City passes seasonal certificate of occupancy ordinance
Property owners no longer required to pay CO fees per tenancy
The process of renting summer homes to visitors just got easier for landlords.
Asbury Park City Council members passed an ordinance Wednesday that allows property owners to obtain a seasonal certificates of occupancy [COs] for their properties through the city’s code enforcement department.
Council members John Loffredo, John Moor and Amy Quinn voted yes. Mayor Myra Campbell abstained from the vote. Deputy Mayor Sue Henderson was not in attendance at the at the meeting.
Campbell fears the seasonal CO use will put an extra burden on the city’s already weakened code department, she said.
“I have a great concern with the poor housing stock in parts of the city where slum landlords run rampant,” Campbell said. “We, in my opinion, need every single code enforcement officer inspecting the quality of life that some of our residents are exposed to. I would like to see code enforcement focus their efforts on cleaning up what is already a mess in the city.”
A certificate of occupancy is a document issued by the city confirming that a residence is in an acceptable state to be occupied. A landlord must obtain a CO prior to bringing new tenants into a property.
Previously, landlords were required to obtain a new CO every time a new tenant came in and a landlord who owned a weekly rental would have to get a new CO every week. Regular COs cost $100 per tenancy, according to Roberta Dietl, city code enforcement officer.
Under the new system, landlords can apply for seasonal COs licenses once a year at a cost of $250, according to the ordinance.
Licensees will have to post the rental CO on the back of the front door with a list of names and permanent addresses of each tenant and person paying for the summer rental and notify the city’s code department each time changes in tenancy take place during the summer rental period, the ordinance states. The seasonal CO is good from Memorial Day to Labor Day.
“I’m excited to see the summer CO ordinance pass,” said Councilwoman Amy Quinn. “Short term seasonal rentals have existed in Asbury Park for years, now we’re just able to regulate them.”
Condominium owners will also have to submit a letter of approval from their condominium association.
The ordinance does not apply to rooming houses or boarding houses, which are licensed and regulated separately.
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