Number
040782
Version
ORIGINAL
Reference
Sponsor
THE CHAIR
Title
An ordinance relating to recording of residential and commercial buildings.
Sections
200-33-49.5 rc
200-33-49.6 rc
200-51.5 rc
Analysis
This ordinance revises code provisions relating to recording requirements for residential and commercial buildings to explicitly include condominium units and condominium associations.
Body
Whereas, The City of Milwaukee has found, in its experience, that from time to time there are building code violations or repair and maintenance issues that affect the common elements or units of condominiums, or there are routine inspection or other services furnished to or performed at the common elements or units, and the City often lacks adequate information to ascertain a contact or other responsible person for seeing to the repair or maintenance, or for paying for the inspection or other services; and
Whereas, Amending city code provisions relating to recording of residential and commercial buildings is intended to treat condominium associations and condominium-unit owners more equally with developments and buildings that are under a different (non-condominium) form of ownership and with property of similar character; now, therefore
The Mayor and Common Council of the City of Milwaukee do ordain as follows:
Part 1. Section 200-33-49.5 of the code is repealed and recreated to read:
200-33. Fees
49.5. RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL BUILDING, CONDOMINIUM UNIT AND CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION RECORDING FEE.
a. The initial recording fee for a residential or commercial building, a condominium unit or a condominium association shall be $35.
b. There shall be a fee of $35 for filing a new application in the event of a change in ownership, and, unless accepted from the fee pursuant to s. 200-51.5-5-b, there shall be a fee of $35 for any other new or subsequent filing of an application required under s. 200-51.5.
c. There may be a fee of $35 for correcting any error or omission on an application filed with the department.
d. Owners, operators, condominium association operators and resident agents of condominium associations recorded under s. 200-51.5 may request and the department shall issue written verification of the contents of the department's recording file for their buildings, units, or associations (as the case may be).
e. Payment of any unpaid fees or charges shall be made prior to the acceptance of the application by the department.
Part 2. Section 200-33-49.6 of the code is repealed and recreated to read:
49.6. RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL BUILDING, CONDOMINIUM UNIT AND CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION RECORDING CODE ENFORCEMENT FEE. A monthly fee of $50 may be charged for failure to comply with an order to record a property, unit or association as required by and in accordance with s. 200-51.5.
Part 3. Section 200-51.5 of the code is repealed and recreated to read:
200-51.5. Recording of Residential and Commercial Buildings, and Condominium Units and Associations.
1. PURPOSE. Recording of residential and commercial buildings, and condominium units and associations is essential for the proper enforcement of the city's building and zoning code and for the department to carry out its responsibilities to safeguard persons and property.
2. RECORDING REQUIRED. a. All owners of residential or commercial buildings, all owners of commercial condominium units, all owners of non-owner-occupied residential condominium units, and all condominium associations (as defined in s. 703.02 (1m), Wis. Stats.) shall file with the department on forms provided by the department, an application to record such buildings, units and associations in compliance with this section. The application shall contain all information listed in sub. 4. An application of recording shall be filed with the department for each tax key-numbered parcel containing a residential or commercial building, and, in the case of condominium units that must file, for each tax-key-numbered unit. An application filed by a condominium association, however, shall be filed with the department for the common elements (as defined in s. 703.02 (2), Wis. Stats.) that are part of the condominium. Multiple buildings on a parcel with a single tax key number shall be recorded on one application. Failure to record with the department as required in this section shall subject the owner, and, in the case of condominium associations, the association and the condominium-unit owners, to the provisions provided in subs. 7 and 8.
b. If the address of the owner (or, in the case of condominium associations, the condominium's resident agent as required by s. 703.23, Wis. Stats.) is outside of Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Kenosha, Racine, Walworth, Washington or Waukesha county, the owner (or, as the case may be, the condominium association) shall have an operator of the building whose business or personal address is located within any of these counties. For the purpose of applying this section, "operator" means as defined in s. 200-08-64; and "condominium association operator" means the person who has charge, care or control of the condominium common elements.
c. In the event of the death of the owner of a building or of a condominium unit required to be recorded under this section, the estate or subsequent purchaser shall have 60 days to file an application for recording. In the event of the death of the resident agent of a condominium association required to be recorded under this section, the association shall have 60 days to file an application for recording.
