[Adopted 8-29-2023 by Ord. No. 2023-16]
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
CREDITOR
Mortgagee or an agent or assignee of a mortgagee, such as
the servicer, who has filed a complaint in the Superior Court seeking
to foreclose upon a residential or commercial mortgage. If the entity
seeking to foreclose upon the residential or commercial mortgage changes
as a result of an assignment, transfer, or otherwise after the filing
of the foreclosure complaint in the Superior Court, the new entity
shall be deemed the creditor for purposes of this article. For purposes
of this article, a creditor shall not include the state, a political
subdivision of the state, a state, county, or local government entity,
or their agent or assignee, such as the servicer.
PROPERTY
Any building or structure or portion thereof and the land
appurtenant thereto.
PUBLIC OFFICER
The Code Enforcement Officer of the Township of Hampton.
For the purposes of this article, a property shall be considered
vacant and abandoned if it is not legally occupied by a mortgagor
or tenant, which is in such condition that it cannot be legally reoccupied,
because of the presence or finding of at least two of the following:
A. Overgrown or neglected vegetation;
B. The accumulation of newspapers, circulars, flyers, or mail on the
property;
C. Disconnected gas, electric, or water utility services to the property;
D. The accumulation of hazardous, noxious, or unhealthy substances or
materials on the property;
E. The accumulation of junk, litter, trash, or debris on the property;
F. The absence of window treatments such as blinds, curtains, or shutters;
G. The absence of furnishings and personal items;
H. Statements of neighbors, delivery persons, or government employees
indicating that the property is vacant and abandoned;
I. Windows or entrances to the property that are boarded up or closed
off, or multiple windowpanes that are damaged, broken, and unrepaired;
J. Doors to the property that are smashed through, broken off, unhinged,
or continuously unlocked;
K. A risk to the health, safety, or welfare of the public or any adjoining
or adjacent property owners due to acts of vandalism, loitering, criminal
conduct, or the physical destruction or deterioration of the property;
L. An uncorrected violation of a municipal building, housing, or similar
code during the preceding year, or an order by municipal authorities
declaring the property to be unfit for occupancy and to remain vacant
and unoccupied;
M. The mortgagee or other authorized party has secured or winterized
the property due to the property being deemed vacant and unprotected
or in danger of freezing;
N. A written statement issued by a mortgagor expressing the clear intent
of all mortgagors to abandon the property; or
O. Any other reasonable indicia of abandonment.
In its discretion, the Township of Hampton may contract with
and set the compensation of a private entity, pursuant to the Local
Public Contracts Law, N.J.S.A. 40A:11-1 et seq., to assist the Township
in the implementation and administration of the property registration
program.
The registration fee shall be $500 annually per property required to be registered per this article, and an additional $2,000 annually per property if the property is determined by the Township to be vacant and abandoned per §
39-2 at any time during the pendency of the mortgage foreclosure action.
No less than 20% of any money collected pursuant to Chapter
39 shall be used for municipal code enforcement purposes.
Nothing in Chapter
39 is intended to nor shall be read to conflict or prevent the Township of Hampton from taking action regarding buildings found to be unfit for human habitation or unsafe structures as provided in applicable provisions of the Code of the Township of Hampton and/or the Uniform Construction Code. Further, any action taken under any such code provision shall not relieve an owner or creditor from his, her or its obligations under Chapter
39.
All references in Chapter
39 to statutes include all amendments thereto. References to particular sections of enabling statutes are for ease of reference but may not be exhaustive and are not meant to be exclusive of other applicable statutory provisions contained in enabling statutes or elsewhere in New Jersey statutes.