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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2007/06/11 Board of Appeals & Advisors Agenda PacketCITY OF CHULA VISTA BOARD OF APPEALS AND ADVISORS REGULAR MEETING AGENDA Monday — 5:15 p.m. Planning & Building Conference Room, #137 Public Services Building 276 Fourth Avenue, Chula Vista, CA 91910 CALL MEETING TO ORDER/ROLL CALL Flach Romo_ Buddingh_ Hieronimus_ Andrews_ Turner. 1. DECLARATION OF EXCUSED/UNEXCUSED ABSENTEEISM: 2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: None 3. NEW BUSINESS: June 11, 2007 West_ A. Board will be nominating and electing new Chairperson and Vice -Chair for FY07-08. B. Property Transfer Report. C. Distressed Property Registration Program. 4. CHAIRMAN'S COMMENTS/REPORTS: 5. BUILDING OFFICIAL'S COMMENTS/REPORTS: 6. COMMUNICATIONS (PUBLIC REMARKS/WRITTEN CORRESPONDENCE): 7. ADJOURNMENT AT TO REGULARLY SCHEDULED MEETING ON MONDAY, July 9, 2007 AT 5:15 PM IN CONFERENCE ROOM 137 BRAD REMP, C.B.O. DATE ASST. DIR. OF PLANNING & BUILDING/BUILDING OFFICIAL SECRETARY TO THE BOARD OF APPEALS AND ADVISORS COMPLIANCE WITH AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT The City of Chula Vista, in complying with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), request individuals who require special accommodations to access, attend, and/or participate in a City meeting, activity, or service, request such accommodation at least forty-eight hours in advance for meetings and five days for scheduled services and activities. Please contact Eileen Dimagiba, Secretary, for specific information at (619) 407-3510 or Telecommunications Device for the Deaf (TDD) at (619) 585-5647. California Relay Service is also available for the hearing impaired. J:\Bld_Hsg\Judi Bell\Board of Appeals & Advisors\06.11.2007a.doc BOARD OF APPEALS AND ADVISORS STAFF REPORT Item: 3B Meeting Date: June 11, 2007 ITEM TITLE: Property Transfer Report Program SUBMITTED BY: Brad Remp, C.B.O., Assistant Director of Planning and Building The Planning and Building Department is requesting the Board of Appeals and Advisor's endorsement to implement a new program that will enhance the City's ability to detect and resolve code enforcement violations that arise from construction work that has been undertaken without benefit of obtaining appropriate permits. Staff investigations have revealed that frequently such unpermitted work represent significant fire and life safety hazards. This program will focus attention on ensuring that potential buyers of existing homes are given relevant code enforcement information about the legal status of the property prior to completion of the sale. Sellers of residential property, or their agents, will be responsible for requesting a property transfer report from the City with 10 days of placing the property on the market for sale. A fee of $70 per report will be charged as a means of recovering the cost of administering the program. RECOMMENDATION: Endorse adoption of the attached proposed ordinance establishing a requirement for residential property sellers to obtain a property transfer report from the City prior to sale of the property. DISCUSSION: The City of Chula Vista has experienced a significant increase in the number of residential properties that have undergone building construction modifications without appropriate permits. Many of these modifications were initiated as a means of creating additional habitable space, often for the purpose of creating rental income for the current owners. These modifications range from the typical conversion of a bay or several bays of a garage into additional bedrooms to erection of additional stand-alone dwelling units on the property. Staff investigations have revealed that most of these modified properties contain significant fire and life safety violations of the building codes. These violations expose the inhabitants to both an unreasonable level of health and safety risk as well as the potential for significant financial loss because insurance companies are generally not required to compensate policyholders who have illegal construction. Unfortunately, these types of illegal construction types of violations are frequently not disclosed when the property is sold, even though State Law requires such disclosure. Ultimately, the new owner becomes the responsible party to resolve the violations once this unpermitted work is identified. This Ordinance will mandate that the seller, or his/her agent, request a property transfer report from the City within 10 days of placing the residential property on the market. To cover the anticipated costs of administering the program, a $70 fee will be charged. Staff is currently working with an outside vendor to automate this research process to the extent that the report will be immediately Page 2, Item Meeting Date 6/11/07 available via access to an Internet website. This automated process will significantly reduce the amount of time and effort that sellers and agents will need to spend on securing this information. Staff's research into