A recent article in the Dayton Daily News discusses the successes of their rental registry/inspection program. Some of the results include; Rental property violations dropped by more than half, in the past two years. FinesREAD MORE
New York State Cities for Responsible Investment and Strategic Enforcement (Cities RISE) Program
As previously reported, in July 2019 New York State Attorney General Letitia James announced $9 million in grants to address the growing statewide issue of “zombie homes” – vacant or abandoned homes that are notREAD MORE
Dallas Task Force on Safe Communities Report
During the Summer of 2019, following increased gun violence and tragedies that took the lives of children, Mayor Eric Johnson announced the creation of the Mayor’s Task Force on Safe Communities. The Task Force receivedREAD MORE
Enactment of NYS S.5079-A/A.1859-A “Zombie Property Remediation Act of 2019”
On December 18th issued the following press release regarding his signing of the “Zombie Property Remediation Act of 2019” To view the final language, please click here. To view local reporting, please click here. NewREAD MORE
New Path to the American Dream
Property conditions are generally contingent on several factors. Of course occupancy status is the primary factor but there are several others including usage and who resides in the property (i.e. owner occupant vs. rental/tenant). However,READ MORE
“Zombie Foreclosures” – New Federal Guidelines for “OREO”
On October 22, 2019 the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) amended the regulations and issued a final rule, effective December 1, 2019, for “other real estate owned,” activities for national banks andREAD MORE
Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta White Paper on VPROs
The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta just released a white paper on “VPROs” titled, “Foreclosure Externalities and Vacant Property Registration Ordinances” Not surprisingly the study showed positive outcomes from the implementation of a vacant propertyREAD MORE
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) Proposes a “Tenant Protection Bureau”
Several of the 2020 Presidential hopefuls have revealed their housing plans, mostly focused on affordable housing. Recently Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) released an updated proposal which advocates for the creation of a “Tenant Protection Bureau”,READ MORE
Pennsylvania Restore PA Initiative Update
As previously reported, Pennsylvania Governor Wolf has taken an aggressive approach to the fight against blight. Additional information is now available on the Governor’s website. For an overview of the Combatting Blight component, please clickREAD MORE
Innovative Solution for a Health Care Crisis, a Solution for Vacant and Abandoned Properties?
A radical fix for a U.S. health-care crisis prominently utilizes vacant and abandoned properties. In a recent feature, Bloomberg Businessweek discusses the MyConnections program currently being tested in Phoenix. The brainchild of Jeffrey Brenner, M.D.READ MORE
Flint MI Recipient of a Cities of Service 2019 Engaged Cities Award
Flint MI was one of three recipients of the Cities of Service 2019 Engaged Cities Award. Underwritten by Bloomberg Philanthropies, the award recognizes cutting-edge techniques to engage residents to solve problems.Each winning city receives aREAD MORE
MA H 177 An Act relative to neighborhood stabilization and economic development
Massachusetts H 177 (and accompanying bill S 1627) originally introduced in January had hearings in October. The bill “would form a commission to study strategies for improving the quality of housing stock in weak markets,READ MORE