Town of Kingston, NY Chapter 301 Rental Property

[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Kingston as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]

GENERAL REFERENCES

Uniform construction codes — See Ch. 149.

Zoning — See Ch. 425.

Article I Registration of Multiple-Unit Buildings

[Adopted 8-15-2012 by L.L. No. 3-2012]

§ 301-1 Purpose and scope.

A. The purpose of this article is to establish a registry of all residential rental property as defined herein, enabling the Town to identify persons responsible for the care and management of such properties, which will ensure the enforcement of local, state and federal regulations.

B. The provisions of this article shall apply to all residential rental property containing three residential units or more located in the Town of Kingston as defined herein.

§ 301-2 Definitions.

For the purpose of this article, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings respectively ascribed to them by this section:

BUILDING

Any structure having a roof, supported by columns or by walls or self-supporting, and intended for the shelter, housing or enclosure of persons, animals or chattel.

OWNER

Any individual or individuals, partnership or corporation, similar type of business organization or proprietary interest, whether for profit or otherwise, in whose name title to a building is vested.

RESIDENTIAL RENTAL PROPERTY

A building in which at least three dwelling units that are leased or otherwise rented to tenants solely for residential purposes are located.

RESPONSIBLE PERSON

A local responsible person over 21 years old, residing or doing business in Ulster County, who shall be responsible for the care and management of such property and is authorized by said owner to accept legal process on behalf of the owner when the owner resides or has its principal place of business outside of Ulster County.

§ 301-3 Registration of ownership of property.

A. Registration. Every owner of residential rental property as defined herein shall be required to register such property with the Town of Kingston Building Department on such form or forms as prescribed by the Building Department within a period of 60 days from notification by the Building Department. A new form shall be filed whenever there is a change of ownership, and it shall be the responsibility of the new owner to see that such form is filed within a period of 60 days from taking title to the property. It shall be the responsibility of all owners of residential rental property as defined herein to register such property with the Building Department, whether notified to do so by the Building Department or not, within 60 days of acquiring or establishing such rental unit.

B. Registry fee. On or after the notification of the requirement of this article by the Building Department, every owner or prospective owner of residential rental property, as defined in this article, shall be required to register said property with the Building Department and pay a fee as set forth in the Schedule of Fees.

§ 301-4 Registry form and filing. [1]

A. It shall be the responsibility of the owner of each property which is subject to the provisions of this article to file a registry application within 60 days of the notification by the Building Department. The form shall require the following information:

(1) The property address, the section, block and lot number of the property as stated on the Tax Map of the Town of Kingston, and the number of residential dwelling units on each property.

(2) The owner(s), owner mailing address and telephone number.

(3) The name and names, titles, addresses and telephone numbers of any responsible person(s) of the corporation, LLC, partnership or other similar business entity if the ownership is held in a non-individual capacity.

(4) The name, address and telephone number of a local responsible person as defined in § 301-2 herein.

B. The form shall be signed by the owner and his or her designee and witnessed by a notary public and shall contain the following declaration: "I certify that all information contained in this statement is true and correct to the best of my knowledge and belief. I understand that the willful making of any false statement of material fact herein will subject me to the provisions of law relevant to the making and filing of false instruments and shall constitute a violation of this article." It shall be the responsibility of each owner to timely notify the Building Department whenever the information provided in this form has become outdated or for any reason is no longer accurate. It shall be the responsibility of each owner to recertify the aforementioned information annually.

[1] Editor's Note: The Landlord Registration Form is included as an attachment to this article.

§ 301-5 Inspection requirements.

A. The Building Department or its authorized designee shall make provisions for inspections of each residential rental property which is subject to the provisions of this article and shall notify each responsible person of each residential rental property as to the time and place of such inspection. The inspection shall be conducted every two years. The inspection shall be conducted for the purpose of determining compliance with all applicable rules and regulations concerning safety and maintenance of said residential rental property, including the Town Code of the Town of Kingston and all other such rules and regulations and laws of the State of New York. In addition, the owner and/or managing agent shall be obligated to review with the Building Department and its designee or agent the contents of the landlord registration statement to determine if all said information is up-to-date, complete and accurate in all respects.

B. Any inspection report issued pursuant to Subsection A of this section which reveals the presence of a violation shall be remedied by the owner within the time stated in the report. Failure to bring any building and/or residential rental property into conformance with such report and/or to remedy within the time set forth therein shall constitute a violation of this article, it being expressly understood that this provision shall not constitute the exclusive remedy of the Town of Kingston but shall be an addition thereto.

§ 301-6 Penalties for offenses.

A. No residential rental property as defined herein shall be occupied by any tenant without compliance with the provisions herein, and failure to comply shall constitute a violation of the Code of the Town of Kingston.

B. A violation of this article shall constitute an unclassified misdemeanor, and any person who shall violate any provision of this article, or any person who shall knowingly assist therein, shall be liable to a minimum fine of $250 and a maximum fine of $5,000 or imprisonment not exceeding six months, or both such fine and imprisonment. Each and every week that any such violation continues after 10 days following notification that such violation exists shall constitute a separate offense. Such initial notice of violation shall be written by the Building Inspector or Code Enforcement Officer and shall be served by mail or by personal service.