this program revealed that approximately 23 other jurisdictions in California have been successfully using such a program. While many of these other jurisdictions have also incorporated the inclusion of a mandatory inspection component into their program, that inspection service is only being offered on a voluntary basis at this time. Overall, these jurisdictions have reported a significant reduction in the level of illegal new construction as a result of implementing their programs. They attribute this improvement to the realization on the part of property owners that all illegal construction will eventually be detected and the cost of resolving the violations will be significantly greater than those that would have been incurred from obtaining the required building permits and inspections at the time of original construction. (B WR/bwr) (h:\bld hsg\bradr\BofA agenda statement property transfer.doc) Attachment: Proposed Property Transfer Report Ordinance ATTACHMENT XXXX RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY TRANSFER REPORT XX.XX.010 AUTHORITY, PURPOSE AND INTENT The city council does find, determine and declare that: (1) This article is adopted pursuant to the authority of Government Code § 38780 et seq. and other applicable law. (2) Citizens, residents, residential property owners and potential residential property owners in the city need information about residential property proposed for sale or transfer in order to adequately protect their interests in a sale or transfer. Building and zoning records of the city constitute an important source of such information. Therefore, it is one of the purposes of this article to assist in, but not guarantee, the disclosure of information from city records about residential property within the city. (3) It is also a purpose of this article to assist the city in reducing and preventing violations of building and zoning ordinances by providing the owner of real property with information as to permitted and illegal uses as well as permitted and illegal construction (4) It is also the purpose of this article to assist the city in abating public nuisances and enforcing its building and zoning ordinances by identifying properties in violation of its codes. (5) It is the further intent of the city to aid in the protection of the unwary buyer (consumer?) of such property against undisclosed illegal construction, uses and /or restrictions on the property. XX.XX.020 DEFINITIONS For the purposes of this chapter, certain words and phrases used in this chapter are defined as follows: " Agreement " means any verbal agreement or written instrument, which provides that title to residential property, shall be transferred or conveyed from one owner to another owner after the sale, trade, transfer or exchange. "Authorized representative" means a licensed real estate agent, real estate broker or other professional that is trained and experienced in the sale, trade, transfer or exchange of real property who is authorized by State law or local ordinance to represent the owner and/or buyer of real property in such a transaction. ATTACHMENT "Bum" shall mean any person, co -partnership, association, corporation, or fiduciary who agrees to transfer anything of value in consideration for property described in an agreement of sale, as defined in this subsection. "Commercial building" means any improved real property, or portion thereof, situated in the city, designed or permitted to be used for commercial purposes, and shall include the buildings and structures located on such improved real property. This includes any real property being offered for sale, trade, transfers, or exchange as "commercial" whether or not it is legally permitted and/or zoned for such use. "Consummation of the sale or exchange" means the signing of final documents at the close of escrow, which documents provide that title to any property is transferred from one owner to another owner. "Days" means consecutive calendar days. "Exchange" means the transfer of the title of real property in consideration for cash or for something other than cash. "Industrial building" means any improved real property, or portion thereof, situated in the city, designed or permitted to be used for industrial purposes, and shall include the buildings and structures located on such improved real property. This includes any real property being offered for sale, trade, transfers, or exchange as "industrial" whether or not it is legally permitted and/or zoned for such use. "On-site Inspection Report" means the document issued by the city based on a physical inspection of the property resulting from a request of an interested party. Such report is issued in conjunction with the Residential Property Transfer Report. "Owner" means any person, co -partnership, association, corporation, or fiduciary having a legal or equitable title or any interest in any real property. "Owner of record" shall mean the person having recorded title to the property at any given point in time, and may mean either the buyer or seller depending upon the timing