House Bill 138 passes, creates opportunity to curb vacant property problems in Ohio

The following was released on January 3, 2008 by the Greater Ohio campaign. For more information, call 614-258-1713.

With passage of House Bill (HB) 138 on December 12, 2007, the legislature has created opportunity to curb the vacant property problem in Ohio by removing some barriers to redevelopment. The Bill, which passed into law with a vote of 90 to 2, contains several provisions that ultimately will expedite the return of vacant properties to productive use, addressing one primary source of the vacant property problem—unknown ownership of property.

Vacant and abandoned properties, a growing problem throughout the state of Ohio, are increasingly havens of crime and vandalism, as well as perpetuating the decline in adjacent property values. HB 138’s provisions will help begin to turn the tide against those vacant property owners who are difficult, if not impossible, to locate due to improperly or unfiled deeds.

“HB 138 provides a crucial tool to expedite vacant property redevelopment in our communities—although additional tools are needed. ReBuild Ohio is thrilled to have played a role in educating policymakers about the need for new legislation to address the vacancy and abandonment problem throughout the state and will continue to do so,” said Greater Ohio Co-Director Lavea Brachman, who also co-chairs ReBuild Ohio, a statewide consortium concerned with the vacancy and abandonment issue.

The rare bi-partisan joint bill introduced by Representatives Foley and Blessing now requires purchasers of real property at a judicial sale to provide identifying information. This information will allow municipal corporations to conduct inspections of property subject to a writ of execution, as well as require judicial sales to be confirmed within thirty days of sale and to require offices who sell real property at a judicial sale to file a deed within fourteen days of confirmation. The bill also now authorizes courts and county boards of revision to transfer certain tax delinquent lands subject to judicial foreclosure without appraisal or sale, and permit a summary property description to be read at a judicial sale and offer property that did not sell at a judicial sale to a political subdivision before forfeiture to the state.

Greater Ohio strongly supported the bill. Prior to the Bill’s passage, a Greater Ohio and ReBuild Ohio contingent met with Speaker Husted to discuss the vacant and abandoned property issue and to explore the status of HB 138, which had been voted out of committee six months ago with only one opposing vote but had been withheld from a floor vote. Previously, Greater Ohio Co-Director Gene Krebs had testified in House Civil and Commercial Law Committee on May 23, 2007 that “the inability [to identify the physical owner of a property who is] responsible for code compliance, cleanup and maintenance erodes the property rights of adjacent landowners.” Krebs cited a study from Philadelphia which illustrated that a vacant property can erode all adjacent property values within 150 feet by as much as $7600. Krebs, a former House member himself, was very pleased with the outcome of Wednesday’s vote, saying; “I thought the speakers in favor of the bill were very eloquent, and I was very pleased with the broad base of support”.

• To read the bill, as it passed, in its entirety, go here.
• To watch the final discussion and the vote within the House, click here. (The discussion on HB138 begins at the 2:59 mark of the video).
• If you would like to know more about ReBuild Ohio, please go here.

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