[Adopted 11-9-1988 by Ord. No. 88-42; amended in its entirety 8-8-2018 by Ord. No. 2018:13]
It is the purpose and intent of the Township Committee to protect
the health, safety, and welfare of the residents of Pennsauken Township
and to ensure owners and occupants share responsibility to prevent
and avoid nuisances in the Township. The purpose of this article is
to identify rental property in the Township of Pennsauken, to ensure
that such properties afford tenants a safe and decent place to dwell,
and to require rental property with substandard conditions to meet
and maintain minimum building and housing code standards and exterior
maintenance standards and to reduce criminal activity. The Pennsauken
Township Committee has determined that requiring that all rental properties
be registered with the Township and inspected serves these legitimate
governmental interests.
A.
Pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, the Township Committee,
or its designee, shall establish a registry cataloging each rental
property within the Township of Pennsauken, containing the information
required by this article.
(1)
Without in any way intending to infringe upon the requirements of
N.J.S.A. 46:8-28, all rental units shall be inspected as provided
herein. Every owner of rental property shall, prior to permitting
occupancy thereof by any person (or, within 60 days of the enactment
of this article) register the property with the Code Enforcement Department,
or its designee, on forms or other manner as directed. A separate
registration is required for each rental property. Registration shall
be required annually, becoming due on the anniversary date of the
initial obligation to register.
(2)
Registration pursuant to this section shall contain the name(s),
direct mailing address, a direct contact name, telephone number, and
e-mail address for the owner or owners of the rental business if not
the same person(s). In case of partnership, the names and addresses
of all the general partners shall be provided, together with the valid
telephone numbers for each of such individuals. A physical location
of where said person(s) can be found during normal business hours
for the purpose of service of any notices or orders which may be necessary
shall be provided.
(3)
If the record owner is a corporation, the name and address of the
registered agent and cooperate officers of said corporation, including
the addresses and telephone numbers of the corporate officers. A physical
location of where said person(s) or the registered agent can be found
during normal business hours for the purpose of service of any notices
or orders which may be necessary shall be provided.
(4)
If the address of any recorded owner is not located within 25 miles
of the Township of Pennsauken, the name and address of a person who
resides within 25 miles of the Township of Pennsauken who is authorized
to accept notices from a tenant and to issue receipts therefor and
to accept service of process on behalf of the record owner. The address
shall be a physical location of where said person(s) or registered
agent can be found during normal business hours.
(5)
The name, addresses and telephone number of an individual representative
of the record owner or managing agent who may be reached or contacted
at any time in the event of an emergency affecting the premises or
any unit of dwelling space therein, including such emergencies as
the failure of any essential service or system, and who has the authority
to make emergency decisions concerning the building and any repair
thereto or expenditure in connection therewith. The addresses shall
be a physical location of where said person(s) can normally be found
during regular business hours and normally found during off hours.
(6)
The name and address of every holder of a recorded mortgage on the
premises.
(7)
As to each rental unit, a specification of the exact number of sleeping
rooms contained in the rental unit, and the exact number of sleeping
accommodations contained in each of the sleeping rooms, identifying
each sleeping room specifically by number and location within the
apartment or dwelling, and by the square footage thereof. In order
to satisfy the requirements of this provision, an owner shall submit
a floor plan which shall become part of the application and which
shall be attached to the rental inspection application form when filed
by the Township Rental Coordinator.
(8)
Such other information as may be prescribed by the Township.
B.
If the owner does not reside within 25 miles of the rental property,
the name and twenty-four-hour contact phone number for the property
manager. The registration shall also identify the name(s), direct
mailing address, a direct contact name, telephone number, and e-mail
address for all the persons authorized by the owner to occupy the
rental property.
C.
At the time of initial registration, each registrant shall pay a
nonrefundable annual registration fee of $350 for each registration
required by this section. Subsequent annual registrations as required
by this article are due within 10 days of the expiration of the previous
registration. Said fees shall be used to offset the costs of 1) registration
and registration enforcement, 2) code enforcement and mitigation related
to rental properties, and 3) any related purposes as may be adopted
in the policy set forth in this article. Said fees shall be deposited
to a special account in the Pennsauken Township dedicated to the cost
of implementation and enforcement of this article and fulfilling the
purpose and intent of this article.
D.
Any person or other legal entity that has registered a property under
this section must report any change of information contained in the
registration within 10 days of the change. No fee shall be required
for the filing of an amendment except where the ownership of the premises
is changed.
E.
