Tired of empty, overgrown lots, Bradenton code enforcement will use new tool — foreclosure
City officials are ready to turn longstanding liens into property foreclosures — a move that would increase the tax base and improve struggling neighborhoods.
According to code enforcement staff, there are about a dozen properties that have been hit with liens, but the owners refuse to bring their property into compliance. The solution could be for the city to take possession and auction off the properties, according to Matt Weidner, an attorney who specializes in code enforcement cases.
“The bottom line is this: throughout the community, you’ve got vacant areas. Well, code enforcement slaps a lien against it, and until you do something about it, the property is going to sit and you have to look at it forever,” Weidner said. “There is a tool you can use.”
By using a lien foreclosure program, Bradenton could start putting these neglected parcels of land into the hands of buyers who are willing to maintain the property. Bradenton City Council previously discussed a need to begin foreclosing on properties with hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines at a meeting in August.
“We hope we can take care of the worst of the worst and remove the people who own them now,” said Volker Reiss, the city’s code enforcement manager. “We want to give it to someone who will be responsible for owning the property.”
“What we’re presenting does not change or revolutionize code enforcement. It fills a gap that we have at the very end of our process,” he added.
When code violations pile up, the city moves to place a lien on the property, which prevents the homeowner from selling or transferring the property to someone else until the code enforcement fines are paid.
Reiss explained that he deals with several “nightmare” property owners who refuse to maintain their land. As a result, the city pays workers to cut the grass on these properties, draining time, resources and money.
But the new program won’t cost taxpayers any money, according to Weidner. It costs $2,000 for the city to begin the legal process of foreclosing on property with a lien on it, but that fee, along with any other legal fees, would be paid by the buyer at the auction. Weidner’s law office would represent the city throughout the entire process, receiving a cut of the payment after the property is sold.
At Wednesday morning’s workshop meeting, staff assured the Bradenton City Council that the new program wouldn’t pursue foreclosure for homes that are still occupied, only vacant lots and empty buildings.
“You’re not going to get calls from constituents saying that we’re picking on people that are living in that house,” Weidner said.
Councilman Patrick Roff said he supported the new program, especially considering how it would put forgotten property back on the city’s tax roll.
“It’s hurting. It’s hurting economically,” Roff said of the city’s current approach. “Now we get to turn these neighborhoods around and get the added value in taxes.”
This story was originally published February 6, 2020 at 5:00 AM.
