[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village
of Tilton as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
[Adopted 3-17-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-03-17-I (Ch. 5.64 of the Village
Code)]
It is the intention of the Village to take steps that will improve
the livability and valuation of the Village's housing stock and to
promote revitalization of the Village's neighborhoods. Studies have
shown that rental housing tends to generate a disproportionately high
level of code violations and code enforcement problems. Inspecting
rental housing and requiring compliance with the minimum level of
housing standards contained in the Property Maintenance Code, as adopted
by the Village, shall help reduce housing deterioration in the Village
neighborhoods and will promote revitalization. With this in mind,
this article sets forth a rental housing registration and inspection
program.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
For the purpose of this article, the following definitions shall
apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different
meaning:
A written document, signed by the Code Official, certifying
that a rental dwelling is registered pursuant to this article.
The Mayor of the Village, or his/her designee.
See Property Maintenance Code.
Any person, agent, operator, firm or corporation having a
legal or equitable interest in the property; or recorded in the official
record of the county or municipality as holding title to the property;
or otherwise having control of the property, including the guardian
of the estate of any such person and the executor or administrator
of the estate of such person if ordered to take possession of real
property by a court having jurisdiction.
Change of owners as described herein, in addition to any
sale by contract, whether recorded or not, and any transfer of property
title or rights to property, whether or not remuneration is provided.
A dwelling unit which is not owner-occupied and which is
rented, offered for rent, loaned, let or hired out by any person to
any other person.
A.
It shall be unlawful for anyone to own a rental dwelling within the
Village unless said dwelling has been registered with the Code Official
according to the provision of this article. Owners of any rental dwelling
shall register their dwelling(s) and provide the information required
on forms provided by the Code Official. Owners shall be required to
provide tenant information to the Code Official upon request.
B.
Owners of hotels or other similar dwellings that are otherwise licensed
or registered by the Village shall not be required to register or
pay any registration fees provided herein.
A.
All rental dwellings shall be registered on January 1 of each year.
The registration period shall be January 1 through December 31 of
each year. Any registration certificate which may be issued after
January 1 of any given year shall be valid only through December 31
of that year.
B.
The registration fee shall be set from time to time by the Board
of Trustees. The Trustees may also set a maximum registration fee
to be paid by an owner for a single parcel of real property. The registration
fee shall be paid once unless ownership changes and the property remains
rental property.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
C.
The registration fee shall be payable upon filing the registration
form with the Code Official.
Any owner shall be required to respond and meet with the Code
Official or other Village officials within one hour of being notified
of the need for such meeting. Any owner who cannot meet this obligation
shall provide a local representative, having sufficient authority
to act on behalf of the owner, capable of meeting the obligation.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
Upon any change in ownership of a specific rental dwelling,
the new owner shall be required to register said dwelling within 30
days of purchase. Reregistrations shall comply with the requirements
of this article, including paying the registration fee.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
Any owner found to be in violation of the registration requirements of this article shall be required to pay an involuntary registration fee as set from time to time by the Board of Trustees. Said involuntary registration fee shall be in addition to any other penalty provided in § 226-14. In addition to any other penalty, any violation of the registration requirements of this article shall result in the unregistered unit or units being subject to an inspection of the interior of such unit or units.
Once a rental dwelling is registered, said dwelling shall be
placed on a schedule for an exterior inspection by the Code Official.
The specific schedule shall be determined by the Code Official.
No provision of this article shall prohibit the Code Official
from scheduling an inspection or reinspection, whether external or
internal, based upon a complaint.
A.
If a rental dwelling is occupied, the Code Official shall contact
the occupant to schedule the inspection of said dwelling and shall
notify the owner of the date and time of such inspection. On the agreed
date and time, the occupant shall provide access to the Code Official
for the inspection. If the occupant fails to provide access, the Code
Official shall obtain an administrative search warrant to conduct
the inspection.
B.
If a rental dwelling is unoccupied, the Code Official shall contact
the owner of said dwelling to schedule the inspection. On the agreed
date and time, the owner shall provide access to the Code Official
for the inspection. If the owner fails to provide access, the Code
Official shall obtain an administrative search warrant to conduct
the inspection.
C.
The scope of an inspection performed pursuant to this article shall
be limited to the minimum housing standards set forth in the Property
Maintenance Code, as adopted by the Village. The Property Maintenance
Code, as adopted by the Village, shall act as a guideline for the
Code Official in determining whether code violations exist.
