Can a North Dakota court skip the redemption period when a foreclosed house is abandoned?
If a North Dakota court finds a mortgaged home abandoned, it can eliminate the owner's redemption period in the foreclosure judgment, or let the lender or sheriff's-certificate holder take possession and collect rents until the redemption period ends. Otherwise, anyone who was a party to the foreclosure can redeem within 60 days after the sale; abandoned property and farmland are the exceptions.
A lender that reasonably believes the property is abandoned can say so in its foreclosure complaint or petition the court to decide; after the sheriff's sale, the holder of the sheriff's certificate can do the same. When abandonment is raised by petition, notice of the hearing must be mailed to the owner's last-known address at least ten days before it.
A sworn affidavit from the sheriff, a deputy, a building inspector, a zoning or housing official, or another local official, stating that no one actually lives there, is first-look (prima facie) evidence that the property is abandoned.
- The affidavit has to name at least one sign of abandonment, such as boarded-up or shuttered windows, several broken panes, or doors that are broken, unhinged or never locked.
- Gas, electric or water service being shut off, or trash and debris piling up on the property, also count.
- Two or more police reports of trespassing or vandalism there also qualify, as does a building sliding below the community's minimum standards for safety and sanitation.
The affidavit rule covers only homes of fewer than five units on ten acres or less, and not model homes, houses still being built, or land used for farming. The lender also doesn't have to actually serve its notice before foreclosure when the property is abandoned under that affidavit rule.
Own a North Dakota house that sits empty while the mortgage payments fall behind? Read how a North Dakota foreclosure moves from notice to sheriff's sale.
Who looks after an empty house during a North Dakota foreclosure?
In an ordinary North Dakota foreclosure, the owner keeps the right to possess, rent out and use the property through the redemption period, except where the abandonment rules apply. When the court finds the home abandoned, it can instead hand the lender or the sheriff's-certificate holder possession, use and rents until the redemption period runs out.
The court can consider remedies to keep the property from going to waste, either in the foreclosure case or on an abandonment petition.
Once a property has been found abandoned and a sheriff's deed or a deed in lieu of foreclosure is recorded, the new owner can keep or dispose of belongings left behind without a court process.
Can a North Dakota court put a receiver in charge of a mortgaged property at risk?
Yes. A court hearing a foreclosure can appoint a receiver when the mortgaged property is in danger of being lost, removed or seriously damaged.
Can a North Dakota city order a dilapidated house repaired or torn down?
North Dakota lets a city pass an ordinance to repair, remove or demolish a building that is a fire hazard, is dangerous to the people in it, or that the owner leaves in a dilapidated condition. The ordinance must give the owner written notice of a hearing before the city's governing body takes final action.
It must also give the owner a reasonable time to appeal a final order to court.
What the city spends to demolish, repair or remove the building becomes a lien on that property, which can be foreclosed in court. If the property isn't worth enough to cover the cost, the city gets a lien for the rest on every other property the owner has or later buys in that city.
North Dakota law also gives all of its municipalities the power to declare what counts as a nuisance and to prevent, abate and remove it.
When an owner or occupant refuses an order to do work that a local ordinance requires, the city can do the work and bill them. An unpaid bill can be assessed against the property and collected the same way as other city taxes.
What happens to a North Dakota house when the property taxes go unpaid?
Once property taxes have been unpaid for two years or more, the county auditor must send a notice of tax lien foreclosure by June 1. The tax lien is foreclosed on the October 1 after that notice is served.
If no one pays by then, the interests of the owner, the mortgage lender and other lienholders pass to the county. When county records show a house on the property, the sheriff serves the notice in person on an owner who lives in North Dakota.
After the county takes title, the former owner, the owner's estate, or the owner's parent, spouse or child can buy the property back for as long as the county still holds it.
If the county sells it for more than the taxes, assessments, interest and costs, the county holds the extra for 90 days after the sale. That extra goes to the owner of record who files an undisputed claim within those 90 days.
If the county pays to clean up, repair or demolish a forfeited property neglected by its prior owner and the sale falls short, the unrecovered cost becomes a lien on other property that owner has in the county.
How do you report a neglected property in Fargo, North Dakota?
Fargo encourages residents to report neighborhood problems through its FargoOne reporting system. For people who would rather call or email, the city keeps a list of which department handles each common neighborhood problem.
Fargo's Inspections Department enforces the city's building codes and some of its ordinances. The Inspections Department is at 225 4th Street North in Fargo, phone 701.241.1561.
If a concern isn't on that list, the city asks people to contact whichever department seems most likely to help.
You can also tell me where it is. I'll find out who owns it and reach out about buying it and fixing it up.