d. In the event of any conveyance of any building or condominium unit required to be recorded under this section, the new owner shall file a new application for recording and pay the fee under s. 200-33-49.5 within 15 days from the date of the conveyance or, if the conveyance is by sale after foreclosure, then within 15 days of the date of court confirmation of the sale.
e. In the case of a land contract, both the land contract seller and land contract buyer shall sign and file the application for the same subject property and provide the legal name, business or personal address and business or personal telephone numbers of both parties on the same application form. Upon satisfaction of the land contract the land contract seller shall file a notification of the conveyance of interest as required in sub. 5-d, and the land contract buyer who has acquired the fee interest in the building or condominium unit shall file an updated application as required in this subsection.
3. EXCEPTIONS. This section shall not apply to owners of:
a. Owner-occupied one and 2 family buildings and owner-occupied residential condominium units where the ownership is recorded with the Milwaukee county register of deeds, jails, convents, monasteries, parish rectories, parsonages and similar facilities, hospitals and residential facilities licensed by the city of Milwaukee or the state of Wisconsin or government-owned buildings.
b. Newly-constructed residential and commercial buildings until actual occupancy of any units in the buildings commences.
c. Residential and commercial buildings and condominium units owned for less than 15 calendar days prior to sale or other transfer of the buildings or units to new owners. However, the owners who owned for less than those 15 calendar days shall comply with the notification requirement in sub. 5-d.
4. APPLICATION. a. The applications of all owners and of all condominium associations required to file under this section shall be filed with the department on forms provided by the department. The completed application shall be signed by at least one of the owners, and, in the case of condominium associations, by the association's current resident agent under s. 703.23, Wis. Stats., be notarized as an affidavit under penalty of s. 946.32(1)(a), Wis. Stats., and shall contain all of the following information:
a-1. The tax key number of the parcel containing the residential or commercial building or condominium unit, the legal name and date of birth of the owner of the property (or in the case of an application filed by a condominium association, the legal name and date of birth of the resident agent of the condominium association), a business or personal address and a business or personal telephone number of the owner (or in the case of a condominium association, of the resident agent) where the owner (or the condominium association's resident agent) can be contacted readily by any tenant or by the department of neighborhood services. Corporations, limited partnerships, limited liability companies and limited liability partnerships shall provide the name and address of their registered agents on file with the Wisconsin department of financial institutions. Corporations, condominium associations, limited partnerships, limited liability companies, limited liability partnerships, churches or other religious institutions, trusts and estates shall provide a natural person's name, address and telephone number for contact. A post office box number shall not be acceptable as a required address. For the purpose of applying this section, "owner" means each person who jointly or severally is vested with all or part of the legal title to the premises or all or part of the beneficial ownership and right to present use and enjoyment of the premises. The term includes, but is not limited to a mortgagee in possession, trustees, life estate holders, condominium associations, land contract sellers, land contract buyers, general and limited partnerships, corporations, limited liability companies and cooperatives.
a-2. The legal name, business or personal address, and business or personal telephone number of the person or persons authorized to collect or receive rents, act as operator of the building and maintain the premises or common elements of a condominium (as the case may be), and who can be contacted readily by the tenant or by the department of neighborhood services. Post office box numbers shall not be acceptable as an address for personal service. A preferred mailing address such as a post office box number may be furnished to the department in addition to the addresses required in this subsection. If there is a person acting as an operator or as a condominium association operator, that person shall sign a statement acknowledging acceptance of liability for a code violation and provide his or her business or personal telephone number.
a-3. The number of residential dwelling units in residential buildings, or in the case of filings for condominium units or condominium associations, the number of units in the condominium.
b. If a building has multiple owners, at least one owner is required to sign and notarize the application, except in cases where the owners are land contract sellers, and land contract buyers, in which case at least one land contract seller and one land contract buyer must sign and notarize the application; or where the application is being filed by a condominium association in which case the association's resident agent and the condominium association operator must sign and notarize the application. However, except in the case of the applications filed by condominium associations, the application shall contain the legal names, business or personal addresses, and business or personal telephone numbers of all owners of the respective property or condominium unit for which the application is being filed.
