(June 1, 2017) Responding to resident complaints about overgrown lawns can present a challenge for Snow Hill town officials – especially when it’s not clear who owns the property.
Jon Hill, Snow Hill code enforcement officer, said the town has appearance standards that are, in theory, enforceable.
“Anything beyond 10 inches is considered to be a nuisance,” he said.
When his office is contacted about unkempt properties, Hill said the process starts with a site visit to assess the situation. The town issues a nuisance violation if markedly tall grass, trash or debris is noted.
“If there’s an occupied structure, we can serve notice by notifying the owner of the property [or] we notify the occupant, which could be a renter,” he said. “That’s usually pretty straightforward. We tell somebody they need to cut their grass.”
After a violation is issued, the person responsible for the property has a working week to fix the nuisance and comply to town standards before further action is taken.
“In five days, we will go in and do it for you and you will be billed,” he said.
In these instances, Hill said the relevant party has 30 days to pay the work invoice or the cost can be added to their utility bill.
Matters are not always as clear cut when dealing with abandoned or foreclosed properties, Hill said.
“There’s not going to be someone there to talk to,” he said.
If no one is on site, Hill said the town is required to mail the violation by registered mail. Regardless of any reply, notice is considered given three days after the postmark.
In some instances, like a property on 107 Belt Street that is in the midst of foreclosure, it can be problematic to identify the appropriate parties, Hill said.
“Right now no one has responsibility, even though there’s a property management company assigned by the lien holder going through the foreclosure process,” he said. “They still don’t have legal right to enter the property until the foreclosure process has come to fruition.”
With upwards of 50 abandoned properties in town, Hill said the cost of hiring contractors to address overgrown yards could become exorbitant.
“There are so many like that in town where people have died or have just given up,” he said. “It’s our responsibility as stewards of the town to help make it a better place by maintaining properties that have been abandoned, but we have to be financial stewards as well, and not overextend the town or spend money on things we’ll never be able to recoup.”
While Hill appreciates that residents would like to see improvements, he also understands the cost may ultimately end up on their shoulders.
“They’re going to be paying these bills, the townspeople, through their taxes and assessments and other fees,” he said.
Although in theory the town could recoup the cost of maintaining vacant properties by applying the charges to tax bills, Hill said no reimbursement occurs until someone purchases it at a tax sale.
“That means they purchased it at the courthouse steps,” he said. “If they paid $100 for it in order to redeem the deed of the property and take ownership, they need to pay off liens and fees.”
In many cases, once potential investors get wind of the actual purchase price the transaction is never completed.
“I have one that’s on Covington Street,” he said. “I know it’s been sold at tax sale three times, but the property has never been redeemed.”
In another instance, an absentee owner told Hill to consider his three properties abandoned and suggested the town could simply have the homes.
“We don’t want to own property … we’re not in the real estate business,” he said. “We’d much rather the property be owned and be on the tax rolls so there’s some sort of income for the town for maintaining these things.”
Regardless of the challenges involved, Hill said residents should not hesitate to contact his office regarding any nuisance complaints, which can even be done anonymously.
“I want to encourage people to call if they have a complaint,” he said. “Please call us and tell us. We want to do as much as we can.”
Jon Hill, Snow Hill code enforcement officer, said the town has appearance standards that are, in theory, enforceable.
“Anything beyond 10 inches is considered to be a nuisance,” he said.
When his office is contacted about unkempt properties, Hill said the process starts with a site visit to assess the situation. The town issues a nuisance violation if markedly tall grass, trash or debris is noted.
“If there’s an occupied structure, we can serve notice by notifying the owner of the property [or] we notify the occupant, which could be a renter,” he said. “That’s usually pretty straightforward. We tell somebody they need to cut their grass.”
After a violation is issued, the person responsible for the property has a working week to fix the nuisance and comply to town standards before further action is taken.
“In five days, we will go in and do it for you and you will be billed,” he said.
In these instances, Hill said the relevant party has 30 days to pay the work invoice or the cost can be added to their utility bill.
Matters are not always as clear cut when dealing with abandoned or foreclosed properties, Hill said.
“There’s not going to be someone there to talk to,” he said.
If no one is on site, Hill said the town is required to mail the violation by registered mail. Regardless of any reply, notice is considered given three days after the postmark.
In some instances, like a property on 107 Belt Street that is in the midst of foreclosure, it can be problematic to identify the appropriate parties, Hill said.
“Right now no one has responsibility, even though there’s a property management company assigned by the lien holder going through the foreclosure process,” he said. “They still don’t have legal right to enter the property until the foreclosure process has come to fruition.”
With upwards of 50 abandoned properties in town, Hill said the cost of hiring contractors to address overgrown yards could become exorbitant.
“There are so many like that in town where people have died or have just given up,” he said. “It’s our responsibility as stewards of the town to help make it a better place by maintaining properties that have been abandoned, but we have to be financial stewards as well, and not overextend the town or spend money on things we’ll never be able to recoup.”
While Hill appreciates that residents would like to see improvements, he also understands the cost may ultimately end up on their shoulders.
“They’re going to be paying these bills, the townspeople, through their taxes and assessments and other fees,” he said.
Although in theory the town could recoup the cost of maintaining vacant properties by applying the charges to tax bills, Hill said no reimbursement occurs until someone purchases it at a tax sale.
“That means they purchased it at the courthouse steps,” he said. “If they paid $100 for it in order to redeem the deed of the property and take ownership, they need to pay off liens and fees.”
In many cases, once potential investors get wind of the actual purchase price the transaction is never completed.
“I have one that’s on Covington Street,” he said. “I know it’s been sold at tax sale three times, but the property has never been redeemed.”
In another instance, an absentee owner told Hill to consider his three properties abandoned and suggested the town could simply have the homes.
“We don’t want to own property … we’re not in the real estate business,” he said. “We’d much rather the property be owned and be on the tax rolls so there’s some sort of income for the town for maintaining these things.”
Regardless of the challenges involved, Hill said residents should not hesitate to contact his office regarding any nuisance complaints, which can even be done anonymously.
“I want to encourage people to call if they have a complaint,” he said. “Please call us and tell us. We want to do as much as we can.”