LOCKPORT: Landlord registry proposal filed

If officials have their way, out-of-area rental property owners will be required to register with the City of Lockport within a few months.

Mayor Michael Tucker released the text of a proposed landlord registry law Wednesday. Copies are available to any interested person at the City Clerk’s office beginning now, in advance of a March 19 public hearing.

The proposal largely affects only property owners who don’t live in Niagara or an adjacent county — but there is a provision tucked in that would affect all property owners when they go to sell their properties.

The landlord registry is seen as a tool for helping city departments keep track of who owns what — and who’s to be called when there’s a legal or other problem at their property. According to the text, any rental property owner who does not live in Niagara, Erie, Orleans or Genesee County would have to list his name and legal address, not a post office box, with the city and list a property manager who lives in one of those counties. The property manager would be contacted about problems and/or served legal notices by the city.

The proposal calls for the city to appoint a “default” agent, the city assessor, in instances where the out-of-area property owner does not register and keep the information up-to-date. This clause is a suggestion by Buffalo Housing Court Judge Henry Nowak and, according to City Attorney John Ottaviano, if it’s approved by the Common Council, the City of Lockport would be the first municipality in the region to adopt it.

The default agent would represent the property in city matters. What that means, Ottaviano said, is an absentee landlord could be tried in absentia on code violations, and corrective actions could be taken without the landowner’s participation.

Having a default agent “is like waiving your rights,” Ottaviano said.

The proposal makes the failure to register a violation punishable by fines and/or jail time. Fines range from $250 to $2,500. Unpaid fines would become a lien on the property and would be applied to the owner’s tax bill.

The registry would be public, according to the proposal.

Local property owners would not be impacted by the law unless they sell property. The proposal calls for a “certificate of compliance” to be issued by the city when rental units are sold or transferred to a new owner. The certificate essentially says the city is informed who’s buying the property to ascertain registry is not required, according to Ottaviano.

The proposal, at this point, does not list any fees for registering or obtaining a compliance certificate.

Tucker said the Common Council might elect, as it’s voting on the law, to assign minimal fees, but it won’t be looking to the law as a means of gouging out-of-town landlords.

“We might charge 10 or 15 bucks to cover our costs. We’re not in it for the money,” he said.

The registry could be helpful to tenants having issues with their landlords. At 95 Niagara St., a property owned by a limited liability company with unknown address and contacts, NYSEG shut off the power last summer because its bills hadn’t been paid by the owner and tenants were evicted on the building inspection department’s order. Had the city known who to contact about the problem, Tucker said, it might have been able to avoid the evictions.