of transfer of title. "Property" means any unimproved or improved real property, or portion thereof, situated in the city and includes the buildings or structures located on the property. "Residential Property Transfer Report" (Report) means the document issued by the city pursuant to this cahpter. "Residential building" means any improved real property, or portion thereof, situated in the city, designed or permitted to be used for dwelling purposes, and shall include the buildings and structures located on such improved real property. This includes any real 2 ATTACHMENT property being offered for sale, trade, transfers, or exchange as "residential" whether or not it is legally permitted and/or zoned for such use. XX.XX.030 REPORT REQUIRED Within ten (10) days of the listing of any residential property for sale, trade, transfer or exchange within the city it shall be the duty of the owner, or if the property is listed with a licensed real estate agent/broker, it shall be the duty of such agent/broker, to apply for a Real Property Transfer Report (Report). XX.XX.040 APPLICATION - REPORTABLE ITEMS - TIMELINE Upon timely application of the owner or his authorized representative on the proper forms provided by the city and the payment to the city of a fee established by the City Council under separate resolution, the building official or his authorized representative shall review pertinent city records and deliver to the applicant a report which shall contain the following information insofar as it is available: BASIC SITUS Address Assessors Parcel Number (APN#) Legal Description ZONING Zoning Designation Inconsistency between General Plan and Current Zoning Variances, Conditional Use Permits, Precise Plans Conversion/Alterations Approvals Administrative/Legal Acts of Record (zone changes etc.) Redevelopment Area Rent Control District BUILDING RECORDS Date of Construction Building Permits — dates issued and status finaled/open/expired ENFORCEMENT ACTION — FEES Open Code Enforcement Action Recordations/Liens Fees/Fines/Penalties *Exterior Inspection Observations (*Upon On-site Inspection request only) *Interior Inspection Observations (*Upon On-site Inspection request only) ATTACHMENT OCCUPANT/RESIDENT SAFETY Freeway Proximity Health Assessment OTHER SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS Historical Designation Flood Plain Fire Hazard Severity Any other information and/or records located related to the real property not exempted by the California Public Records Act. The Residential Property Transfer Report shall be delivered to the requesting party within ten (10) days of receipt of the application and fee. An On-site Inspection Report, should one be requested, shall be delivered to the requesting party within thirty (30) days of receipt of the application and fee. Such delivery may be made in person, by facsimile, 1 S` class mail or electronic media. Nothing in this section sell prohibit the owner of a residential property from requesting the Residential Property Transfer Report and/or an On-site Property Inspection prior to listing the property for sale. XX.XX.050 VOLUNTARY ON-SITE PROPERTY INSPECTION A potential buyer or other interested party may, at their own expense, request an On-site Property Inspection for any property actively listed for sale, trade, transfer or exchange. A physical property inspection may only be conducted upon written consent of the property owner, and tenant if tenant occupied, regardless of the individual or entity requesting the report. Any application for report made by the owner of the property subject to the report shall be deemed written consent. XX.XX.060 SCOPE OF INSPECTION Inspections conducted in conjunction with the preparation of a report shall be limited to the exterior areas of the subject property unless an interior inspection has been requested and consent obtained or if the building official or his designee has reasonable cause to believe that a main dwelling unit has been illegally subdivided, the garage or other building or portion thereof illegally converted to living space. In these cases an interior inspection of such building shall be conducted. If the owner and /or tenant refuses to consent to an exterior/interior inspection for which a request has been made a notice of "denied access" will be provided to the requestor noting any and all conditions observed from the public right of way. XX.XX.070 DELIVERY OF REPORT No owner or their authorized representative, of real property shall enter into a agreement to transfer title and/or convey ownership for such residential property without first M ATTACHMENT providing the prospective buyer a copy of the Residential Property Transfer Report (and On-site Inspection Report if such has been requested and prepared). Any title and/or escrow company processing the sale, trade, transfer or exchange of such real property, prior to the closing the sale and transferring funds and title, shall obtain from the buyer a written acknowledgement of receipt of the Residential Property Transfer Report. If there is no