[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees
of the Village of Rye Brook 3-13-2001 by L.L. No. 1-2001. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
This chapter establishes criteria for the 12
affordable middle-income units at BelleFair required under Condition
16 of the High Point Village (now BelleFair) PUD approval resolution
adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village of Rye Brook on January
27, 1998. The purpose of this chapter is to implement Condition 16
and thereby to encourage the development of additional housing options
to assist in accommodating a Village and regional demographic need
for affordable home ownership opportunities, to establish priorities
intended to assist in attracting and retaining qualified Village,
school district, town and emergency service organization personnel,
and in encouraging residents to remain in the community.
An affordable middle-income unit under this
chapter shall be constructed, sold, resold, conveyed and occupied
only as provided in this chapter.
The BelleFair Home and Land Company shall be
responsible for constructing 12 affordable middle-income units consistent
with the approved site plan. Such units shall be constructed using
materials, mechanical systems and exterior finishes as shown on the
plans approved by the Village's Board of Architectural Review, and
in accordance with, or at least equivalent to, the construction specification
details approved by the Board of Trustees on February 13, 2001.
The BelleFair Home and Land Company shall be responsible for the marketing and initial sales of the 12 affordable middle-income units in accordance with the provisions of this chapter. The Village of Rye Brook is not the seller, nor an agent for the seller, of the affordable middle-income units. However, the Village of Rye Brook may act during marketing to ensure adequate outreach to prospective purchasers among those groups noted in §§ 6-1 and 6-7. Prior to conducting marketing or initial sales, the BelleFair Home and Land Company shall execute and record a declaration of restrictive covenant, satisfactory to the Board of Trustees, to establish permanent provisions addressing the sale and resale of the affordable middle-income units in accordance with this chapter, and will provide a copy of the recorded instrument to the Village. Said declaration of restrictive covenant shall also be included by amendment in the BelleFair Homeowners' Association Offering Plan, a copy of which shall be provided to each prospective purchaser.
A.
The initial sale price of an affordable middle-income
unit shall be not greater than $198,900. On initial sales, the BelleFair
Home and Land Company shall pay at least 1/2 of the BelleFair Homeowners'
Association first-year common charges for each middle-income unit,
for the purpose of increasing its affordability to the initial purchaser.
B.
Subsequent resale of the affordable middle-income
units by each owner thereof shall be at a set price not greater than
the amount derived by multiplying the then prevailing Westchester
County median income for a household of four, established by the United
States Department of Housing and Urban Development (or successor agency),
by 2.39. The multiplier of 2.39 is the relationship between the year
2000 Westchester County median income for a four-person household
of $83,100 and the initial purchase price of $198,900.
A person or persons eligible to purchase an
affordable middle-income unit shall have a total household income
of not more than 115% of the Westchester County median income for
a four-person household, as established by the United States Department
of Housing and Urban Development (or successor agency) at the time
of contracting for purchase. Income eligibility of prospective purchasers
will be verified by the BelleFair Home and Land Company for initial
sales. "Total household income" shall mean all current income of all
household members from any source whatsoever at the time of contracting
for purchase, but excluding earnings of working minors (under 21 years
of age) attending school full-time.
A.
In addition to the income eligibility requirements of § 6-6, and notwithstanding any provision of the Code of the Village of Rye Brook to the contrary, affordable middle-income units shall be sold and resold on the basis of the following priority or order:
(1)
First priority: full-time employees of the Village
of Rye Brook, Blind Brook - Rye Union Free School District, and the
Port Chester - Rye Town Union Free School District, all with a minimum
of one year of such employment.
(2)
Second priority: paid or volunteer firefighters of
a fire department or fire company regularly providing fire services
in the Village of Rye Brook, paid or volunteer members or employees
of the Port Chester - Rye - Rye Brook Volunteer Ambulance Corp., and
members of the Rye Brook Police Auxiliary, all with a minimum of one
year of membership or employment in such organization.
(3)
Third priority: full-time Rye town employees, all
with a minimum of one year of such employment.
(4)
Fourth priority: Village of Rye Brook residents, all
with a minimum of one year of Village residency.
(5)
Fifth priority: others.
A.
The BelleFair Home and Land Company shall promote the availability of applications for the purchase of 12 affordable middle-income units, shall furnish and accept such applications and shall screen all accepted applications for income eligibility, preference group status and creditworthiness. For initial sales, the minimum one-year employment, membership or residency set forth in § 6-7 shall be established as of June 1, 2001. The Village of Rye Brook may assist in promoting the availability of applications to members of the priority groups identified in § 6-7 and may sponsor homebuyers' workshops or other public education activities for those groups.
