Previously reported in November 2022, The University of Memphis School of Law’s Neighborhood Preservation Clinic represents the City of Memphis in public nuisance lawsuits seeking recourse against the owners of badly neglected, vacant and abandonedREAD MORE
Community Highlight: Toledo OH Neighborhood Associations Website/Map
In a full length feature, WTVG discussed various efforts underway in Toledo to address blight. Community engagement is a critical component of any successful strategy. What we hope to be an ongoing feature highlighting uniqueREAD MORE
Colorado Lawmakers Target HOAs
Originally reported on in May 2022, Colorado homeowners were experiencing what was reported as “predatory” behavior, such as aggressive code violation enforcement and penalties, along with foreclosure. Now in a feature from the Denver Post:READ MORE
Questioning Enforcement of Eviction Policy
One local Mayor is questioning his community’s current eviction policy that may discriminate against renters, while homeowners exhibiting similar problems do not get the same treatment. As communities struggle with finding the proper balance inREAD MORE
New York State Keeps the Focus on Zombie Properties
State Senator Brian Kavanagh, Chair of the Senate Committee on Housing, Construction and Community Development, announced that the Senate Housing Committee convened its first meeting of the new legislative session and advanced several significant billsREAD MORE
St Louis Post Dispatch Op-Ed: Taking Matters into One’s Own Hands “Ruling on McKee nuisance property should prompt more neighbors to sue”
A recent editorial discusses a ruling by St. Louis Circuit Court Judge Michael Stelzer in favor of a neighborhood association in its nuisance suit with a prominent local investor. The article advocates for neighbors ofREAD MORE
Tax Lien Sales or Tax Deed Sales
In the fall of 2023, the Center for Community Progress released a blog posting discussing the difficulties with tax lien sales and suggesting a better alternative, already implemented in a couple of New York communites.READ MORE
Florida Bill Going After Squatters
Following a story that received national exposure, State Representative Kevin Steele has introduced House Bill 621 in order to “close a legal loophole” protecting landlords from squatters and “adverse possession” “Steele’s bill would not onlyREAD MORE
Blight Reduction to Address Gun Violence
We have previously provided studies (see below) demonstrating the connection between abandoned properties/blight and crime, specifically gun violence. Now a year after the most recent report, Philadelphia is implementing a pilot program that appears toREAD MORE
Local Property Rights Play a Crucial Role
In a recent column, nationally recognized columnist, speaker and publisher John Newby (Building Main Street, not Wall Steet) focuses on the value of effective property regulation and enforcement, to mitigate blight and its effect onREAD MORE
Hidden landlords: renters’ woes soar as property owners hide their identities
When the headline says it all! A recent article from The Guardian discusses how LLCs are utilized to hide ownership information and the status of the “LLC Transparency Act” a bill proposing disclosure of all LLC owners,READ MORE
Tax Foreclosure Challenges
Over the course of one week, three articles from across the country outlined specific challenges in utilizing tax foreclosures to address blight in their respective communities. Akron, OH: Five years after Ohio’s first coordinated foreclosureREAD MORE