in the probate office. (d) The vacant property registration ordinance may require that the owner enclose and secure the vacant property within a designated period of time and thereafter maintain the vacant property to minimum standards required under applicable state law and municipal ordinances and codes or to lesser standards adopted under the vacant property registration ordinance. The ordinance may include authority for the municipality, following at least 30 days’ notice to the owner, to act to bring the vacant property into compliance with the applicable standards, or otherwise eliminate the public nuisance caused by any noncompliant conditions. Nothing in this section is to be interpreted to impose a duty, obligation, or requirement that a municipality must undertake such repairs, demolition, or maintenance measures, which remain as obligations and responsibilities of the owner. Reasonable costs of the repairs, demolition, and maintenance incurred by the municipality shall be paid by the owner. A vacant property registration ordinance may provide that these costs shall become a lien on the applicable property, but only upon the recording of a notice of the lien in the probate office, or may be collected in civil proceedings against the owner. (e) Any lien created under this section shall be subordinate to all other liens, including prior mortgages, fixture filings, mechanic’s and materialman’s liens, and those liens for taxes described or referenced in Section 11-51-6. Not in derogation of the foregoing or other protections for good faith purchasers, the municipality may release any liens or waive any accrued fees or fines in the case of the transfer of the vacant property to a good faith purchaser.