Bill Text: NY A08849 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Defines vacant and abandoned residential property in relation to mortgage foreclosure actions; establishes plaintiffs in such matters shall maintain the subject property.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-02-14 - substituted by s7792 [A08849 Detail]

Download: New_York-2021-A08849-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          8849

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    January 18, 2022
                                       ___________

        Introduced by M. of A. ZINERMAN -- read once and referred to the Commit-
          tee on Judiciary

        AN  ACT  to  amend  the  real  property  actions and proceedings law, in
          relation to requiring a plaintiff in a mortgage foreclosure action  to
          maintain the subject property

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. Subdivision 2 of section 1307 of the real property  actions
     2  and  proceedings  law is amended by adding four new paragraphs (a), (b),
     3  (c), and (d) to read as follows:
     4    (a) A residential property is deemed vacant for the purposes  of  this
     5  section  if  the  residential property meets the definition of a "vacant
     6  and abandoned residential property" under section thirteen hundred  nine
     7  of  this article or there is an order or finding by a court of competent
     8  jurisdiction or by the municipality in which the residential property is
     9  located that the property is vacant;
    10    (b) A residential property is deemed abandoned by  the  mortgagor  if:
    11  (i)  All  owners  of  the residential property have indicated in writing
    12  that they have abandoned all rights of  possession  to  the  residential
    13  property;
    14    (ii) There is an order or finding by a court of competent jurisdiction
    15  or  by  the  municipality  in which the residential property is located,
    16  either on the initiative of the court or municipality or in response  to
    17  a  complaint  filed with the court or municipality by a tenant in lawful
    18  occupancy, that the property was abandoned by the mortgagor; or
    19    (iii) The plaintiff receives a complaint from a tenant in lawful occu-
    20  pancy of the residential property indicating that the owner of the resi-
    21  dential property has ceased maintaining the property and:
    22    (1) The plaintiff posts a notice  on  the  residential  property  that
    23  would be reasonably visible to the owner of the property indicating that
    24  the  property  is deemed abandoned and the owner must contact the plain-
    25  tiff at a number listed on the notice if the  owner  still  occupies  or
    26  claims the right to occupy the property; and

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD08533-04-2
        A. 8849                             2

     1    (2)  The  plaintiff  has  received no communication within one week of
     2  posting the notice of the owner's intention to occupy the property.
     3    (c)  Such  plaintiff shall have the right to peaceably enter upon such
     4  property, or to cause others to peaceably enter upon  the  property  for
     5  the  limited purpose of inspections, repairs and maintenance as required
     6  by this section, or as otherwise ordered by  court;  provided,  however,
     7  that if the property is occupied by a tenant, at least seven days notice
     8  must  be  given to such tenant, unless emergency repairs are required in
     9  which case reasonable notice shall be provided to the tenant.
    10    (d) Any plaintiff that enters a residential property  without  a  good
    11  faith  basis  for believing that the property is vacant or abandoned and
    12  who does not comply with the  requirements  of  paragraph  (b)  of  this
    13  subdivision  shall  be subject to a penalty of five hundred dollars that
    14  may be sought by the owner of the residential property or any tenant  in
    15  lawful  possession  of such property. This penalty may be recovered by a
    16  property owner or tenant in lawful occupancy  of  such  property  either
    17  within  the  foreclosure  action pending against the subject residential
    18  real property or in a separate action commenced to collect the penalty.
    19    § 2. This act shall take effect on the  same  date  and  in  the  same
    20  manner  as  a  chapter  of  the  laws of 2021 amending the real property
    21  actions and proceedings law relating to requiring a plaintiff in a mort-
    22  gage foreclosure action to maintain the subject property, as proposed in
    23  legislative bills numbers S. 1579-A and A. 5923-A, takes effect.