Blight Declared Public Nuisance In Cape Canaveral

BREVARD COUNTY • CAPE CANAVERAL, FLORIDA – Vacant buildings and real property under foreclosure are a major source of blight in commercial and residential neighborhoods, especially when the owner of mortgagee fails to property maintain the property.

These vacant buildings can also have a negative impact on the local economy. In many case real property under foreclosure often suffers from lack of maintenance and becomes neglected during the time it takes a mortgagee to complete the foreclosure process and secure the property.

These blight and negative conditions are now declared a public nuisance in Cape Canaveral.

Recently the City of Cape Canaveral has adopted a new ordinance that requires lenders to register property securing a loan in default and maintain vacant property.  Lenders of property in default must register with the City within ten days of default.

Additionally, a lender is responsible for a number of maintenance and security requirements if the property is deemed vacant.  Finally, the city has also provided specific posting requirements to be clearly displayed at the vacant property as well as a requirement that the property be inspected at least once every 30 days to ensure compliance with this ordinance.

“With 61 percent of all code enforcement cases involving foreclosed homes, we needed a legislative vehicle to track these properties and make sure the lender was held accountable for their upkeep and repair,” said John Bond of the Cape Canaveral City Council, who voted to approve the ordinance.

“Previously, a lot of research was involved to find the owner and, even then, it was still difficult to get a response in a lot of those cases. The new law requires monthly inspections along with specified maintenance and security of those properties.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Bobby Freeman, a life-time resident of Brevard County, has been a top Realtor in the area for two decades. In his first year as an agent, Freeman received a Rising Star award from his Brokers. Since then he has achieved numerous sales awards and has recently been presented with the prestigious RE/MAX Hall of Fame Award.

Freeman, Jennifer McCoy and Nikki McCoy Freeman are family partners for RE/MAX Elite’s McCoy-Freeman Group. Together they have more than 30 years of extensive experience in all aspects of the real estate industry and have sold over $150 million. Among McCoy-Freeman Group’s achievement are RE/MAX Hall of Fame, RE/MAX 100% Club, Certified Distressed Property Experts (CDPE), Accredited Buyer’s Representative (ABR) and voted Best Realtor in Brevard County. The group has been featured in many news publications including CNN Money Magazine, CNNMoney.com, WFTV 9 ABC News, Coastal Condo Living, & Hot Retirement Towns Magazine and SpaceCoastDaily.com.

For more information log on to BrevardRealtyConnection.com