Copy to occupants and tenants. Every owner shall provide each occupant
or tenant occupying a rental unit with a copy of the rental inspection
application form required by this article. This subsection shall not
apply to any hotel, motel or guesthouse registered with the State
of New Jersey pursuant to the Hotel and Multiple Dwelling Act as defined
in N.J.S.A. 55:13A-3. This subsection may be complied with by posting
a copy of the certificate of inspection in a conspicuous place within
the rental unit(s).
F.
If the rental property is sold, the new owner is subject to all the
terms of this article. If the new owner does not immediately occupy
the property, the new owner shall register the rental property or
update the existing registration within 10 days of the sale. Any and
all previous unpaid fees, fines, and penalties at the time of initial
registration and/or renewal registrations were required and are subject
to enforcement per this article. The previous owner will not be released
from the responsibility of paying all previous unpaid fees, fines,
and penalties accrued during that owner's involvement with the
rental property. The provisions of this section are cumulative with
and in addition to other available remedies. Moreover, the Township
of Pennsauken is authorized and empowered to collect on the previous
owner's nonpayment of previous fees, fines, and penalties in
any lawful manner.
A.
Properties subject to this article shall be kept free of weeds, overgrown
brush, dead vegetation, trash, junk, debris, building materials, any
accumulation of newspaper circulars, flyers, notices, except 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.
B.
The property shall be maintained free of graffiti or similar markings
by removal or painting over with an exterior-grade paint that matches
the color of the exterior structure.
C.
Front, side, and rear yards, including landscaping, shall be maintained
in accordance with the applicable code(s) at the time registration
is required.
D.
Yard maintenance shall include, but not be limited to, grass, ground
covers, bushes, shrubs, hedges or similar plantings, decorative rock
or bark or artificial turf/sod. Acceptable maintenance of yards and/or
landscape shall not include weeds, gravel, broken concrete, asphalt
or similar material.
E.
Maintenance shall include, but not be limited to, watering, irrigation,
cutting and mowing of required ground cover or landscape and removal
of all trimmings.
F.
Pools and spas shall be maintained so the water remains free and
clear of pollutants and debris and shall comply with the regulations
set forth in the applicable code(s).
G.
Failure of the owner to properly maintain the property may result
in a violation of the applicable code(s) and issuance of a citation
or notice of violation in accordance with the applicable code of the
Township of Pennsauken. Pursuant to a finding and determination by
the Pennsauken Sheriff, Magistrate or a court of competent jurisdiction,
the Township of Pennsauken may take the necessary action to ensure
compliance with this section.
H.
In addition to the above, the property is required to be maintained
in accordance with the applicable code(s) of Pennsauken Township.
[Amended 9-5-2018 by Ord.
No. 2018:16]
A.
Any person, firm, association or corporation violating any of the
provisions of this article shall, upon conviction, be subject to one
or more of the following: a fine of not less than $500, but not exceeding
$2,000, and/or imprisonment in the county jail for a term not exceeding
90 days, and/or a period of community service not exceeding 90 days,
in the discretion of the Municipal Court Judge.
B.
Any person, firm, association or corporation who is convicted of
violating this article within one year of the date of a previous violation
and who was fined for the previous violation shall be sentenced by
the court to an additional fine as a repeat offender. The additional
fine imposed by the court upon a person, firm, association or corporation
for a repeated offense shall not be less than the minimum or exceed
the maximum fine fixed for a violation of the article but shall be
calculated separately from the fine imposed for the violation of the
article.
C.
If the rental property is not registered, or either the registration
fee or the renewal fee is not paid within 30 days of when the registration
or renewal is required pursuant to this article, a late fee equivalent
to 10% of the registration fee shall be charged for every thirty-day
period, or portion thereof, the property is not registered and shall
be due and payable with the registration. This section shall apply
to the initial registration and registrations required by subsequent
owners of rental property. Registrations delinquent greater than 30
days are also subject to additional fines as described herein.
D.
Failure of the owner of record to properly register or to modify
the registration to reflect a change of circumstances as required
by this article is a violation of this article and shall be subject
to enforcement by any of the enforcement means available to the Township
of Pennsauken.
E.
If any property is in violation of this article, the Township may
take the necessary action to ensure compliance with and place a lien
on the property for the cost of the outstanding obligation and any
additional cost incurred to bring the property into compliance.
F.
The foregoing penalties shall be in addition to any other penalty
provided in this article and shall be in addition to those penalties
set forth in N.J.S.A. 46:8-35.