escrow such written acknowledgement shall be obtained prior to the consummation of the sale, trade, transfer or exchange Within ten (10) days of the close of escrow or the consummation of the sale or exchange the escrow officer, or in the absence of an escrow, the owner or their authorized representative, shall file with the building official or his designee, a copy of the acknowledgement of receipt of the report signed by the buyer. XX.XX.080 EXPIRATION OF REPORT Such report(s) shall be valid for a period not to exceed six months after the date of issue; provided, however, upon an application made by the owner and filed with the building official on a form provided by the city stating that no changes, alterations, improvements, or additions have been made since the date of the issuance of the original report, such original report shall be valid at no additional cost for an additional period not to exceed six months, dated from the date of the expiration of the first six month report. XX.XX090 REMEDIATION - CORRECTIVE ACTION In accordance with XX.XX.050 if violations are observed that are an imminent threat to life safety the building official or his designee shall issue a notice of violation, or other such notice allowed per CVMC Chapter 1.30, 1.40 and 1.41, to the owner of record containing the violations, corrective action required and time frames for compliance. If violations do not constitute a imminent risk to life and safety the building official or his designated representative is authorized to delay immediate enforcement of violations observed as the result of conducting the physical inspection and completing the report if the buyer or proposed buyer of the subject property executes and records with the San Diego County Recorder's Office, a Compliance Agreement with the City promising to correct code violations within such times as the buyer and the building official or his designated representative may agree upon, not to exceed one year. XX.XX.100 EXCEPTIONS The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to the following: 5 ATTACHMENT (a) The first sale of real property located in a new residential subdivision whose final map has been approved and recorded not more than two (2) years prior to the first sale; (b) The first sale of real property that contains a new building or structure that has not been previously unoccupied; (c) Mobilehomes and trailers occupying land on a month-to-month rental or annual agreement where land sales are not involved and the use is in compliance with local zoning requirements; (d) Transfers pursuant to court order, including, but not limited to, transfers ordered by a probate court in administration of an estate, transfers pursuant to a writ of execution, transfers by a trustee in bankruptcy, transfers by eminent domain, or transfers resulting from a decree for specific performance, except in any and all events when a sale or transfer occurs to a third party, a report is required; (e) Transfers to a mortgagee by a mortgagor in default, transfers to a beneficiary of a deed of trust by a trustor in default, transfers by any foreclosure sale after default, transfers by any foreclosure sale after default in an obligation secured by a mortgage, or transfers by a sale under a power of sale after a default in an obligation secured by a deed of trust or secured by any other instrument containing a power of sale. NOTE: When a property is listed for sale, that has been the subject of a foreclosure sale where the title was retained by the beneficiary of a deed of trust involved in the foreclosure and any properties transferred under a deed in lieu of foreclosure/sale, a Real Property Transfer Report AND On-site Property Inspection ARE required; (f) Transfers by a fiduciary in the course of the administration of a guardianship, conservatorship, except if such transfer is a sale; (g) Transactions solely for the purpose of refinancing existing debt secured by the real property. Transactions for the purpose of establishing an equity line of credit and/or additional mortgage debt secured by the real property require a Real Property Transfer Report. (h) Transfers from one co-owner to one or more co-owners; (i) Transfers into a trust or living trust where the owner is the beneficiary or trustee of the trust; (j) Transfers made to a spouse, or to a person or persons in the lineal line of consanguinity of one or more of the transferors; (k) Transfers between spouses resulting from a decree of dissolution of a marriage or a decree of legal separation or from a property settlement agreement incidental to such decrees; (1) Transfers by the State Controller in the course of administering the Unclaimed Property Law (Chapter 7 commencing with Section 1500) of Title 10 of Part 3 of the Code of Civil Procedure); (in) Transfers to a governmental entity under eminent domain or threat of eminent domain. ATTACHMENT XX.XX.110 FEES The fee for a standard Residential Property Transfer Report shall be set by resolution of the City Council. The fee for an On-site Property Inspection shall be equivalent