D.
In the case of a multifamily rental dwelling, the Code Official shall
determine which units to inspect.
E.
Upon completion of an inspection performed pursuant to this article,
the Code Official shall prepare a written inspection report. Said
report shall include, but not necessarily be limited to, the following
information:
A.
Within five business days of the inspection, the Code Official shall
provide a copy of the inspection report to the person responsible
for removing or abating the code violations. If the responsible party
is not the owner, a copy shall also be provided to the owner.
B.
If the person responsible for removing the code violations is unable
to remove them within the time specified in the inspection report,
he or she must contact the Code Official to request an extension of
time to remove the violations. The Code Official may grant an extension
of time, for good cause shown. The extension period shall be as determined
by the Code Official and shall take into consideration the nature
of the violation(s). No extension period shall be longer than six
months.
[Amended 1-15-2016]
A.
Issuance.
(1)
Upon registration, a registration decal shall be issued by the Code
Official for the rental dwelling unit registered.
(2)
Said decal shall be valid through December 31 of the year in which the certificate is issued, unless a change of ownership of the rental dwelling occurs or the certificate is terminated pursuant to Subsection B.
(3)
Each owner of a rental unit shall permanently affix conspicuously
said decal to the main access point for each property. Failure to
have said decal attached so as to be visible from the outside of each
unit shall constitute a violation of this section.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
B.
Termination.
(1)
The Code Official may terminate a previously issued registration
certificate under any of the following conditions:
(a)
An inspection performed based upon a complaint reveals violations
that constitute a threat to the health, safety or welfare of the occupant(s);
or
(b)
A reinspection reveals violations that constitute a threat to
the health, safety or welfare of the occupant(s); or
(c)
The owner is cited for maintaining a public nuisance pursuant
to this Code.
(2)
If a condition described above exists which would warrant the termination
of a registration certificate, the Code Official may seek an order
to have the rental dwelling vacated of all occupants.
Prior to the sale or exchange of ownership of any rental dwelling,
the owner thereof shall deliver a copy of the most recent inspection
report, if any, to the buyer of such dwelling prior to the consummation
of the sale thereof.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
Any property owner found to be in violation of any of the provisions
of this article shall be subject to a fine not to exceed $750, plus
court costs.
[Adopted 4-21-2020 by Ord. No. 2020-0421A]
A.
It is
the purpose and intent of the Village of Tilton Board of Trustees,
through the adoption of this article, to establish rental property
inspections as a mechanism to protect residential neighborhoods from
becoming blighted through the lack of adequate maintenance and security
of rental properties.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
B.
Nothing
in this article shall be interpreted to allow or encourage circumvention
of the foreclosure statutes of the State of Illinois.
For the purposes of this article, certain words and phrases
used in this article are defined as follows:
A property that is vacant and is under a current notice of
default of notice trustee's sale and is not currently being offered
for sale, rent or lease by the owner subject to such action(s) (A
property is "currently being offered for sale, rent or lease" if evidenced
by a sign posted on the subject property advertising the property
for sale, rent or lease with contact information and current phone
number and/or an active listing in an electronic database accessible
to Village staff.), and/or property that has been the subject of a
foreclosure sale where the title was retained by the beneficiary involved
in the foreclosure and any property transferred under a deed in lieu
of foreclosure, whether or not the property is being marketed for
sale, rent or lease.
Consecutive calendar days.
The process by which a property, placed as security for a
real estate loan, is sold at auction to satisfy a debt if the trustor
(borrower) defaults.
A physical investigation at a property to verify compliance
with this article and any other applicable code or law.
Those conditions that are present on a simply majority of
properties within a 300-foot radius of the subject property. A property
that is the subject of a neighborhood standard comparison, or any
other abandoned property within the 300-foot radius, shall not be
counted toward the simple majority.
A recorded notice that a default has occurred under a deed
of trust and that the beneficiary intends to proceed with a trustee's
sale.
Any person, copartnership, association, corporation or fiduciary
having legal or equitable title or any interest in any real property.
Any property solely occupied by persons other than the record
owner.
Any property, or portion thereof, situated in the Village,
designed or permitted to be used for dwelling purposes, and shall
include all buildings and structures located on such property. This
includes any property being offered for sale, trade, transfer or exchange
as residential, whether or not it is legally permitted and/or zoned
for such use.
