What kind of a vacant building can an inspector enter without an administrative search warrant? It really depends on the facts of each case. Just because a building is vacant doesn’t mean that it is abandoned. A vacant building that is secure demonstrates the owner’s reasonable expectation of privacy. If a building is open to the elements where critters and neighborhood children enter at will, the owner may have no reasonable expectation of privacy, especially if he or she has left for parts unknown. Each case has to be evaluated on its own merits. If you’re having trouble deciding whether the owner still has a reasonable expectation of privacy inside the structure, it probably indicates you should get an administrative search warrant for an inspection. At the very least, an inspector should check with local counsel.
I spent the morning at the ICC offices in Country Club Hills filming a webinar on foreclosure issues for code officials called “Managing Distressed Properties for Code Officials”. So far, it looks like it will be broadcast May 12, August 7, September 28, October 14, December 8. This webinar will be one of the trainings offered to Chapters as a benefit. I was pretty happy that I came within about 2 minutes of the time given to me for the content since I’d never taught this class before. I’m covering foreclosure procedure, how to search property records for ownership, using the I-Codes for enforcement, condemnation, administrative search warrants, dealing with servicing companies and identifying responsible parties. I’ll be available to answer questions on the days of the broadcasts in the middle and at the end. I discuss special problems in different regions like burst pipes in cold temperatures that lead to mold and swimming pools in warmer climates that become West Nile breeding grounds. I hope you get a chance to see it on the web. Here’s the link for more information: http://www.iccsafe.org/government/chapters/eTrainingWebinars.html
Mold after pipes burst in vacant house
Jake Slater, Director of the Department of Code Enforcement and Business Tax in Tampa, FL contacted me to comment on my most recent post about how code enforcement enhances law enforcement. He told me that Tampa’s crime rate dropped -46% since 2003, an astonishing result. He also asked me to survey my readers about studies conducted on the relationship between crime prevention and code enforcement.
I am looking at ways to more effectively track the performance measures for Code
Enforcement and would like to show the relationships between our systematic and
pro active code enforcement and the recently reported reduction of crime in the
City of Tampa.
In your travels and networking, please feel free to share my contact information with other local government officials
You can reach Jake at Jake.Slater@ci.tampa.fl.us Also, please let me know about any studies that have been conducted in your jurisdictions on this topic.
Sometimes a local jurisdiction ends up getting in trouble for denying a permit though it had honorable intentions. In Vineyard Investments LLC v. City of Madison, 999 So.2d 438(2009), the city denied an application for a building permit because there was concern that the premises would be used for an unlawful use. The plaintiff did not have a license for its intended use, a package retail wine and spirits store though it eventually received one. The application complied with all building and zoning requirements. However, as is often the case, the concern about a future unlawful use was based on speculation, not facts. The court ruled that the permit should have been issued. The lesson to be learned from this is that you can’t deny a permit because you are afraid there might be a violation of the code in the future. If the application meets the code, the permit should be issued. The city can then monitor the use to make sure it remains lawful.
If you want to find out what houses are owned by Fannie Mae in your jurisdiction, go to http://reosearch.fanniemae.com/reosearch/
Once again credit goes to Kelly Anbach, code enforcement officer extraordinaire, from Hinsdale, IL who discovered this website and passed the information on to me.
I had the privilege of doing a seminar for MACE, the Missouri group for code inspectors, last month in Springfield, Missouri. The members were energetic and a joy to instruct. I especially enjoyed speaking with Gary Schlottach, a police officer/code enforcement officer with the Florissant Police Department. He truly understands that strict code enforcement is law enforcement’s best friend. He gave example after example of how the code department and police department successfully can work together to improve the quality of life in a community. One of his ideas was checking with the local recorder of deeds to find out many other properties in other jurisdictions a troublesome landowner has and then contacting the authorities in those jurisdictions to find out if they’re experiencing problems too. Sometimes it results in getting more up to date contact information or a joint effort to pressure the lawbreaker to become compliant. Code enforcement inspectors with police training are very good at obtaining information from a variety of sources and are comfortable with obtaining administrative search warrants. They also understand right of entry restrictions. Gary knew all of the tricks. He was very generous with his time and advice and expressed an interest in sharing his knowledge with other departments.
This article in the Wall Street Journal describes a scenario we’ve been seeing recently, owner occupied property in distant suburbs turning into rental neighborhoods. It’s entitled, In the Exurbs, the American Dream is Up for Rent. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123845433832571407.html
Local governments need to be ready for this change by adopting rental inspection programs that includes single family homes. By making sure that minimum standards are met from the beginning of this changeover, cities and towns can take steps to make sure that these rental properties don’t have an adverse effect on the quality of life in those communities.
At the airport in San Francisco yesterday while waiting for my flight, I read this in the San Francisco Chronicle:
The Bay Area reached a peak median sales price of $720,000 in spring 2007. In February, the median was $295,000. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/03/29/MN3K16M9RT.DTL&hw=median+house+values&sn=001&sc=1000
The article went on to discuss how buyers, especially investors are now moving in to purchase these “bargain” properties. Some are doing it to rent them and others are doing it to flip them. I wonder how many of these new buyers are getting the right permits for the work they are doing or properly registering the rentals in those jurisdictions where it’s mandatory? I suspect we’ll be seeing those kinds of issues crop up for a long time.
Too often political considerations interfere with the ability of building code officials to do their jobs in an appropriate manner. Most of the time this type of behavior goes unpunished. It often consists of not enforcing the code against “protected” person or companies or harshly enforcing the code against opponents. Sometimes, however, an aggrieved party files a lawsuit against the offenders. This happened in Dorr v. City of Ecorse, 2008 WL 5397760(C.A. 6 (Mich.))(2008) when a property owner sued the city and its mayor for the denial of a certificate of occupancy under the Civil Rights Acts. The plaintiff and the mayor were neighbors with a contentious history. The plaintiff passed all the necessary inspections and was entitled to a certificate of occupancy for a garage extension. He was trying to sell his house but couldn’t with the certificate. The city repeatedly refused to issue it and the plaintiff was unable to close on a house because of this inaction. The federal court of appeals agreed with the plaintiff that he had been denied substantive due process and upheld the award of $22,000 in damages, $55,000 in punitive damages against the mayor and $27,975.00 in attorney’s fees. (Punitive damages would come out of the mayor’s pocket). This case serves as a cautionary tale for those who would use the building code as a weapon.
While exploring the Safeguard website because of Kelly Anbach’s comments, I found that it had a list of contact information for lender’s servicers. I’m not sure how up to date it is but you can find it at: http://www.safeguardproperties.com/content/view/1133/233/ The list was developed by the Mortgage Bankers Association. Maybe it will give inspectors a way to make contact with a real person who can take action on a property. On the same page is an Excel file of contacts at local governments. It might be worthwhile to get on the list.