to two (2) hours of the current full cost recovery rate at the time of the request for single family dwelling to include duplexes and accessory second dwelling units. Multi -family residential properties (three or more units) will be charged current full cost recovery rate for the actual time required to perform the inspection, research and write the inspection report. A minimum deposit equal to two (2) hours of full cost recovery shall be remitted prior to scheduling an inspection. XX.XX.120 CANCELLATION OF REQUEST A refund of the fee accompanying an application for a report shall be made if a written request for refund is made prior to review of City records necessary to prepare the report. An administrative charge of twenty percent (20%) of the application fee shall be withheld from any refund granted pursuant to this section. No refunds will be made for a report after the records review and/or physical inspection of the property have been completed. XX.XX.130 WAIVER OF REPORT In the alternative to obtaining a report the owner and buyer may agree to waive the report upon purchase of title insurance that will cover any undisclosed/unidentified/unknown illegal construction and/or use. Such agreement must be filed with the building official or his designee on forms provided by the city and shall be accompanied by a copy of the title insurance policy on the residential property subject to the sale, trade, transfer or exchange. XX.XX.140 VALIDITY OF TRANSACTION No sale, trade, transfer or exchange of real property shall be invalidated solely because of the failure of any person to comply with any provision of this chapter. XX.XX.150 NON -ESTOPPEL DISCLAIMER Nothing contained herein shall be construed to estop or prevent the city from taking any and all action to enforce the provisions of any law, ordinance or regulation, which the city may have. Specifically, the omission from a report required hereby of any illegal construction of an addition, modification or alteration shall not act to prevent the city from thereafter causing the illegal condition to be brought into compliance or abated. 7 ATTACHMENT XX.XX.160 LIABILITY The report does not address or guarantee the structural stability of any existing building, nor does it relieve the owner/buyer, their agent(s), architect, or builder from designing and building a structurally stable building which meets the requirements of adopted codes and ordinances. Nor does the preparation of and delivery of any report required under this section impose any mandatory duty upon the city, nor shall it impose any liability on the city or be deemed to constitute a waiver of any statutory immunities afforded to the city. The issuance of the report is not a warranty or representation by the city that the property or its present use is or is not in compliance with the law. The city does not represent or warrant that the information contained in the report will always be complete and accurate, and all persons receiving the report should independently verify the inforniation contained therein before relying on it. XX.XX.170 APPEALS Any owner and/or buyer aggrieved by the determinations and/or information contained in the report relative to the legality of structures and/or uses at the location that is the subject of the report may appeal in accordance with Chapter 1.40. Any appeal must be made within ten (10) days of the date of issuance of the report XX.XX.180 VIOLATION - PENALTY It shall be unlawful for the owner of a real property affected by this Chapter to sell, trade, transfer or exchange a real property without first having obtained and delivered to the buyer a Real Property Transfer Report in accordance with the requirements of this Chapter. Violations of this Chapter shall be subject to prosecution and/or enforcement under CVMC Chapter1.20 and 1.41. BOARD OF APPEALS AND ADVISORS STAFF REPORT Item: 3C Meeting Date: June 11, 2007 ITEM TITLE: Abandoned Property Registration Program SUBMITTED BY: Brad Remp, C.B.O., Assistant Director of Planning and Building The Planning and Building Department is requesting the Board of Appeals and Advisor's endorsement to implement a new program to help ensure residential neighborhoods are spared the negative impacts associated with abandoned properties. This Ordinance will require lenders that own abandoned homes in Chula Vista to pay a fee to register those homes with the City's Code Enforcement Section and to retain the services of a local property maintenance company. Registration will facilitate periodic monitoring by Code Enforcement staff and provide a mechanism for staff and neighbors to alert the local property maintenance company of the need to take action to maintain the property. A fee of $70 per property will be charged as a means of recovering the cost of administering the program. RECOMMENDATION: Endorse adoption of the attached proposed ordinance establishing a requirement for lenders that own vacant residential homes to register those properties with the City and to retain the services of a local property maintenance company