Any person occupying property of which they are not the record
owner and in which the record owner does not also reside.
Within 10 days of the purchase and/or transfer of a loan/deed
of trust secured by residential property, the new beneficiary/trustee
shall record with the Vermilion County Recorder's office a substitution
of beneficiary of deed of trust, or similar document, that lists the
name of the corporation, entity and/or individual and the mailing
address and contact phone number of the new beneficiary/trustee responsible
for receiving payments associated with the loan/deed of trust.
Upon notice to the record owner of the vacation of their rental
property, whether it be voluntary or through eviction, foreclosure
or any action that has otherwise resulted in the rental property being
unoccupied, the owner shall notify the Village and shall allow the
appropriate Village authorities to enter the rental property and perform
an inspection of the premises prior to any new tenant establishing
occupancy of the property. Any violations noted by the inspector shall
be cured at least 10 days prior to a new tenant establishing occupancy
of the property, and the property shall remain subject to reinspection
prior to a new tenant establishing occupancy of the property.
Regardless of the legal status of the rental property, general
maintenance requirements are ultimately the responsibility of the
record owner and are as follows:
A.
The exterior
of the property shall be, in comparison to the neighborhood standard,
kept free of weeds, dry brush, dead vegetation, trash, junk, debris,
building material, any accumulation of newspapers, circulars, flyers,
notices, except those required by federal, state or local law, discarded
personal items, including but not limited to furniture, clothing,
large and small appliances, printed material or any other items that
give the appearance that the property is abandoned.
B.
The property
shall be maintained free of graffiti, tagging or similar markings
by removal or painting over with an exterior-grade paint that matches
the color of the exterior of the structure. There shall be no peeling
paint on the inside or outside of the property.
C.
Insofar
as there is existing or previously existing landscaping, all visible
front and side yards shall be maintained to the neighborhood standard
at the time registration was required. If no landscaping previously
existed at the property in front and visible side yards, installation
is not required under this article.
(1)
Landscape
includes, but is not limited to, grass, turf stain, ground covers,
bushes, shrubs, hedges or similar plantings, decorative rock or bark
or artificial turf/sod designed specifically for residential installation.
(2)
Landscape
does not include weeds, gravel, broken concrete, asphalt, decomposed
granite, plastic sheeting, mulch (unless applied in conjunction with
reseeding turf areas), indoor-outdoor carpet or any similar material.
(3)
Maintenance
includes but is not limited to regular watering, irrigation, staining,
restaining, cutting, pruning and mowing of required landscape and
removal of all trimmings.
D.
Pools
and spas shall be kept in working order so the water remains clear
and free of pollutants and debris or drained and kept dry. In either
case, properties with pools and/or spas must comply with the minimum
security fencing requirements of the State of Illinois.
E.
The property
shall be maintained in reasonably weathertight condition, including,
but not limited to, no cracked or broken windows, all roof surfaces
maintained with no leaks, and the interior shall be free of mold or
an environment where mold may develop.
F.
There
shall be exterior lighting at the main entrance, all interior and
exterior stairways shall be in sound condition and properly maintained,
and all interior or exterior stairways with more than three steps
shall have a handrail on at least one side.
G.
425 ILCS
60 shall be complied with in regards to the installation and maintenance
of smoke detectors.
H.
430 ILCS
135 shall be complied with in regards to the installation and maintenance
of carbon monoxide alarms.
I.
Section
210.8 of the National Electrical Code shall be complied with in regards
to the installation of ground fault circuit interrupter outlets.
J.
All rooms
which are used as sleeping quarters are to have at least one easily
accessible, operable window.
K.
All mechanical
systems shall be operational, which shall include a centrally installed
heating system.
L.
House
numbers shall be placed prominently and shall be visible from the
street.
M.
Wherever
possible, tenants shall have designated parking spots.
[1]
Editor's Note: See also the "Village of Tilton Landlord Responsibility
Act," included as an attachment to this article.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
Violations of this article may be enforced as provided by law.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
Any person aggrieved by any of the requirements of this article
may appeal as provided by law.
Violations of this article shall be treated as a strict liability offense regardless of intent. Any person, firm and/or corporation that violates any portion of this article shall be subject to prosecution and/or administrative enforcement under Chapter 55, Penalties and Enforcement, of the Village Code.