c. If the signing owner (or as the case may be, the condominium association's resident agent) in par. b does not reside in the 7-county area specified in sub. 2-b, he or she shall have an operator of the building (or in the case of condominium associations, a condominium association operator) whose business or personal address is located within the 7-county area. No more than one operator shall be required to be designated for a building or buildings on a single tax key-numbered parcel, and no more than one condominium association operator shall be required to be designated for a condominium association.
d. Applications filed by condominium associations shall also identify the name and address of the association, the type entity that the association is, whether the association is self-managed or has hired or retained management, and the identity of any hired or retained management.
5. REGULATIONS. a. In the event of a change in any information listed on the application for recording, a new recording application shall be filed with the department on forms provided by the department and the fee paid within 15 days of such event. Any such application submitted later than that 15-day period shall result in the doubling of the fee provided in s. 200-33-49.5 and subject the owner or required filer to sanctions listed in sub. 8.
b. Except as provided in par. a there shall be no fee for the filing of an amendment to an existing application where the change in information does not involve a change of ownership interest in the property; where the change in information is associated with a land contract buyer paying off the land contract and becoming a title holder or with the land contract relationship otherwise being extinguished; or where the change in information results from the sale or transfer of ownership between husband, wife, father, mother, son, daughter, brother, sister, grandfather, grandmother, grandson or granddaughter.
c. The commissioner may refund fees paid in error to the department.
d. The owner who conveys any ownership interest in any building or condominium unit regulated by this section shall notify the department within 15 days of the conveyance of that ownership interest in such building or unit and shall provide the name and address of the buyer and the date of conveyance at no charge on forms provided by the department providing, however, there shall be a charge of double the fee in s. 200-33-49.5 if the conveying owner was also required, but failed to file the application under this section.
6. SERVICE OF ORDER. a. Any order issued under this section shall identify the section of the code to which the order applies in accordance with s. 200-12-2-b, and shall be served upon the owner of the building or unit as that owner is identified in the most recent application on file; or, in the case of orders relating to common elements or to condominium associations, upon the condominium association's resident agent as that agent is identified in the most recent application on file.
b. The order may also be posted on the premises.
c. The commissioner may issue an order to the owner, or, as the case may be, to the condominium association, to comply with this section. If the owner or association fails to comply with this section within the time set forth in the order, the commissioner may assess the owner or association a monthly recording code enforcement fee under s. 200-33-49.6 until compliance is obtained. The recording code enforcement fee may be assessed and collected as a special tax on the property or otherwise collected as allowed by law.
7. RENT ABATEMENT. a. When an owner has failed to record a building or condominium unit as required in this section, and conditions exist on the property that constitute health or safety violations of this code, the commissioner may issue an order in compliance with this section that shall be served pursuant to sub. 6. Upon failure of the owner to comply with the order, the commissioner may issue a notice of noncompliance to be served in accordance with sub. 6 for the purpose of advising both the owner and tenant of the tenant's right to abate 50% of all rents due after the time of appeal under s. 200-17 has expired, which date shall be set forth in the notice of noncompliance.
b. Appeals of orders and notices under this section shall be made pursuant to s. 200-17. If the owner files an appeal, the owner shall notify all tenants in writing of such appeal and that the right of the tenant to abate rent is suspended during the pendency of the appeal.
c. The tenant's right to abate rent shall be suspended during the pendency of an appeal of any order or notice issued under this section.
8. SANCTION. Any owner, former owner or operator of the property, or any condominium association (or resident agent, condominium association operator or other signatory of an application filed on behalf of an association), failing to comply with this section or providing false, misleading or fraudulent information in violation of this section shall be subject to the penalties provided in s. 200-19.
LRB
APPROVED AS TO FORM
_________________________
Legislative Reference Bureau
Date:_____________________
Attorney
IT IS OUR OPINION THAT THE ORDINANCE
IS LEGAL AND ENFORCEABLE
________________________
Office of the City Attorney
Date:____________________
Requestor
Neighborhood Services
Drafter
LRB04332-3
BJZ/rk
9/14/2004