to respond to requests for required maintenance. DISCUSSION: It has been a well reported fact that there has been a significant increase in the number of residential properties in default or foreclosure. Chula Vista has been particularly vulnerable to this phenomenon due to the large number of new homes that were constructed during 2001 to 2005. Many of these new homes were purchased using risky financing arrangements offerred by lenders specilizing in sub -prime loans. Many of the Adjustable Rate Mortages (ARM) have now adjusted upwardly to the point that the owners cannot afford the new payments nor can they refinance their homes due to lack of equity or inability to meet the new qualifying standards to acquire a new loan. The owners are defaulting and lenders are foreclosing on an increasing number of homes in our community. Residential properties that fall into financial distress or default often become vacant. Routinely, security and maintenance of these properties is negelected by the out -of -area lender while the property processes through the default/forclosure process. This process can take several months to complete, all the while the property is abandoned with no maintenance or security. The mortgage industry has reported that the existence of an abandoned and distressed property adjacent to their listed properties typically reduces their property's value by approximately $50,000. This situation not only impacts the individual property owner, but also the City's property tax revenues. We believe it is in the City's best interests to invest staff resources into a program that will help maintain property values in our residential neighborhoods. In addition, the Chula Vista Police Department has reported seeing a trend develop that indicates that some of these abandoned homes are being used for illegal purposes by transients, drug users and even becoming the sites of Page 2, Item 3C Meeting Date 6/11/07 massive unsupervised parties. Responding to these types of incidents represents an unwarranted drain on our public safety resources. (BwR/bwr) (hAbld hsg\bradr\BofA agenda statement property transfer.doc) Attachment: Proposed Property Transfer Report Ordinance ATTACHMENT XX.XX ABANDONED RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY REGISTRATION XX.XX.010 PURPOSE/SCOPE It is the purpose and intent of the Chula Vista City Council, through the adoption of this Chapter, to establish an abandoned residential property registration program as a mechanism to protect residential neighborhoods from becoming blighted through the lack of adequate maintenance and security of abandoned properties. XX.XX.020 DEFINITIONS For the purposes of this chapter, certain words and phrases used in this chapter are defined as follows: "Abandoned" means a property that is vacant and is under a current Notice of Default and/or Notice of Trustee's Sale, Pending Tax Assessors Lien Sale and/or properties that have been the subject of a foreclosure sale where the title was retained by the beneficiary of a deed of trust involved in the foreclosure and any properties transferred under a deed in lieu of foreclosure/sale. "Accessible property" means a property that is accessible through a compromised/breached gate, fence, wall etc.. "Accessible structure" means a structure/building that is unsecured and/or breached in such a way as to allow access to the interior space by unauthorized persons. "Agreement" means any verbal agreement or written instrument, which provides that title to residential property, shall be transferred or conveyed from one owner to another owner after the sale, trade, transfer or exchange. . "Assignment of Rents" means an instrument that transfers the beneficial interest under a deed of trust from one lender/entity to another. "Beneficiary" means a lender under a note secured by a deed of trust. "Buyer" shall mean any person, co -partnership, association, corporation, or fiduciary who agrees to transfer anything of value in consideration for property described in an agreement of sale, as defined in this subsection. "Dangerous building" means any building/structure that is violation of any condition referenced in CVMC Chapter 15.18. "Days" means consecutive calendar days. ATTACHMENT "Deed of Trust" means an instrument by which title to real estate is transferred to a third party trustee as security for a real estate loan. Used in California instead of a mortga�e. This definition applies to any and all subsequent deeds of trust i.e.: 2nd trust deed, 3` trust deed, etc. "Deed in lieu of foreclosure/sale" means a recorded document that transfers ownership of a property from the trustor to the holder of a deed of trust upon consent of the beneficiary of the deed of trust. "Default" means the failure to fulfill a contractual obligation, monetary or conditional. "Distressed" means a property that is under a current Notice of Default and/or Notice of Trustee's Sale and/or pending tax assessor's lien Sale or has been foreclosed upon by the trustee or has been conveyed to the beneficiary/trustee via a deed in lieu