City Code, ExplainedBetaPardon our dust while we build this out — expect some changes along the way.

This chapter requires owners of multifamily residential properties (three or more units) to disclose the property's legal use and any code violations before selling or transferring it.

Who this affects

Owners selling or exchanging multifamily buildings of three or more units, and the purchasers of those properties, since owners must obtain and deliver a use registration certificate before the sale closes.

Key rules

• Before entering an agreement of sale or transferring title, the owner must obtain a use registration certificate from the Code Enforcement Officer.
• The certificate is not required where the property will be demolished under a valid demolition permit, or where the property is sold at a foreclosure, tax, or other judicial sale.
• The certificate is valid for up to six months, and may be extended by up to two additional three-month endorsements (no fee for endorsements).
• The application fee for the certificate is fifty dollars ($50.), and the Code Enforcement Officer must review records and inspect the premises and issue the certificate within fifteen (15) days.
• The certificate must state the property's district classification and permitted uses, any variances or use permits and their conditions, the status of any open construction/electrical/plumbing/building permits, any nonconforming or illegal use, and a detailed list of violations.
• Every agreement of sale must include a provision stating the property's district classification, whether its use complies with district laws, and whether there is any notice of an uncorrected violation.
• If an owner omits a required disclosure provision from the agreement of sale, it is conclusively presumed the owner represented and warranted that the property complied with existing laws and had no uncorrected violations.
• The provisions of this chapter cannot be waived or disclaimed by any oral or written agreement.
• The owner must deliver the use registration certificate to the purchaser at or before signing the agreement of sale (or before transfer of title if no agreement is used), and the purchaser must sign a receipt that the owner returns to the Code Enforcement Office.
• Appeals from the certificate's findings must be filed in writing with the Code Enforcement Officer within three (3) days of issuance, and are referred to the BOCA Code Board of Appeals for building/safety/fire violations or the Zoning Hearing Board for classification/use matters.

Penalties

Any owner who violates §§ 172-6 (waiver prohibition) and 172-7 (certificate delivery) "shall be punished by a fine not exceeding six hundred dollars ($600.) or be imprisoned not more than ninety (90) days, or both." A sale is not automatically invalidated for noncompliance with this chapter unless the failure would otherwise be valid grounds for rescission.

Notable and archaic details

• The chapter states the City of Pottsville and its Code Enforcement Office bear no liability for errors or omissions in a use registration certificate, since it "is not a representation by the City of Pottsville or office that the subject property or its present use is or is not in compliance with the law."