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HomeMy WebLinkAbout042 - 05/04/2010 - AMENDING SECTION 5-265 OF THE CITY CODE RELATING TO OCCUPANCY DISCLOSURE STATEMENTS ORDINANCE NO. 042, 2010 OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS AMENDING SECTION 5-265 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS RELATING TO OCCUPANCY DISCLOSURE STATEMENTS WHEREAS,residential rental housing in the City can be subject to overcrowding which can lead to a decline in neighborhood quality of life, neighborhood appearance and the value of real estate; and WHEREAS, to address these concerns, the City has, for many years, limited the number of persons who can occupancy dwelling units in the City; and WHEREAS, on October 18, 2005, the City Council adopted Ordinance No. 123, 2005, amending various sections of the City's Land Use Code ("LUC")to clarify these occupancy limits and make them more readily enforceable; and WHEREAS, in conjunction with these amendments to the LUC, the City Council subsequently adopted Ordinance No. 124,2005,making certain changes to the provisions of the City Code, including the addition of a provision requiring that any person selling or leasing a dwelling unit in the City give advance notice of the applicable occupancy limits for the units they are renting to potential property owners and potential tenants on a form provided by the City and signed by all parties to the transaction; and WHEREAS, recent staff investigations of alleged occupancy violations have shown that landlords sometimes do not sign the disclosure statements in a timely fashion,and do not present the disclosure statements to their tenants for signature at the time the lease is executed as required by the City Code, but do so only if the property owner and occupants are under investigation for a violation; and WHEREAS, the City Council continues to believe that property owners and tenants should be jointly responsible for ensuring that the occupancy of a rental unit is within lawful limits; and WHEREAS, in order to address concerns about the accuracy of the required disclosure statements,the timeliness of their execution,and their availability to the City upon request,City staff has recommended that Section 5-265 of the City Code be amended to require that all signatures on the disclosure statement either be notarized or be verifiable by electronic means and that the statements be kept at the leased premises; and WHEREAS,Council desires to make the foregoing amendments in the interest of the health, safety and welfare of tenants, the City's neighborhoods and the public. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS as follows: Section 1 . That Section 5 -236 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended by the addition of a new definition "Electronic record ' which shall read as follows : Electronic record shall mean a record created, generated, sent, communicated, received or stored by electronic means and reproducible in a physical document. Section 2 . That Section 5 -265 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended to read as follows : Sec. 5-265. Posting; inspection of books and records ; disclosure. (a) Any certificate of occupancy for a boarding or rooming house specifying the number of allowable tenants must be posted on the back of the front door of the dwelling. (b) Whenever reasonable cause exists to believe that a violation of the Code or Land Use Code has occurred at any rental dwelling unit, the owner and property manager, if any, of said unit shall, immediately upon request, make available to the City all lease, rental payment and tenant information pertaining to the unit, together with the written disclosure statement required by Subsection (c) of this Section. (c) Any person selling or leasing a dwelling unit shall forthwith provide all purchasers, lessees or sublessees of such unit with a written disclosure statement, on a form provided by the City, specifying the maximum permissible occupancy of such unit under Section 3 . 8 . 16 of the Land Use Code. Such disclosure statement shall be signed and dated by all parties to the transaction immediately upon execution of any deed, contract for purchase and sale, or lease pertaining to such unit. .All signatures on such disclosure statement shall be notarized by a notary public or, as an alternative to notarization, an electronic record may be used to verify the date that the disclosure statement was signed by the parties. In the case of a lease, the disclosure statement shall be attached to a copy of the fully executed lease agreement and retained at the leased premises by the owner of the unit and the property manager, if any. In the case of a multi-family building with an on-site manager, the lease and disclosure statement may be retained in the office of the property manager for the unit. If an electronic record is used to verify the date that the disclosure statement was signed, then documentation evidencing the electronic record shall also be attached to a copy of the fully executed lease agreement. (d) Notwithstanding the foregoing, a new disclosure statement need not be provided upon renewal of a written lease agreement if all parties to such renewal agreement executed a disclosure statement at the time of execution of the original lease agreement. -2- (e) It shall be a violation of this Section for any person to rent a dwelling unit,or portion thereof, to any person who has failed or refused to sign the disclosure statement required by Subsection (c) of this Section. (f) It shall be a violation of this Section for any person to occupy a dwelling unit pursuant to a lease or sublease unless such person has signed the disclosure statement required by Subsection (c) of this Section. Introduced,considered favorably on first reading,and ordered published this 6th day of April, A.D. 2010, and to be presented for final passage on the 4th day ay, A.D. 2010. Mayo ATTEST: J City Clerk Passed and adopted on final reading on the 4th day of M , A.D. 2010. xay Mayor , \ATTEST: City Clerk -3-