Certificate of Continued Occupancy Mount Laurel Nj Permit

On Monday March 8th, the Mount Laurel Township Council held a regular meeting to adopt two ordinances affecting Mt. Laurel property sellers and buyers. The ordinances adjust the fees requesting permits and mandates that the Township perform an inspection whenever ownership of a property is transferred. Highly contested by township residents, both ordinances passed unanimously by Township Council and will result in an overall increase that Mount Laurel residents will pay the township Construction Office for its services.

The first ordinance, #2021-5, was introduced to adjust permit and certificate fees that the Township issues. Bryant Curry, the Construction Code Official for Mount Laurel, recommended the changes based on time spent on permits and other costs associated with issuing permits. Fees for dozens of property-related topics were increased from $25 per permit or certificate to more than $100 per fee or certificate. Former Deputy Mayor Linda Bobo asked the council to reconsider adopting the resolution, citing the trying times that many Mount Laurel residents are in because of the COVID-19 pandemic. "All of those additional fees added onto the back of the Mount Laurel taxpayer is enormous, especially given the situation we're in right now. It seems really inappropriate to be raising fees… we are already struggling as is." Some fees were lowered, including those for inground pool permits, and a set fee was established for solar panels. The ordinance was approved unanimously by all of the members of the Township Council.

Mt. Laurel home sellers can expect increased township fees

The second ordinance requires that the township inspect any property that transfers ownership, residential or commercial, must be inspected for a certificate of occupancy by the Township. This is a new burden on the home seller. Fees for inspection are set at $125 for inspections requested 3 or less days prior to closing, $100 if requested four to ten days before closing, and $75 if requested more than eleven days. The fee for re-inspection is $25. Bryant Curry said that three houses in the last "few months'' had work done on them without proper permits, which could have potentially affected appraisals for those homes. These inspection would be good only for 90 days

Mt. Laurel Council Members Create More Barriers for Mt. Laurel Home Sellers

During the public hearing for the second ordinance, many township residents and real estate professionals spoke. They were concerned with the township mandating this type of inspection and questioning the need for such an inspection. The township would be looking at things such as electrical, egress, conditions of the property. Several residents questioned whether the township construction office would be able to keep up, as one resident complained that it was hard to get a hold of anyone at the construction office as it is currently. Byrant Curry stated that the construction office is "not looking to go out and hire additional people. I think what we have in our office now, we can handle this inspection load." The inspectors from the construction office are not engineers, but they are licensed inspectors. Some are specialized in electrical, while others might be in plumbing.

Resident Matthew Verney pointed out that realtors are "putting their licenses on the line" whenever they are selling a house. Sellers must sign a disclosure statement that they are liable for if what they write on the statement is inaccurate. He stated that we have real estate law for these types of issues and is concerned about the overreach of the Mount Laurel government, making Mount Laurel a "not very friendly place to live" because of this ordinance. Former Deputy Mayor Linda Bobo also spoke during the public hearing for this ordinance and had concerns about residents who did the right things and pulled permits for having work done on their houses getting "hit by the township again" for another inspection fee. She said that it felt like the township was trying to "double dip" on homeowners. She also pointed out that rental properties in Mount Laurel are inspected yearly by the township, and if a property owner goes to sell their rental property the township would inspect again. Township Manager Meredith Tomczyk said that she wouldn't expect the township to do another inspection, but Ms. Bobo pointed out that she would like to see that language in the ordinance itself.

Many realtors spoke and were extremely concerned about the additional burdens being placed on sellers. Banks and mortgage lenders already require certain inspections before granting loans. Dawn Hogan, a realtor for 20 years, pointed out that the council's concerns for buyers waiving home inspection fees are unfounded. She stated that in her experience, buyers will still go ahead with an inspection, but agree not to ask sellers to make all or any repairs to the property before closing. She also pointed out that Mount Laurel Fire Department performs an inspection for houses sold in Mount Laurel, with that inspection fee costing "upwards of three-hundred dollars." Ms. Hogan also said that this ordinance will "not make Mount Laurel one of the most desirable towns to live in." Last year, Mount Laurel was ranked number 16th in the country to live by Money Magazine. Maria Giarratano, another realtor operating in Mount Laurel, asked what recourse there is if the Township Inspectors perform a bad inspection and she did not receive an answer. She also pointed out that realtors educate buyers on how to file OPRAs with their township in order to learn more about a property.

Councilman Nik Moustakas was concerned about buyers waiving home inspections. Maria Giarratano told Mr. Moustakas that realtors "are not telling and forcing buyers to make these choices…. They are doing it on their own volition…. They are making that decision." Mr. Moustakas responded saying "well guess what, we are going to remove that decision from them." Ms. Giarratono responded that "Nik, you just admitted that you are taking the power away from the people… The power to negotiate between the buyer and the seller."

Ordinance #6-2021 was adopted unanimously by the township council. The council promised to clarify language in the ordinance to address resident confusion.

Keep Track of Your Local Government

The next Mount Laurel Township Council meeting will take place at 7:00 PM on April 12th and will be held via Zoom. If you wish to speak during the public participation portion at the next Council meeting, registration for the Council meetings can be found here .

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Source: https://www.mountlaurelmessenger.net/post/mount-laurel-township-adopts-ordinances-adding-costs-and-complications-for-mount-laurel-residents