Connecticut SB 951 was introduced 2/18/09 and passed Senate Committee 3/12/2009.  This proposed legislation is intended to protect residential property values by requiring owners of foreclosed properties to maintain such properties in accordance with specified standards  It would require the registration of vacant residential one-to-four family dwellings by the owner, imposes maintenance requirements on the registrants and adopts a process and procedure for citations, hearings and penalties imposed. SB 951 defines "vacant" as uninhabited. If enacted, this legislation would be effective 10/1/2009.

Registration

Any person in whom title to a residential property has vested after October 1, 2009, through a foreclosure action must register the property with the town clerk of the municipality in which the property is located:

• no later than ten days after the date title vests in such person if the property is vacant on the date title vests, or
• if the property becomes vacant after title vests in the person due to execution of ejectment, no later than ten days after the date on which such property becomes vacant.

Registration must contain:

• the name, address, telephone number and electronic mail address of the registrant and, if the registrant is a corporation or an individual who resides out-of-state, the name, address, telephone number and electronic mail address of a direct contact; and
• the name, address, telephone number and electronic mail address of the local property maintenance company responsible for the security and maintenance of the vacant residential property.  

The registrant must specify on the registration whether it prefers to be contacted by first class mail or electronic mail, and the preferred addresses for such communications.  Any changes in the information provided on the registration must be reported no later than (10) ten days after the date of the change of information.

The fee is $100, payable at registration to the municipality.

Maintenance

Registrants must maintain vacant residential properties in a manner comparable to neighborhood standards.  Registrants must maintain the landscaping, remove or paint over graffiti with an exterior paint that matches the existing color of the structure being painted, and replace broken windows.

If the registrant fails to comply with these maintenance requirements, the municipality may issue a notice to the registrant citing the property conditions that cause a violation. The notice must be sent by either first class mail or electronic mail, or both, to the preferred address or addresses identified on the registration. A copy of the notice must be sent by first class or electronic mail to the local property maintenance company identified on the registration as responsible for the security and maintenance of the vacant residential property. 

The registrant must repair the cited conditions within (10) ten days from the date on which the notice was mailed.  If it fails to do so, the municipality may enter such property and repair the conditions and then fine the registrant for the actual cost of repairs.  Any fine imposed is subject to state-required hearing procedures as adopted by the municipality

Fines that remain unpaid and uncontested after (60) sixty days from the date notice of the fines was issued to the registrant will be doubled. Unpaid fines will constitute liens on the residential property.

Notice, Hearings, Assessments and Liens

The legislation also states that any municipality may establish by ordinance a citation hearing procedure, including notice, hearing and assessment for violations. Unpaid fines will become liens upon the registered property. The Superior Court is authorized to enforce the assessments and judgments provided for under this legislation..

Any municipality which has incurred expenses for the inspection, repair, demolition, maintenance, removal or other disposition of any real estate in order to secure such real estate or to make it safe, sanitary or in compliance with neighborhood maintenance standards under state law or any municipal building, health, housing or safety codes or regulations may recover those expenses from the owner of the registered property for which such expenses were incurred.  Unpaid expenses will be subject to a lien for the payment of those expenses. The municipality may also take a lien on the proceeds of any insurance policy issued for a loss to a covered structure for the expenses incurred.  These liens are subject to the state-required 30 day notice provisions for such liens.

Any municipal lien filed pursuant to this legislation may be foreclosed in the same manner as a mortgage.

To view a copy of the current version of the proposed legislation, please click here.

About Safeguard
Safeguard Properties is the largest privately held field services company in the country. Located in Cleveland, Ohio and founded in 1990 by Robert Klein, Safeguard has grown from a regional preservation company with a few employees and a handful of contractors performing services in the Midwest, to a national company with over 500 employees. Safeguard is supported by a nationwide network of subcontractors able to perform any requested superintendence, preservation, and maintenance functions, as well as numerous ancillary services in the U.S., the Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico.