Bill Text: IA SF93 | 2019-2020 | 88th General Assembly | Enrolled

---

Bill Title: A bill for an act relating to abandoned structures and abatement of public nuisances. Effective 7-1-19.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Passed) 2019-05-10 - Signed by Governor. S.J. 1194. [SF93 Detail]

Download: Iowa-2019-SF93-Enrolled.html

---

Senate File 93 - Enrolled
Senate File 93
AN ACT
RELATING TO ABANDONED STRUCTURES AND ABATEMENT OF PUBLIC
NUISANCES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
Section 1. Section 631.1, Code 2019, is amended by adding
the following new subsection:
NEW SUBSECTION . 10. The district court sitting in small
claims has concurrent jurisdiction for administrative warrant
applications pursuant to section 657A.1A, subsection 2.
Sec. 2. Section 655A.6, Code 2019, is amended to read as
follows:
655A.6 Rejection of notice.
1. If either the mortgagor, or successor in interest of
record including a contract purchaser, within thirty days of
service of the notice pursuant to section 655A.3 , files with
the recorder of the county where the mortgaged property is
located, a rejection of the notice reasonably identifying
the notice which is rejected together with proofs of service
required under section 655A.4 that the rejection has been
served on the mortgagee, the notice served upon the mortgagor
pursuant to section 655A.3 is of no force or effect.
2. Rejection of notice pursuant to subsection 1 shall not be
available to a mortgagor, or successor in interest of record
including a contract purchaser, of a mortgaged property that a
court of competent jurisdiction determined has been abandoned
pursuant to section 657A.2, on or after the date as determined

Senate File 93, p. 2
in section 657A.2, subsection 5.
Sec. 3. Section 657A.1, subsections 1 and 3, Code 2019, are
amended to read as follows:
1. “Abandoned” or “abandonment” means that a building has
remained is vacant , or is occupied only by trespassers, and has
been in violation of the housing code or building code of the
city in which the property is located or the housing code or
building code applicable in the county in which the property
is located if outside the limits of a city for a period of six
consecutive months .
3. “Building” means a building or structure , excluding a
mobile home, a modular home, and a manufactured home as defined
in section 435.1, unless the mobile home or manufactured
home has been converted to real estate pursuant to section
435.26, located in a city or outside the limits of a city in
a county, which is used or intended to be used for commercial
or industrial purposes or which is used or intended to be
used for residential purposes and includes a building or
structure in which some floors may be used for retail stores,
shops, salesrooms, markets, or similar commercial uses, or for
offices, banks, civic administration activities, professional
services, or similar business or civic uses, and other floors
are used, designed, or intended to be used for residential
purposes.
Sec. 4. Section 657A.1, Code 2019, is amended by adding the
following new subsection:
NEW SUBSECTION . 8. “Responsible building official” or
“official” means the person appointed by the city or, if the
building is outside the limits of a city, the county, to
enforce its building codes and regulations in general or to
enforce this chapter in particular.
Sec. 5. NEW SECTION . 657A.1A Preliminary inspection of
building.
1. No sooner than one hundred thirty-five days after a
property has become vacant, a person, other than a governmental
entity, may request that the responsible building official
inspect the property and certify that a property is both
abandoned and in need of abatement. The responsible building
official may also initiate an inspection on the official’s own

Senate File 93, p. 3
initiative at any time.
2. If the responsible building official finds from an
exterior view of the property, in addition to any other
credible information that the official may have, that there
is reasonable cause to believe that the property is abandoned
and in need of abatement, the official shall schedule a date
and time for an inspection of the property by the official.
The person requesting the inspection shall provide written
notice of the scheduled inspection by first class mail and
certified mail to the owner and all interested persons at
least twenty days before the inspection. The notice must
state the date, time, and place of the inspection and state
that unless the owner appears at the inspection to allow the
responsible building official access to the interior of the
property, the official, accompanied by the person serving
notice and any interested persons appearing for the inspection,
may enter the property to determine whether the property is
abandoned and in need of abatement and, if so, to estimate
the costs of abatement. The official may enter the property
for an inspection, along with the person serving notice and
any interested persons, if the owner is not present for the
inspection. Upon request, the inspection may be rescheduled
as needed. The responsible building official must obtain an
administrative search warrant pursuant to section 808.14 to
enter any building to conduct an inspection pursuant to this
section.
3. The responsible building official’s findings shall
be in writing with copies provided to the person requesting
the inspection, the owner, and all interested parties. The
governmental entity employing the responsible building official
may establish and charge a fee to cover the reasonable costs
of the inspection, which shall be added to costs in an action
under this chapter.
4. Evidence that financial obligations in respect to a
building, including but not limited to payments of a mortgage,
bills, or property taxes, are currently met does not rebut a
finding of abandonment if the property is substantially in need
of abatement in an action filed under section 657A.2.
Sec. 6. Section 657A.2, Code 2019, is amended by striking

Senate File 93, p. 4
the section and inserting in lieu thereof the following:
657A.2 Petition.
1. No sooner than the latter of thirty days after provision
of the responsible building official’s findings under section
657A.1A and six months after a building has become abandoned,
a petition for abatement under this chapter may be filed in
the district court of the county in which the property is
located by the city in which the property is located, by the
county if the property is located outside the limits of a city,
by a neighboring landowner, or by a duly organized nonprofit
corporation which has as one of its goals the improvement of
housing conditions in the county or city in which the property
in question is located. The petition shall not demand a
personal judgment against any party, but shall concern only
the interests in the property. A petition for abatement filed
under this chapter shall include the legal description of
the real property upon which the public nuisance is located
unless the public nuisance is not situated on or confined to
a parcel of real property, or is portable or capable of being
removed from the real property. Service shall be made on all
interested persons by personal service or, if personal service
cannot be made, by certified mail and first class mail to the
last known address of record of the interested person and by
posting the notice in a conspicuous place on the building,
or by publication. The last known address of record for the
property owner shall be the address of record with the county
treasurer of the county where the property is located. Service
may also be made as provided in section 654.4A.
2. If entering judgment, the court shall determine any
issues at law, including issues relating to title, raised by
the plaintiff or by a party in interest who has filed a motion
or answer.
3. In any evidentiary hearing or motion in a proceeding
under this chapter, the written findings of the responsible
building official relating to the condition of the building and
other matters within the scope of this chapter, if provided
at least ten days before the hearing to all persons not in
default, shall be accepted as evidence without prejudice to the
right of any party to require the personal testimony of the

Senate File 93, p. 5
responsible building official at the hearing.
4. If the court finds at a hearing pursuant to this section
that the building is abandoned or is a public nuisance, the
court may issue an injunction requiring the owner to correct
any conditions that make such building a public nuisance, or
issue another order that the court deems appropriate to address
the public nuisance.
5. If the court finds at a hearing pursuant to this
section that the building is abandoned, unless the court
order establishes otherwise, the property shall be deemed
continuously abandoned from the date the action is indexed
pursuant to section 617.10, subsection 1.
6. A property shall not be claimed as homestead pursuant to
chapter 561 on or after the date determined in subsection 5.
7. In a proceeding under this section, if the court
determines the building is not abandoned, the court shall
dismiss the petition and may require the petitioner to pay an
interested party’s reasonable attorney fees. An owner of the
property who failed to appear for an inspection pursuant to
section 657A.1A shall not be awarded attorney fees under this
section.
8. If a party to the action holds an interest in the
property as a nominee, a fiduciary, or another representative
capacity for a third party, or an underlying loan on the
property is guaranteed by a third party, the party to the
action may apply to the court for a stay of action, as it
affects the party’s interest, for a reasonable time to allow
the party to obtain the appropriate authority, information, or
instructions from or on behalf of the beneficiary or guarantor
as related to the property interest or underlying loan.
Sec. 7. Section 657A.3, Code 2019, is amended to read as
follows:
657A.3 Interested persons —— opportunity to abate public
nuisance.
1. Before appointing a receiver to perform work or to
furnish material to abate a public nuisance under this chapter ,
the court shall conduct a hearing at which the court shall
offer mortgagees of record, lienholders of record, or other
known interested persons in the order of priority of interest

Senate File 93, p. 6
in title, the opportunity to undertake the work and to furnish
the materials necessary to abate the public nuisance. The
establish a date before which interested persons may file with
the court shall require the person selected to demonstrate
the written proof of intent and ability to promptly undertake
promptly the work required and to post security for the
performance of the work. If no such written proof is filed
by that date, the court may appoint a receiver pursuant to
subsection 3.
2. All amounts expended by the person toward abating the
public nuisance are a lien on the property if the expenditures
were are approved in advance by the a judge and if the person
desires the lien. The Unless an interested person has a
contract with the owner providing for a different interest
rate, the lien shall bear interest at the rate provided for
judgments pursuant to section 535.3 , and shall be payable upon
terms approved by the judge. If a certified copy of the a
court order that approved approving the expenses and the terms
of payment for the lien, and a description of the property
in question , are filed for of record within thirty days of
the date of issuance of the order in the office of the county
recorder of the county in which the property is located, the
lien has the same priority as the mortgage of a receiver as
provided in section 657A.7 .
2. 3. If the court determines by the date established
in subsection 1 or at the a hearing conducted pursuant
to subsection 1 , on the sufficiency of a timely filed
rehabilitation plan that no interested person can undertake the
work and furnish the materials required to abate the public
nuisance, or if the court determines at any time after the
hearing that an interested person who is undertaking corrective
work pursuant to this section cannot or will not proceed, or
has not proceeded with due diligence, the court may appoint a
receiver to take possession and control of the property. The
receiver shall be appointed in the manner provided in section
657A.4 .
4. If the building is a historic building or is located in
a designated historic district, the court shall give preference
to an economically feasible rehabilitation plan that preserves

Senate File 93, p. 7
the historical nature of the building.
5. Unless a receiver’s mortgage provides for periodic
payments, a notice, in lieu of the notice pursuant to section
654.2D, shall also be served by ordinary or electronic mail
informing all interested persons of the date certain for the
maturity of the mortgage note, or the event triggering maturity
of the mortgage note, and that on maturity the receiver’s
mortgage loan will be payable in full and the mortgagee may
then commence foreclosure without further notice. A notice
pursuant to section 654.4B shall also be served by ordinary or
electronic mail on the owner of record of the property. The
mortgagee shall not commence foreclosure of the mortgage until
sixty calendar days have passed since the date of service of a
notice under this subsection.
Sec. 8. Section 657A.4, Code 2019, is amended to read as
follows:
657A.4 Appointment of receiver.
After conducting If after expiration of a date established
pursuant to section 657A.3, subsection 1, or a hearing
pursuant to section 657A.3 , the court may appoint a receiver
to take possession and control of the property in question.
A person shall not be appointed as a receiver unless the
person has first provided the court with a viable financial
and construction plan for the rehabilitation of the property
in question and has demonstrated the capacity and expertise
to perform the required work in a satisfactory manner. The
appointed receiver may be a financial institution that
possesses an interest of record in the property, a nonprofit
corporation that is duly organized and exists for the primary
purpose of improving housing conditions in the county or city
in which the property in question is located, or any person
deemed qualified by the court. No part of the net earnings of a
nonprofit corporation serving as a receiver under this section
shall benefit a private shareholder or individual. Membership
on the board of trustees of a nonprofit corporation does not
constitute the holding of a public office or employment and is
not an interest, either direct or indirect, in a contract or
expenditure of money by a city or county. No member of a board
of trustees of a nonprofit corporation appointed as receiver

Senate File 93, p. 8
is disqualified from holding public office or employment, nor
is a member required to forfeit public office or employment by
reason of the membership on the board of trustees.
Sec. 9. Section 657A.6, subsection 9, Code 2019, is amended
to read as follows:
9. Issue notes and secure the notes by mortgages bearing
interest at the rate provided for judgments pursuant to
section 535.3 , and any terms and conditions as approved by
the court. The court may provide for a higher interest rate
if the receiver has established to the satisfaction of the
court that the receiver has sought financing from individuals
and institutions willing to lend money for rehabilitation
of property and that the terms proposed by the receiver are
reasonable. When transferred by the receiver in return for
valuable consideration in including money, material, labor,
or services, the notes issued by the receiver are freely
transferable. If the receiver has notice that the mortgagee
of the receiver’s mortgage is contemplating a transfer of the
mortgage, the receiver shall disclose such to the court in the
application for approval of the mortgage.
Sec. 10. NEW SECTION . 657A.6A Receiver —— prohibited acts.
Notwithstanding section 657A.10, it shall be unlawful, and a
receiver may be held liable for actual damages as determined
by a court, for entering a residential property that is not
abandoned for the purpose of forcing, intimidating, harassing,
or coercing a lawful occupant of the property to vacate in
order to render the property vacant and abandoned, and it shall
be unlawful to otherwise force, intimidate, harass, or coerce
a lawful occupant of a residential property to vacate so the
property may be deemed vacant and abandoned. A receiver who
peacefully enters a property for the purpose of rendering the
property vacant and abandoned shall be immune from liability
if the receiver makes a good-faith effort to comply with this
chapter and all terms of any applicable mortgage, lease, or
other agreement related to the occupancy of the building.
Sec. 11. Section 657A.7, subsection 1, Code 2019, is amended
to read as follows:
1. If the receiver’s mortgage is filed for of record in
the office of the county recorder of the county in which the

Senate File 93, p. 9
property is located within sixty days of the issuance of a
secured note, the receiver’s mortgage is a first lien upon the
property and is superior to claims of the receiver and to all
prior or subsequent liens and encumbrances except taxes and
assessments , including taxes and assessments advanced by any
mortgagee in the twelve-month period immediately preceding the
date a petition is filed pursuant to section 657A.2 . Priority
among the receiver’s mortgages is determined by the order in
which the mortgages are recorded.
Sec. 12. Section 657A.7, Code 2019, is amended by adding the
following new subsection:
NEW SUBSECTION . 3. If a mortgagee of the receiver’s
mortgage begins foreclosure procedures pursuant to chapter 655A
and an interested party desires to pay off the mortgage loan,
the interested party shall also pay the mortgagee’s reasonable
costs and attorney fees.
Sec. 13. Section 657A.8, Code 2019, is amended to read as
follows:
657A.8 Assessment of costs.
The court may assess the costs and expenses set out in
section 657A.6, subsection 2 , and may approve receiver’s fees
to the extent that the fees are not covered by the income
from the property. The receiver shall pay the costs and
reasonable attorney fees of a plaintiff who requested an
inspection pursuant to section 657A.1A unless an interested
party not in default who appeared for the inspection objects
to the fees and costs in whole or in part. The court shall
determine the merits of such objection. If the court finds
that a neighboring landowner has pursued an action pursuant to
this chapter in bad faith, the court may assess attorney fees
against the neighboring landowner and may bar such neighboring
landowner from filing future actions under this chapter. If a
foreclosure of the receiver’s mortgage pursuant to chapter 655A
is contemplated, the court may retain jurisdiction to determine
the amount of attorney fees payable under section 657A.7,
subsection 3.
Sec. 14. Section 657A.10A, subsection 1, paragraph a, Code
2019, is amended to read as follows:
a. In lieu of the procedures in sections 657A.2 657A.1A

Senate File 93, p. 10
through 657A.10 and 657A.10B , a city in which an abandoned a
building that has been abandoned for at least six consecutive
months is located may petition the court to enter judgment
awarding title to the abandoned property to the city. A
petition filed under this section shall include the legal
description of the abandoned property. If more than one
abandoned building is located on a parcel of real estate, the
city may combine the actions into one petition. The owner of
the building and grounds, mortgagees of record, lienholders
of record, or other known persons who hold an interest in the
property shall be named as respondents on the petition.
Sec. 15. NEW SECTION . 657A.10B Applicability.
1. The provisions of sections 657A.1A through 657A.10 shall
only apply to cities and counties that have, by ordinance,
provided that the provisions shall apply.
2. The provisions of sections 657A.1A through 657A.10 shall
not apply to a house, barn, outbuilding, or other building or
structure located on agricultural land. For purposes of this
subsection, “agricultural land” means land suitable for use in
farming. For purposes of this subsection, “farming” means the
cultivation of land for the production of agricultural crops,
the production of fruit or other horticultural crops, grazing,
or the production of livestock.
Sec. 16. NEW SECTION . 657A.10C Petition for injunction.
1. As an alternative to the remedies under this chapter, a
city, or a county if a property that is alleged to be a public
nuisance is located outside the limits of a city, may petition
the court for an injunction that requires the owner of the
property to correct or eliminate the condition or violation
causing the public nuisance. Service of the original notice
shall be made as provided in section 657A.2, subsection 1.
2. This section shall not apply to a house, barn,
outbuilding, or other building or structure located on
agricultural land. For purposes of this subsection,
“agricultural land” means land suitable for use in farming. For
purposes of this subsection, “farming” means the cultivation of
land for the production of agricultural crops, the production
of fruit or other horticultural crops, grazing, or the
production of livestock.

Senate File 93, p. 11
Sec. 17. CODE EDITOR DIRECTIVE.
1. The Code editor is directed to renumber section 657A.10B,
as enacted in this Act, as section 657A.10A, and to renumber
section 657A.10A as section 657A.10B.
2. The Code editor shall correct internal references in the
Code and in any enacted legislation as necessary due to the
enactment of this section.
______________________________ ______________________________
CHARLES SCHNEIDER LINDA UPMEYER
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I hereby certify that this bill originated in the Senate and
is known as Senate File 93, Eighty-eighth General Assembly.
______________________________
W. CHARLES SMITHSON
Secretary of the Senate
Approved _______________, 2019 ______________________________
KIM REYNOLDS
Governor