of foreclosure/sale. "Evidence of vacancy" means any condition that on its own, or combined with other conditions present would lead a reasonable person to believe that the property is vacant. Such conditions include but are not limited to, overgrown and/or dead vegetation, accumulation of newspapers, circulars, flyers and/or snail, past due utility notices and/or disconnected utilities, accumulation of trash, junk and/or debris, the absence of window coverings such as curtains, blinds and/or shutters, the absence of furnishings and/or personal items consistent with residential habitation, statements by neighbors, passersby, delivery agents, government employees, such as postal workers, meter readers, trash collectors, etc. that the property is vacant. "Foreclosure" means the process by which a property, placed as security for a real estate loan, is sold at auction to satisfy the debt if the trustor (borrower) defaults. "Local" means within a thirty (30) mile radius of the subject property. "Neighborhood standard" means those conditions that are present on a simply majority of properties within a three hundred (300) foot radius of an individual property. A property that is the subject of a neighborhood standard comparison, or any other abandoned property within the three hundred (300) foot radius, shall not be counted toward the simply majority. "Notice of Default" means 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. "On-site Inspection Report" means the document issued by the city based on a physical inspection of the property. Such report is issued in conjunction with the Residential Property Transfer Report in CVMC Chapter XX.XX. "Out of area" means in excess of thirty (30) miles from the subject property. 2 ATTACHMENT "Owner" means any person, co -partnership, association, corporation, or fiduciary having a legal or equitable title or any interest in any real property. "Owner of record" shall mean the person having recorded title to the property at any given point in time the record is provided by the San Diego County Recorders Office. "Property" means any unimproved or improved real property, or portion thereof, situated in the city and includes the buildings or structures located on the property regardless of condition. "Residential Property Transfer Report" means the document issued by the city pursuant to CVMC Chapter XX.XX. "Residential building" means any improved real property, or portion thereof, situated in the city, designed or permitted to be used for dwelling purposes, and shall include the buildings and structures located on such improved real property. This includes any real property being offered for sale, trade, transfer, or exchange as "residential" whether or not it is legally permitted and/or zoned for such use. "Securing" means such measures as may be directed that assist in rendering the property inaccessible to unauthorized persons, including but not limited to the repairing of fences and walls, chaining/pad locking of gates, boarding of door, window and/or other openings to a minimum of the current HUD securing standards at the time securing is required. "Trustee" person, firm or corporation holding a Deed of Trust on a property. "Trustor" means a borrower under a deed of trust, who deeds property to a trustee as security for the payment of a debt. "Vacant" means a building/structure that is not legally occupied. XX.XX.030 RECORDATION OF TRANSFER OF LOAN/DEED OF TRUST/ ASSIGNMENT OF RENTS Within ten (10) days of the purchase and/or transfer of a loan/deed of trust the new beneficiary/trustee shall file with the San Diego County Recorders Office, an Assignment of Rents, or similar document, that lists the name of the corporation, and/or individual, the mailing address and contact phone number of the new beneficiary/trustee responsible for receiving payments associated with the loan/deed of trust. XX.XX.040 REGISTRATION Any beneficiary/trustee, who holds deed of trust on a property located within the City of Chula Vista, shall perform an inspection of the property that is the security of the deed of trust upon default by the trustor, prior to filing a Notice of Default with the San Diego ATTACHMENT County Recorders Office. If the property is found to be vacant, or shows evidence of vacancy, it is deemed abandoned and the beneficiary/trustee shall, within ten (10) days of the inspection, register the property with the Director of Planning and Building or his designee on forms provided by the City. If the property is occupied but remains in default it shall be inspected by the beneficiary/trustee, or his designee, monthly until 1) The trustor other or party remedies the default or 2) It is found to be vacant or shows evidence of vacancy at which time it is deemed abandoned, and the trustee shall, within ten (10) days of that inspection, register the property with the Director of Planning and Building or his designee on forms provided by the City. In either case the registration shall contain the name of the beneficiary/trustee (corporation or individual), the direct street/office