[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council of the Borough of
Lansdowne 2-15-2006 by Ord. No. 1211. Amendments noted where applicable.]
The purpose of this chapter and the policy of the Borough of
Lansdowne shall be to protect and promote the public health, safety
and welfare of its citizens and to establish rights and obligations
of owners of real property with respect to the transfer of said property.
The following words and phrases, as used in this chapter, shall
have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, unless the context
indicates a different meaning. Where terms are not defined in this
section, such terms shall be ordinarily accepted meanings as interpreted
by the Code Enforcement Officer by use of definitions provided in
the codes and standards as contained in the Code of the Borough of
Lansdowne.
A person who shall have charge, care or control of any structure
as owner, or agent of the owner, or as executor, execute, executrix,
administrator, trustee or guardian of the estate of the owner. Any
such person representing the actual owner shall be bound to comply
with the provisions of this chapter to the same extent as if that
person was the owner.
The owner, buyer or agent with authority and responsibility
for the transfer of real property.
A sale, foreclosure, sheriff's sales, tax sale or other legal
action resulting in the transfer of ownership of real property.
Any structure, building or vacant land being privately or
publicly owned.
A.
No owner or agent shall transfer ownership of any real property without
first applying for and undergoing obtaining a property transfer inspection
and obtaining a property transfer permit or provisional property transfer
permit. The owner or agent shall complete the required application
forms for this purpose which shall be available in the Code Department
office and pay the required fees. Information required to be submitted
shall include, but not be limited to, the following:
(1)
The names, addresses and phone numbers of all owners of the premises;
(2)
Forwarding addresses of all owners of the premises;
(3)
The name, local address and telephone number or cell phone number
of the realtor or agent representing the owner;
(4)
The address of the real property;
(5)
A description of the real property;
(6)
The proposed use of the real property following transfer; and
(7)
Authorization for the Borough to perform the required inspection.
B.
The application forms must be submitted to the Code Enforcement Department
30 days prior to the date scheduled for settlement. Following receipt
by the Code Department of the completed application form and required
fees, the owner or agent shall schedule the property transfer inspection
with the Code Department. Inspections shall be scheduled no earlier
than 48 hours from the time the request for an inspection was made.
[Amended 7-17-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-04]
The Code Officer shall not enter on or upon any real property
for the purpose of conducting a property transfer inspection unless
accompanied by the applicant. All interior and exterior areas of the
real property shall be inspected for conformance with the 2005 Borough
of Lansdowne Property Maintenance Code, as amended from time to time,
and the Lansdowne Borough Zoning Ordinance of 2008,[1] as amended from time to time, and any other relevant ordinances
of the Borough of Lansdowne.
Upon completion of the property transfer inspection, the Code
Enforcement Officer shall record the identified code violations on
a form for this purpose and provide a copy of the form to the agent.
Code violations shall be corrected within the time frame set by the
Code Enforcement Officer.
A.
No property regulated by this chapter shall proceed to settlement
unless a final or provisional property transfer permit has been issued
to the owner by the Code Department.
B.
A final property transfer permit shall be issued, provided the following
conditions have been met:
(1)
The property must be free and clear of any code violations noted
on the inspection form by the Code Enforcement Officer.
C.
A provisional property transfer permit may be issued in circumstances
in which correcting the violations cannot be accomplished prior to
settlement. The provisional property transfer permit shall indicate
the party (buyer or seller) who shall take responsibility for correcting
the violations and provide for a time frame for corrections not to
exceed 180 days. The owner or agent shall schedule a follow-up property
inspection with the Code Department no later than 15 days following
the one-hundred-eighty-day-period for correcting violations.
D.
In no circumstances shall a provisional property transfer certificate
be issued if any of the code violations render the property unfit
for habitation.
Nothing contained herein shall be deemed to waive any other
remedy available to the Borough at law or in equity relating to code
violations, all of which remedies are hereby expressly reserved.
Violations of failure to comply with the provisions of this
chapter shall result in fines of not less one $1,000 and not more
than $10,000. Each day that a violation hereunder continues shall
constitute a separate offense.