B.
In the event that eligible applicants do not exceed
the number of affordable middle-income units for sale, the BelleFair
Home and Land Company shall select initial purchasers from among eligible
applicants based upon their priority group status, until all initial
purchasers have been selected.
A.
In the event that eligible applicants exceed the affordable middle-income units available for initial purchase, the Village Administrator shall conduct, or cause to be conducted, a lottery for the selection of initial purchasers from among the eligible applicants already screened by BelleFair Home and Land Company for income eligibility, preference group status and creditworthiness. The date and location of the lottery shall be noticed as determined by the Village Administrator, and the lottery shall be conducted in public. Initial purchasers for up to 2/3 of the affordable middle-income units shall be selected by lottery from a pool comprised of eligible applicants in the first priority group as described in § 6-7. The initial purchaser or purchasers for any affordable middle-income unit or units remaining after the first lottery shall be selected by lottery from a pool comprised of eligible first-priority-group applicants not selected in the first lottery and eligible applicants from the second priority group. The initial purchaser or purchasers for any affordable middle-income unit or units remaining after the second lottery shall be selected from a pool comprised of eligible applicants not selected in the second lottery and eligible applicants from the third priority group. If necessary, further lotteries shall be conducted to select initial purchasers for remaining affordable middle-income unit(s), based on the same principle used in prior lotteries. Eligible applicants not selected shall comprise a waiting list ranked in order of priority group status. As soon as practicable after such lottery, the Village Administrator shall provide the BelleFair Home and Land Company with a listing of the initial purchasers in the order of their selection, together with the waiting list of eligible applicants.
B.
All determinations made by the Village Administrator
relating to the lotteries under this chapter, including but not limited
to the conduct of a lottery, the appeal of any determination made
by the BelleFair Home and Land Company regarding ranking, eligibility
of persons to be entered into the lottery, the length of time the
list of initial purchasers selected by lottery and waiting list of
eligible applicants shall be effective, and a decision to conduct
a new or supplemental lottery, shall be final.
A.
The BelleFair Home and Land Company shall offer the affordable middle-income units for sale to initial purchasers selected in accordance with § 6-8 or 6-9 above until all units have been sold to their initial purchasers. In the event that the initial purchaser does not sign and return the contract of sale within seven days after the lottery, or does not close title within 60 days after the lottery, the BelleFair Home and Land Company shall offer such unit to the next eligible purchaser on the waiting list of eligible applicants to complete the sales of the affordable middle-income units. The waiting list shall be exhausted prior to accepting new applications.
B.
After the initial sale, the owner of the affordable
middle-income unit shall be responsible for such unit's resale in
conformance with the provisions of this chapter. The owner shall provide
the Village Administrator with a notice of intent to sell prior to
entering into any contract for sale of the units. The Village Administrator
will inform the owner in writing of the applicable income eligibility,
maximum resale price, and priority groups established under this chapter
and the availability of a waiting list, if any. Selection of a purchaser
from the initial waiting list shall be required within two years from
the date of the last closing of the initial 12 units, unless that
list becomes exhausted. An owner must demonstrate a diligent effort
to sell a unit to a person in a higher priority group before seeking
to sell a unit to the next lower priority group to the satisfaction
of the Village Administrator. Prior to closing, the owner shall demonstrate
compliance under this chapter to the satisfaction of the Village Administrator.
C.
Major capital improvements.
[Added 6-9-2015 by L.L.