mailing address of the beneficiary/ trustee (no P. O. Boxes), a direct contact name and phone number for the beneficiary/trustee and, in the case of a corporation or out of area beneficiary/trustee, the local property management company responsible for the security, maintenance and marketing of the property. The registration shall be accompanied by an annual registration fee set by the City Council. The property shall remain under the annual registration requirement and security and maintenance standards of this section as long as it remains vacant. This section shall also apply to properties that have been the subject of a foreclosure sale where the title was retained by the beneficiary of a deed of trust involved in the foreclosure and any properties transferred under a deed in lieu of foreclosure/sale. XX.XX.050 MAINTENANCE REQUIREMENTS Properties subject to this section shall be kept substantially free of weeds, dry brush, dead vegetation, trash, junk, debris, building materials, any accumulation of newspapers, circulars, flyers, notices, accept 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. The property shall be kept free of graffiti, tagging or similar markings. Visible front and side yards shall be landscaped and maintained to the neighborhood standard at the time registration was required. Landscape includes, but is not limited to, grass, ground covers, bushes, shrubs, hedges or similar plantings, decorative rock or bark or artificial turf/sod designed specifically for residential installation. M ATTACHMENT Landscape does not include weeds, gravel, broken concrete, asphalt, decomposed granite, plastic sheeting, mulch, indoor -outdoor carpet or any similar material. Maintenance includes, but is not limited to regular watering, irrigation, cutting, pruning and mowing of required landscaped and removal of all trimmings. Pools and spas shall be kept in working order so as to maintain the water clear or drained and kept dry. In either case properties with pools and/or spas must comply with minimum security fencing requirements of the Sate of California. Adherence to this section does not relieve the beneficiary/trustee or property owner of any obligations set forth in any Covenants Conditions and Restrictions and/or Home Owners Association rules and regulations which may apply to the property. Within ten (10) days of listing the property for sale the seller or his authorized representative, shall apply for a Residential Property Transfer Report and an On-site Inspection Report from the City as contained in CVMC Chapter XX.XX. XX.XX.060 SECURITY REQUIREMENTS Properties subject to this section shall be maintained secure so as not to be accessible to unauthorized persons. In the case of a corporation and/or out of area beneficiary/trustee/owner, a local property management company shall be contracted to perform weekly inspections to verify that the requirements of this section, and any other applicable laws, are being met. The property shall be posted with name of the and 24-hour contact phone number of the local property management company.The posting shall be no less than 18" X 24" and shall be of a font that is legible from a distance of forty-five (45) feet and shall contain along with the name and 24-hour contact number, the words "THIS PROPERTY MANAGED BY" and "TO REPORT PROBLEMS OR CONCERNS CALL". The posting shall be placed on the interior of a window facing the street to the front of the property so it is visible from the street, or secured to the exterior of the building/structure facing the street to the front of the property so it is visible from the street or if no such area exists, on a stake of sufficient size to support the posting in a location that is visual from the street to the front of the property but not readily accessible to vandals. The local property management company shall inspect the property on a weekly basis to determine if the property is in compliance with the requirements of this chapter. XX.XX.070 ADDITIONAL AUTHORITY In addition to the enforcement remedies established in sections 1.20 and 1.4 1, the Director of Planning and Building or his designee shall have the authority to require the beneficiary/trustee/owner and/or owner of record of any property effected by this section, to implement additional maintenance and/or security measures including but not limited 5 ATTACHMENT to, securing any/all door, window or other openings, installing additional security lighting, increasing on-site inspection frequency, employment of an on-site security guard or other measures as may be reasonably required to arrest the decline of the property. XX.XX.080 APPEALS Any person aggrieved by any of the requirements of this section my appeal insofar as such appeal is allowed under Chapter 1.40. XX.XX.090 VIOLATION/PENALTY Violations of this chapter shall be treated as a strict liability offense regardless of intent. Any person, firm and/or corporation that violates any portion of this section shall be subject to prosecution and/or administrative enforcement under Chapters 1.20 and 1.41. 0