Community Corner
20 Things Wrong with the Homeowner Amnesty Program by Bea Conetta
The following first appeared in the Westmore News on 7/17/2014
Twenty things that are wrong with the P. C. amnesty program
I was going to write about another big problem that is facing our village (the municipal center), but I thought I would instead give you the following list telling what the amnesty program is all about. There are so many residents who have no idea what it is and how it is hurting so many residents who are trying to sell or refinance their homes or buildings. With a scare tactic, the Port Chester Building Department, with the approval of the Board of Trustees, is literally forcing people to sign up with the fear that they will pay so much more if they don't sign up before the expiration date. Something is radically wrong with the whole setup, and if the residents don't make their feelings known, this will go on indefinitely. It's the fees that are hurtful and not at all right. It's just a way to get money from the over-taxed good residents of Port Chester. Say a prayer that our trustees wake up to the fact that the amnesty program is all wrong. The Building Department should help residents get their homes up to code, but there is no reason for the fees and fines. They are already getting a good salary, so they should do what they are being paid for.
1. It was presented to be only a code enforcement law.
2. This is an unprecedented amnesty law which forces home and building owners to pay unreasonable fees and fill out 4-6 pages of information.
3. This amnesty law has nullified all Certificates of Occupancy for approximately 6,000 home and building owners.
4. These home and building owners must join the amnesty program in order to obtain one, two, three or more Certificates of Occupancy. Meanwhile, during this extremely slow process, since they no longer have a Certificate of Occupancy, they are unable to sell their property. They can pay $200 to receive an expedited search and still have to wait six to eight weeks to receive a new Certificate. Unfortunately it is taking much longer and people are losing out on making the sale of their property. Also, property owners who have wanted to refinance at lower interest rates have lost out because they no longer have a Certificate of Occupancy. Many have paid lender fees to apply for mortgages only to lose the fees because the village was slow to inspect and provide a new Certificate.
5. The building inspector is claiming there are unclosed permits on properties. How is this possible? All persons were represented by their bank, their broker and an attorney for the buyer and seller and they received the deed along with title insurance (in most cases). This means the Building Department had to have had all of these official records intact.
6. According to the building inspector, no home or building owner since 1927 has been issued a valid Certificate of Occupancy and therefore they need to apply for one.
7. The building inspector claims there are multiple unclosed permits, and home and building owners need to pay a fee per permit for closure. There would not be an unclosed permit if the building inspector and his well paid staff had done what their jobs required of them. Any unclosed permit should have been kept in a pending file until it had been closed out. That is the responsibility of the building inspector's office, not the builder or property owner.
8. The Board of Trustees claims no court has the jurisdiction to nullify this law. The villagers understand no one is above the law, which also includes the Port Chester Board Of Trustees. Furthermore, the 20-page law appears to lack NYS certification.
9. It is not true this law is based on public input. This law was forced upon all property owners by order of the Port Chester Board of Trustees.
10. This law does not provide relief to property owners as stated in the law. Rather, it places an undue further excessive financial burden on them.
11. According to attorneys, this law clearly violates what is known as "estoppel." Estoppel is being violated by this law because for many decades the paperwork associated with a property in Port Chester was considered legal, official and all fees paid for by the homeowner. Virtually overnight, the village undertook a policy in which the Building Department notified- and continues to notify inquiring lenders, attorneys, title insurers and realtors- that this same paperwork, which had been legal and official for decades, is improper. Consequently, buyers walk away from deals and property owners who want to refinance cannot proceed as they had planned.
12. By violating estoppel, the village is interfering with commerce. Property owners find it nearly impossible to sell their property in a timely manner. Additionally, realtors and lawyers for prospective home-buyers (in particular) have been steering them away from Port Chester, thereby contributing to downward pressure on home values in the village.
13. The amnesty program was inadequately communicated to property owners. To this day, most property owners either have not heard of it or fail to understand it-only when they try to sell or refinance their property do they learn about the program and its rules.
14. The rules of the amnesty program have been constantly changing and property owner fees are constantly increasing. New rules were implemented before they were codified.
15. Property owners have very limited access to the Building Department. Its hours of operation are 9 a. m. to 1 p. m. instead of the N. Y. State-mandated 9 a. m. to 5 p. m. Most property owners who have called or sent emails to have their questions answered do not receive a timely response. In fact, it is very common for them to receive no response whatsoever.
16. In effect, Port Chester has illegally seized the property of all home and building owners by changing the rules, negating the existing paperwork and being very slow to respond to property owner needs.
17. Through the amnesty program and its law, the Board of Trustees is abusing its power. For example, they have implemented extraordinarily high fees and penalties for homeowners who do not join the amnesty program.
18. Property owners are held accountable for work done while the property was owned by owners who preceded them. Yet the same village that is now holding the current owner accountable approved the sale of their property to them, telling the attorneys, realtors, lenders and all others involved in the transfer of a property that the property was in good standing (i. e., no violations and no health and safety issues- therefore certified for occupancy).
19. Many property owners have claimed Building Department inspectors "move the goal posts." That is, they keep adding to the lists of corrective actions that need to be taken in order to receive a Certificate of Occupancy. Some property owners have had to demand a final punch list because each visit by an inspector led to the identification of more code violations that needed to be addressed.
20. Basic human rights, such as innocent until proven guilty and privacy, as in "your home is your castle" are being violated. The Port Chester law presumes all property owners are guilty of code violations and must prove they are not in order to get a Certificate of Occupancy. The property owner is penalized if he or she does not open their door for inspection. The reason: A property without a Certificate of Occupancy can only be sold to an all-cash buyer, which means a lower price and limited pool of potential buyers. Banks will not issue mortgages for properties in cases where the Building Department indicates their paperwork is not in order.
This so-called amnesty law is illegal and unprecedented, heinous and misguided. It is believed that the intention of the current Board of Trustees was to establish it as the model and precedent that all other communities in New York State would be required to follow.
Bea Conetta
Port Chester