No. 2-2015]
(1)
The cost of major capital improvements, as defined herein, for an
affordable middle-income unit may be recaptured by the selling owner
upon the sale of the unit. Upon the owner's submission of sufficient
proof, as determined by the Village Administrator, the maximum resale
price shall include the cost of labor and materials for major capital
improvements made by the selling owner during his/her period of ownership,
as evidenced by paid receipts depreciated on a straight line basis
over a fifteen-year period from the date of completion. The owner
shall produce to the Village Administrator paid receipts for the costs
of the major capital improvements which shall not include the cost
of labor for "do-it-yourself" projects or the cost of service/maintenance
agreements. Costs of major capital improvements performed without
requisite permits or approvals shall not be included in the maximum
resale price of the unit. Notwithstanding the foregoing, in no event
shall major capital improvements result in a maximum resale price
which exceeds $30,000 above the factor of the then prevailing Westchester
County median income for a household of four, established by the United
States Department of Housing and Urban Development (or a successor
agency) multiplied by 2.39. The owner may seek a determination from
the Village Administrator of the maximum resale price for the purpose
of refinancing. Costs of labor and materials for the following major
capital improvements shall be included in the maximum resale price,
as set forth above, provided the improvement(s) is of equal or greater
quality to the existing condition, results in a total combined cost
of $2,500 or greater, the major capital improvement is not otherwise
covered by the BelleFair Homeowners' Association through monthly
payments by the unit owners, and is attached to the property in a
such a way as to be an integral part of the premises such that its
removal would do harm to the building or land:
(a)
Replacement or repair of siding;
(b)
Replacement or repair of roof;
(c)
Finishing of basement;
(d)
Replacement or repair of flooring;
(e)
Replacement or repair of windows;
(f)
Generator hook-up;
(g)
Upgrades to kitchen and/or bathroom; and
(h)
Other similar fixed improvements, as determined by the Village
Administrator.
(2)
In addition, upon the sale of the middle-income unit the selling
owner shall receive a credit against the resale price up to a maximum
of $5,000 for all or a portion of the funds paid by the selling owner
toward any fund or special assessment established by the BelleFair
Homeowners' Association dedicated to the repair and replacement
of roofs, upon submission to the Village Administrator of proof of
such payments by the selling owner.
(3)
In the event the Board of Trustees designates an official, board
or entity, other than the Village Administrator, to fulfill the powers
and duties of the Village Administrator under this chapter, the selling
owner shall be responsible for the payment of any and all fees assessed
by such entity for the services provided.
The Board of Trustees may by resolution designate
from time to time an official, board or entity, other than the Village
Administrator, to fulfill the powers and duties of the Village Administrator
under this chapter. The Village Administrator may designate a consultant
or agency to assist the Village Administrator in the administration
of this chapter with the approval of the Board of Trustees. The Village
Administrator shall from time to time report to the Board of Trustees
concerning the administration of this chapter.
[Amended 11-22-2011 by L.L. No. 7-2011]
A.
An affordable middle-income unit under this chapter shall be owner-occupied. The term "owner-occupied," as used in this chapter, shall mean that the owner of an affordable middle-income unit must occupy the unit as his or her primary residence and must reside there at all times except for temporary absences of reasonable duration such as vacations, emergencies and other similar events. No affordable middle-income unit shall be occupied by any person other than the owner and the owner’s immediate family. The owner shall not rent, lease or sublet the affordable middle-income unit to anyone, or otherwise permit anyone to occupy the unit in his or her absence. The term "owner,” as used in this chapter, shall mean an eligible purchaser meeting the criteria set forth in §§ 6-6 and 6-7 of this chapter to whom an affordable middle-income unit has been conveyed. The deed, or other instrument of conveyance by which a middle-income unit is conveyed, shall include only the name(s) of the owner and no others.
(1)
Prior
to the transfer of ownership of a middle income unit, the Owner will
acknowledge in an affidavit submitted to the Village Administrator
that only the eligible purchaser’s name will appear on the deed
or other instruments of conveyance. Copies of all deeds and other
instruments of conveyance must be provided to the Village Administrator
within a reasonable time after the transfer of ownership of a middle
income unit.
(2)
No individual(s),
other than the owner(s) listed on the deed, shall have any ownership
interest in the middle-income unit except by succession to a spouse.
B.
The Village Administrator shall have the authority to determine cases of significant hardship which may warrant the waiver of the provision of § 6-12A above on a temporary basis and/or applications for a temporary absence for a reasonable duration pursuant to the provisions of § 16-12A. The determination of the Village Administrator in this regard, including but not limited to the establishment of conditions for such waiver or temporary absences for a reasonable duration, shall be final.
A.
Any person found guilty of a violation of this chapter shall be liable to the penalties prescribed in § 1-17 of the Code of the Village of Rye Brook.
B.
In addition, the Village of Rye Brook may commence
an action or proceeding in a court of competent jurisdiction to obtain
injunctive relief to enforce the provisions of this chapter and/or
to recover a civil penalty against a former owner of an affordable
middle-income unit of up to three times the amount received, upon
an initial sale or resale of an affordable middle-income unit, in
excess of the maximum price under the provisions of this chapter.
In the event that any of the provisions of this
chapter are determined by a court of competent jurisdiction to be
invalid or unlawful by a judgment or order, the remaining provisions
of this chapter shall not be affected and shall continue in full force
and effect.
