Property Maintenance and Code Enforcement Community Partners Meeting Wednesday, April 1, 2015
We ve said it before and we re saying it again: We need your help in identifying abandoned properties within your communities. Many of you have done an assessment of your communities, and your assistance has been invaluable and greatly appreciated, but we need more community lists. Your help is critical if we want our communities and County to be all that we want them to be and what we deserve!
When looking for vacant (abandoned or foreclosed) or blighted properties within your community: 1. Look at properties to determine if they have not been maintained, examples of which will be on the following pages. 2. Think about whether you have seen your neighbors lately or not. They could just be on vacation, but they also could have left the area and abandoned their home or even passed away. 3. If you do not know about your neighbors, ask someone else in the neighborhood who might know. If not, please report the property.
DPIE will... 1. Assign the property to the newly implemented Vacant Property Unit 2. Investigate reported or identified property Determine if property is abandoned, foreclosed or vacant Abandoned o Residents walked away or there was a foreclosure o Utilities disconnected Vacant o Resident away for an extended period of time o Utilities not totally disconnected Foreclosed o County receives intent to foreclose notification letter from lender and adds to the Foreclosure Registry 3. Inspect to ensure satisfactory property maintenance Routinely check for compliance Non-compliant property requires notification to owner of record to address concerns within a specified period of time Attempt to identify responsible entity for property maintenance (i.e., bank, heir, family member, etc.)
DPIE will, continued... 4. Implement County action if owner of record is non-compliant Yard maintained through Clean Lot Program after 10-day notice Safety concerns addressed by boarding up windows, doors, etc. Lien placed on property for work done at County s direction Routine inspections conducted to ensure compliance Unsafe structural deficiencies could trigger demolition o Notify owner of record and identify interested parties of intent to demolish/raze (10 days to respond) o Publish notice of intent to demolish/raze in newspaper of record for 3 consecutive weeks o If after thirty days from last publication no response is received, structure is scheduled for demolition/razing However, o If a response is received that the demolition/razing of the structure is being contested, the action might have to be settled in Court 5. Collect liens before any property transfer 6. Work with the County s Police Department and Office of the State s Attorney to address and remove squatters from vacant homes
As we all have read about or seen on the news, squatters have become a concern not only in our County, but throughout the United States, as well as in foreign countries such as Australia and Brazil. Squatting basically is occupying an abandoned or unoccupied area of land and/or a building usually a residential home that the squatter does not own, rent or otherwise have lawful permission to use.
Squatter Case Types Include... o Bank Foreclosures Property Owner Refuses to Leave Property Owner Illegally Rents the Property to a 3 rd Party After Foreclosure o Criminal Trespassing o Fraudulent Rentals
To date, there are approximately 3,500 vacant properties within Prince George s County, and our Enforcement Division works collaboratively to make sure they are maintained and to address squatter issues where they exist with: Office of Law States Attorney s Office Police Department Sheriff s Office And other County agencies such as the Departments of Social Services and Family Services
In short... Ensuring abandoned, vacant and foreclosed properties, as well as those scheduled for demolition, are secured and maintained are DPIE s responsibility. However, your help in this area is critical, as our inspectors cannot be at every location, everyday to make sure that all buildings and properties are: o Secured/boarded up o Maintained grass cut, etc. Report abandoned properties or suspected squatter concerns to us if you are aware of them or if a house or building looks abandoned and is not secured or properly maintained.
If you notice any of the following examples in your community or a community in Prince George s County through which you are traveling, please report the address to us so we can work together in addressing property standards:
Exterior walls with holes, breaks or loose and rotting materials. Exterior walls with peeling flaking paint.
Gutters and downspouts in disrepair or obstructed with leaf, branch or other debris or a noticeable build-up of soil, weeds or debris around downspouts Windows or doors in poor condition or with noticeable broken glass
Bare yards or properties not covered with grass or other plant materials Grass not mowed and approximately 12 or higher Yards or properties not cleaned and free of litter or debris
Invasive weeds in yards or on properties Dead trees, fallen limbs or large branches on yards or properties
Stored items in yards or on properties... Appliances Furniture Mattresses Building Materials Garbage Vehicle Parts
Also, please report: Wrecked, dismantled, inoperable or unlicensed vehicles parked in driveways, in yards or on the public streets or rights-of-way Commercial vehicles parked in residential communities on a driveway or the public street or right-of-way, unless a vehicle operator is performing work on the property
Vehicles (cars, trucks, motorcycles, etc.), parked on an unpaved area of the property Businesses, such as a car repair shop, operating out of a home or on a residential property
And, of growing concern to many of our partners is the number of individuals living in a single family dwelling. Therefore, if you suspect that too many unrelated individuals are living in a single dwelling unit, house, etc., please contact us, and we will investigate.
And a friendly reminder... When discarding bulky items such as hot water heaters, lawn mowers, mattresses, furniture, etc., please do not put them in the rights-of-way and hope that they will be picked up. Please call DOE s Bulky Trash Collection at 301.952.7600 to schedule an appointment for removal of discarded items. Bulky trash items should be placed at the curb the night before the scheduled pick-up.
Please, periodically survey your communities, and if a property looks vacant, abandoned, blighted or if you suspect squatters, let us know. With your help, we can work to ensure that abandoned, foreclosed or blighted properties, and those scheduled for demolition, are secured and maintained properly. To report a property, please e-mail the street address to: hahijazi@co.pg.md.us or sdhubbard@co.pg.md.us. You also can call 311 or go on-line to CountyClick.