[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of DuBois
as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 12-30-1974 by Ord. No. 1212; amended in its entirety 7-24-1995 by Ord. No.
1544 (Ch. 11, Part 1, of the 1995 Code)]
A.
The intent of this article is to prevent the owners of properties
in the City which are in violation of housing, building, safety, plumbing,
electrical and fire ordinances and regulations from offering such
properties for sale without revealing such illegal use or the existence
of housing, building, safety, plumbing, electrical and fire violations.
B.
To prevent undue hardship and losses imposed on such purchasers by
owners who have failed to reveal the illegal use or condition of the
property being conveyed or who have made misrepresentations in that
regard, the City Council finds that it is in the best interest of
the City to declare that all sellers of property, as defined herein,
shall be required to advise the purchaser of the legal use and condition
of such property and to deliver to the purchaser prior to the execution
of the agreement of sale for such property a use registration certificate,
obtained from the Code Enforcement Officer, showing the legal use
and district classification for such property; the existence of any
housing, building, safety, plumbing, electrical or fire violations;
and any municipal claims due the City.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
Any person, copartnership, association, corporation or fiduciary
who for monetary consideration aids in the sale or exchange of property
as defined herein. Whenever used in any clause prescribing or imposing
a penalty, the term "agent," as applied to copartnerships and associations,
shall mean the partners or members thereof and, as applied to corporations,
the officers thereof. Liability shall be limited to failure to notify
the owner of the obligations imposed by this article.
Any written agreement or written instrument which provides
that title to any property shall thereafter be transferred from one
owner to another owner, and shall include, inter alia, written leases
which contain options to purchase the leased property and leases which
provide that the lessee of the property shall acquire title thereto
after the payment of a stipulated number of regular rent payments
or after a stipulated period of time.
Any jurisdictional area or zone as set forth in Chapter 450, Zoning, of the Code of the City of DuBois.
All monetary obligations, recorded or unrecorded, due the
City, such as school and City property taxes, or for services rendered
or delivered to the property.
Any person, copartnership, association, corporation or fiduciary
having legal or equitable title or any interest in any real property.
Wherever used in any clause prescribing or imposing a penalty, the
term "owner," as applied to copartnerships and associations, shall
mean the partners or members thereof and, as applied to corporations,
the officers thereof.
Any residential building or structure, which totally or partially contains: 1) single-family dwellings; 2) two-family dwellings; 3) multifamily dwellings; 4) boardinghouses, lodging houses, tourist homes; 5) dormitories; and 6) hotels, as further defined in Chapter 450, Zoning, of the Code of the City of DuBois. The separateness of a property shall be determined by the more restrictive title or parcel number.
Regulations shall include regulations promulgated by the
Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry under the Pennsylvania
Fire and Panic Act of April 27, 1927, P.L. 465, as amended.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See 35 P.S. § 1221 et seq.
A.
Prior to entering into an agreement of sale or exchange of any property, or prior to the transfer of property when no agreement of sale is utilized, the owner shall obtain from the Codes Enforcement Officer the certificate set forth in § 317-4 of this article. However, subject to the following provisions:
(2)
Where such properties are intended to be demolished and a valid demolition
permit has been obtained, a certificate shall not be required.
(3)
Where such properties are sold at a foreclosure sale or pursuant
to the Real Estate Tax Sale Act of 1947, P.L. 1368, as amended,[1] or other judicial sale pursuant to federal or state statutes, the certificate set forth in § 317-4 shall not be required.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 72 P.S. § 5860.101 et seq.
B.
The certificate shall be valid for a period not to exceed two years
from date of issue.
C.
However, upon request of owner, prior to the expiration of the six-month period referred to in Subsection B of this section, the Codes Enforcement Officer may issue endorsements to the certificate, extending its validity for up to two additional three-month periods, showing any changes to the information shown on the original certificate. There shall be no fee for the issuance of the endorsement(s). Each endorsement, however, shall extend the validity of the certificate for only three months.
A.
Upon application of the owner and the payment to the City of a base
fee established by the City Council pursuant to resolution for properties
containing only one dwelling unit, the Codes Enforcement Officer or
his designee shall then review the pertinent City records and inspect
the premises in question. For properties containing more than one
dwelling unit, the fee shall be the base fee plus an amount determined,
pursuant to resolution for each dwelling exceeding three units.
B.
Upon completion of the review and inspection, the Codes Enforcement
Officer shall execute and deliver a certificate to the owner, which
shall contain the following information. The certificate shall be
valid for a period not to exceed two years from date of issue.
(1)
The street address or appropriate description of the subject property.
(2)
A statement of the district classification applicable to the property
in question, together with an extract of the applicable ordinance(s)
showing the uses permitted within that district.
(3)
A statement of the variances and use permits, if any, granted to
that property, together with the conditions and restrictions of such
permits.
(4)
A statement as to whether any construction, electrical, plumbing
or building permits have been issued for work not yet completed on
those premises.
(5)
A statement as to whether there appears to be any nonconformity or
illegality in the structures on the property or the uses being made
thereof. This statement shall also indicate whether the property has
been approved or designated as a nonconforming use.
(6)
A detailed list of all violations of the housing, building, plumbing,
electrical, safety or fire ordinances and regulations.
(7)
A detailed list of all municipal claims currently due and payable.
A.
Every owner shall insert in every agreement for the sale of property
a provision showing the district classification of such property and
stating whether the present use of the property is in compliance with
or in violation of district laws and ordinances, and every owner shall
insert in every agreement for the sale of property a provision disclosing
whether there exists any notice of an uncorrected violation of the
housing, building, plumbing, electrical, safety or fire ordinances
and regulations.
B.
If any owner fails to include any provision required by this article
in an agreement for the sale of property, then in any action, at law
or in equity, instituted by a purchaser against an owner, it shall
be conclusively presumed that the owner at the time of the signing
of such agreement represented and warranted to the purchaser that
such property was being used in compliance with the then-existing
district laws and ordinances and that there was no uncorrected violation
of the housing, building, plumbing, electrical, safety or fire ordinances
and regulations.
C.
Every agent shall, by written document to the owner, assert the obligation
of the owner to comply with the provisions of this article.
Notwithstanding any other law or ordinance, the provisions of
this article may not be waived or disclaimed by any oral or written
agreement executed by any owner or purchaser.
A.
In the City it shall be unlawful for any owner to sell his property or any interest therein unless the owner shall first deliver to the purchaser at or prior to the execution of any agreement of sale, or prior to the transfer of title should no agreement of sale be utilized, the certification described in § 317-4.
B.
The purchaser or transferee shall execute a receipt for the certificate,
as furnished by the City, and such receipt shall be delivered by the
owner to the Codes Enforcement Officer as evidence of compliance with
the provisions of this article.
The use registration certificate shall be compiled from the
records of the City and from an inspection of the property. Neither
the enactment of this article nor the preparation and delivery of
any certificate required hereunder shall impose any liability upon
the City for any errors or omissions contained in such certificate,
nor shall the City bear any liability not otherwise imposed by law.
Appeals from the findings set forth in the certificate must
be filed in writing with the City Council of the City within three
days after the issuance of said certificate; the City Council of the
City will refer the appeal to the appropriate board of appeals.
A.
Any owner or agent who violates the provisions of § 317-5 or 317-6 of this article shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be sentenced to pay a fine of not more than $1,000, plus costs, imprisonment for not more than one year, or both.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code revisions (see Ch. 1,
General Provisions, Art. II)]
B.
No sale or exchange of property (as defined in § 317-2 of this article) shall be invalidated solely because of the failure of any person to comply with any provisions of this article, unless such failure is an act or omission which would be valid ground for cancellation of such sale or exchange in the absence of this article.
